Light and Crispy Waffles
I love these light and crispy waffles. Our recipe is quick and simple to make and produces the best homemade waffles. Jump to the Waffles Recipe or watch our quick recipe video showing you how we make it.
Watch Us Make The Recipe
How To Make Light and Crispy Waffles
If you are looking for light and crispy waffles then you are most certainly in the right place. I love my waffles to be on the thinner side. Our recipe makes four to five thin and crispy waffles (maybe 1/2-inch thick). The recipe can be made quickly and calls for ingredients we always have in our kitchen. If you are looking to make thicker Belgian waffles or are using a deep waffle iron, you will get closer to three waffles using our recipe below.

Waffle Batter Ingredients
Let me walk you through what you will need so you can say goodbye to flavorless, floppy waffles and hello to waffles that are light and crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle.
All-purpose flour is my go-to flour for this recipe. You can try whole wheat flour if you’d like, just expect the texture to be a little heavier.
Cornstarch is our “secret ingredient” for making the crispiest waffles. Mixed with flour, cornstarch guarantees that they will be perfectly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
Baking powder and baking soda help the waffles rise and brown. For the lightest waffles, I recommend using both.
Sugar, salt, and vanilla extract provide lots of flavor. I keep the sugar amount low since I love pouring maple syrup on top, but for sweeter waffles, you can increase the sugar. I call for 1 tablespoon, but adding an additional tablespoon wouldn’t hurt.
Milk and oil are the liquid components to the recipe. You can use regular milk or non-dairy milk. As for the oil, I stick with something that tastes neutral like grape seed or safflower oil. For a coconut flavor, you could try melted coconut oil. If you are wondering about butter, you can use it, but the oil will produce a more light and airy waffle.
Egg adds tenderness and provides structure. Just one egg does the trick. If you want waffles without eggs, you can substitute with a flax egg.
How To Make Buttermilk Waffles
Since sharing our recipe, many of our readers have asked if the recipe can be made using buttermilk. The answer is 100% yes! Since we rarely have buttermilk in the fridge when waffle cravings hit, we thought it was important to share how to make them without buttermilk, but the great thing about this recipe is that you can use regular milk, non-dairy milk, and even buttermilk.
Step By Step Method
The process for making these waffles could not be simpler. Let me walk you through how I do it:
- Whisk the dry ingredients together. That’s the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and a touch of salt.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together in another bowl or do what I do and whisk them right in a measuring jug. Hooray for less dishes!
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients. I whisk until I no longer see streaks of flour. If there are a few small lumps of flour left, that’s okay.
- Set the batter aside for 10 minutes. In this time, you can preheat your oven (I talk about why below) as well as your waffle iron. The 10 minutes of rest time allows the baking powder to activate.
- Cook the waffles. I use about 1/2 cup of batter for each waffle, but the amount of batter will depend on your waffle iron.
- Transfer cooked waffles to a warm (200°F) oven so they stay warm and crisp.




More Of My Waffle Tips
Don’t overwork the batter. Just like pancakes or muffins, you want to be gentle when mixing the wet and dry ingredients together. Only whisk or stir until just mixed — no need for beating here.
Be prepared to throw away the first waffle. Unless you know your waffle iron like the back of your hand, you’ll probably need the first waffle to test out temperature and cooking time. After the first waffle you should have a better understanding of the amount of batter to add (ours takes a 1/2 cup of batter), the best heat setting and timing.
Before you start making your waffles, heat the oven to 200° F. Once each waffle is done, place them directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp. Repeat with the remaining batter, holding the waffles in the oven (try not to stack them). The extra few minutes in the oven adds even more crispiness to the outside of the waffle and keeps them warm for serving.
For extra light and crispy waffles, separate the eggs. Mix the yolk into the wet ingredients. Then, whip the egg white until stiff peaks form. Once you’ve combined the dry and wet ingredients, fold in the beaten egg whites. Separating the egg and beating the white adds airiness to the batter and makes them extra light.

More Easy Breakfast Recipes
- These Easy Fluffy Pancakes are my go-to pancakes. Or try our Easy and Delicious Whole Wheat Pancakes.
- If you love banana, try these Spiced Buttermilk Banana Pancakes.
- For fall-inspired breakfast, try our Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes with Butter Pecan Syrup or these Cinnamon Pancakes with a Cinnamon Roll Glaze
Recipe updated, originally posted February 2014. Since posting this in 2014, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear and added a quick recipe video. – Adam and Joanne
Light and Crispy Waffles
- PREP
These light and crispy waffles come together quickly. Cornstarch is the secret for crispy waffles. Mixed with flour, cornstarch guarantees that your waffles will be perfectly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
* This recipe has been developed and tested using a standard waffle iron, not one that makes thick Belgium-style waffles. To see the type of waffle iron we use, watch the video shared in the article.
You Will Need
3/4 cup (100 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (30 grams) cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (235 ml) milk, whole or 2% reduced fat milk are best
1/3 cup (80 ml) vegetable or lightly flavored oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Butter, syrup and/or berries, for serving
Directions
- Prepare Batter
- Make Waffles
Whisk the flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
In another bowl or large measuring jug, whisk the milk, vegetable oil, egg and vanilla together until blended.
Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and whisk until just mixed. Set batter aside for 10 to 15 minutes so the baking powder has time to activate.
Heat the oven to 200° F and heat the waffle iron.
Pour the batter onto the heated waffle iron (ours takes about 1/2 cup) and cook until the waffle is crisp and golden brown. Immediately set the cooked waffle directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp.
Repeat with the remaining batter, holding the waffles in the oven (try not to stack them). Serve with butter, syrup and berries.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Buttermilk Waffles: To make buttermilk waffles, simply replace the milk with 1 cup of buttermilk. Or, use a combination of milk and buttermilk.
- Extra Light Waffles: For even lighter waffles you can separate the egg. Mix the yolk into the wet ingredients. Then, whip the egg white until stiff peaks form. Once you’ve blended the dry and wet ingredients, fold in the beaten egg white.
- About the Salt: We use kosher salt. If you don’t have it on hand, keep this in mind: 1 teaspoon fine sea or table salt = about 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt.
- Recipe inspired and adapted from Aretha Frankensteins Recipe
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA Supertracker recipe calculator to calculate approximate values. We assumed 5 waffles. The calculations below are for 1 of 5 waffles.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste

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The recipe looks awesome.. I just wanna know which waffle is good in taste, buttermilk or only with milk.. I have made both but what I have felt, buttermilk makes the waffle extra fluffy and soft.. I always want waffle crispy from outside and soft from inside and it never comes out like this.. Is it because of buttermilk
I just made this for breakfast and it was really nice! The only thing I did was to add an extra 2 tbsps of plain flour because I didn’t want it too runny and ½tsp cinnamon. I topped it with some butter and maple syrup and I’m glad I tried this recipe!
P.s. I saved 2 for icecream for later!
These crispy waffles were a complete hit with the family. I used gluten free flour and I didn’t have any baking soda,and they still tasted great and were perfectly crispy. I’m saving this recipe you can bet!
The best waffle I ever had was a Belgian Waffle in a local restaurant in our area. It was so crispy and light. For many years I have tried several waffle recipes and just could not get the waffles to come out crispy,or at least stay crispy. I made your recipe this morning for my husband and me on our heart Waffle Iron. What caught my eye was the cornstarch, and I looked no further for another recipe. The waffles turned out perfect…crispy and light. My batter was thicker than yours, not sure why, as I followed the recipe to a Tee. Thank you for this great recipe!
I’ve been looking for a good crispy waffle recipe. My waffles always turn out really soft. This recipe was awesome!! The best I’ve ever made. I used my cheap heart-shaped waffle iron and they turned out perfect.
I have tried many waffle recipe online. I came across your recipe and this is by far the best most light crispy waffles I ever made. I have a vertical waffle maker so works alot better with a slightly runnier batter. I will be using this for my all time favorite thank you