As a flavor delivery system, the waffle itself is hard to beat. The little square divots create the perfect platform for deliciousness to find extra depth. You can stumble across entire ravines of syrup or butter or fruit. The pancake’s flat surfaces can never provide that level of satisfaction. Sadly, few of us have time to whip up a batch every morning from scratch. Cleaning a waffle iron can take up the better part of the morning if you’re not careful.
Luckily, frozen waffles do the trick and take literally zero effort. Toss a couple in the toaster while the coffee (or tea) brews and a few minutes later that toaster will pop, announcing the arrival of something delicious. From there, the world is your oyster. Top those piping hot waffles with butter, syrup, fruit, jam, jelly, peanut butter, whipped cream, smoked salmon, fried chicken, avocado … hell, even oysters if you want. Don’t let anyone tell you a waffle can’t be savory.
With all of this in mind, we thought we’d rank the absolute best frozen waffles around. To be completely honest, there’s not too much variation in these frozen waffles. The good ones are always good and the bad ones are pretty bad. Instead of just listing a bunch of similar brands, we’ve gone a little deeper and found some frozen waffles we love that buck the trend of wheat, milk, and eggs — blending new recipes for our ever-changing times. Get the syrup ready.
10. Whole Foods 365 Organic Homestyle Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/g3KaVOJYg5/
Amazon has made Whole Foods’ 365 very accessible since their take over. And while this one drops in at number ten, these are not bad waffles. They are a bit heftier than the regular white wheat waffles you get in the frozen aisle, but they’re still a perfectly good base to build your waffle dreams upon.
9. Nature’s Promise Organic Homestyle Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/Be-iAi1BMsT/
Nature’s Promise sole purpose is to make great food in a sustainable and organic way that’s also affordable. Noble endeavors all. Their frozen waffles have a decent fluffiness to them that edge out 365. They’re not overly sweet, since they’re sweetened with pear juice instead of processed sugars, and they have the crucial component of a nice hint of salt.
Definitely worth seeking these ones out for an early morning toaster-test-run.
8. Eggo Minis
https://www.instagram.com/p/Baw7LS7FdDH/
We’re not gonna lie. Eggo Minis are in the higher reaches of the stoner-food Pantheon. Smoke, vape, or eat your favorite Indica and try not to eat a whole box of these. Melt some cheese on top and then dip them in some gauc and you’ll complete the stoner trifecta of oddly delicious.
7. Target Brand Homestyle Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/BhCMWp5FAkV/
Target’s Waffles are the best stab at imitating the wonders of the Eggo. The waffles have a nice lightness to them while still feeling like a cake. The surface tends to crisp up nicely and the price point is super low. If you worry about additives, you may want to check the ingredients list before you dive in. Likewise with Eggo if we’re being fair.
6. Van’s Organic Waffles
Van’s Organic is one of the best frozen waffle brands on the market these days. “So, why then is it at sixth?” you ask. Well, their organic variety is good, but not their best. More on that later.
These waffles crisp up really well in the toaster and they have that perfect level of hefty versus fluffy. You don’t feel too weighed down after eating a couple, which is always a plus. And they’re wholly organic, another check in the win column.
5. Liberated Paleo Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/BeEy5KFhKY1/
Finding a good alternative to wheat flour waffles is getting easier and easier. Liberated Paleo uses cashews, coconut, egg, honey, baking soda, sea salt, and vanilla to make their frozen waffles. That’s it. There’s a nice sweetness here from the honey and the cashew flour adds a hearty edge that works in waffle form. Overall, these waffles are easy to swap in for regular waffles without much fuss or protest from waffle purists.
4. Kashi 7 Grain Vegan Waffles
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Kashi’s 7 Grain Waffles combine whole grain flours — from barley to millet to red wheat to oats — to create a complex and tasty waffle. These ones crisp up really nicely and are on the heftier side, making them a great base for stacking some serious toppings.
3. Birch Benders Paleo Toaster Waffles
Birch Benders has been making great pancake and waffle mixes for a while. Now, they’ve branched out into the frozen waffle game with a Paleo waffle made from tiger nut (a type of sedge grass), cassava, and coconut. The waffles offer a big protein delivery of 11 grams if that’s what you’re into. Overall, these ones toast up very nicely with a good crisp to them and are surprisingly fluffy for a paleo product. If you’re going grain-free, these waffles are your best play.
2. Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfYg_NpFKdK/
Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles are shockingly close to the wheat counterparts that you feel in love with. The waffles are made with a mix of soy, rice, and potato flour and use fruit juice instead of high fructose corn syrup to give them a nice sweet edge. Basically, you can swap these organic and gluten-free waffles out for the standard, old-school wheat ones without missing a step. They’re just straight up tasty.
1. Eggo Homestyle Waffles
https://www.instagram.com/p/BhH0OyhlysY/
Sometimes you have to give into the nostalgia your palate knows and love. The organic Van’s and Birch Bender Paleo’s are for the day-to day-when you need a kick of calories to get the morning going. Eggos are for when you need to indulge. And, let’s face it, we all need a cheat day.
There’s just something about the crispiness versus fluffiness of Eggo that works perfectly. These are probably the only waffles on this list that you can happily eat plain, straight from the toaster — which is a hell of an achievement for any waffle.
So, yes, as expected, Eggo wins.
