Have you ever thought about making waffles without oil? I have, and being a foodie, I am on a mission to create the ultimate weekend breakfast waffle. As my cooking skills grew, I decided to play with the recipe. I wanted to substitute oil with something else.
I started studying the different ingredients to see what can I use instead of oil in my waffles. To my surprise, there were some that I never even dreamed could be used as a replacement for oil. Apple sauce, mashed bananas, and mayonnaise are a few.
Scrolling through the list of alternate ingredients made me believe that I can make waffles using many components. My excitement grew, and I wanted to test a new waffle recipe with no oil. I noted down some of the ingredients I thought I would give a try.
Many people use melted butter in their waffle batter. It gives waffles a rich flavor and improves the texture. Both salted and unsalted butter can be used. If the butter is not your go-to for health-related reasons, you can go for other options. Lard, milk, and cream are also said to produce excellent waffles. You can use waffle sauce if you want to have a healthy breakfast.
Why does waffle batter contain oil?
Do you know why waffle recipes usually contain oil? I have seen home chefs prepare waffle batter utilizing butter, milk, or other wet ingredients, and their waffles turn out excellent. So, is oil an optional ingredient or a necessity?
Adding oil to the recipe smoothens the batter and increases the flavor. The waffles are crispy and brown on the outside and soft from the inside, but there is another reason.
From my understanding, you need oil to control waffles from sticking to the inside of the waffle maker. A nonstick waffle maker helps, but chances are the waffle batter may stick to the iron plates. So, to prevent this from occurring, you have two options. Coat the inside of the waffle maker with oil or add the oil to the batter. The latter is what most chefs prefer, as brushing the plates with oil is not advised.
Are Waffles better with oil or butter?
Satisfied with my well-done research, I am fully aware that I do not need oil in my waffles, but I still wanted to know if butter could serve as an excellent substitute for making deliciously crisp and fluffy waffles or not.
I frequently use butter for my pan-frying dishes. The butter by itself tastes yummy. You can use it as a base for cooking or spread it on toast and have it for breakfast.
I did a quick search on Google and found that oil v.s butter is a famous debate going around for some time, and there is no clear winner yet.
Even though oil is widely used, we cannot label it as the “champion ingredient” because there are a variety of brands of both oil and butter. It depends upon the person’s ability to distinguish between and relish the diverse flavors offered by both ingredients.
Butter and oil are both interchangeable. So, you need to experiment with both and see which ingredients produce the best batch of waffles you love. Who knows, you may end up using both of these in your waffle batter.
Waffle recipe without oil or butter
Waffles are really easy to make and are a great weekend treat. This dish is incredibly versatile. Here is a tasty waffle recipe without oil or butter, an example of an ultimate breakfast waffle.
Banana Waffle Recipe
Bananas can be easily mashed to make a banana paste or sauce. To start, you need ripe bananas. It is okay if the bananas have dark spots on the skin.
Ingredients
1.) 2 whole cups of mashed bananas. Peel them into a mixing bowl and mash around 5 – 6 bananas.
2.) 1 teaspoon of salt
3.) 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. This helps to give the waffles a crispy exterior.
4.) 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder to make the waffles fluffy.
Note: Mix these ingredients first and then add the eggs
5.) 6 eggs. Make sure to add and whisk eggs one or two at a time. Adding all of them at once may prove difficult for the eggs to separate and mix properly.
That is it, whisk all of these ingredients or use a mixer, whatever method you prefer. Mix properly till all the ingredients are nicely combined. There should not be any lumps in your waffle batter. Pour the batter into a preheated waffle maker, and within minutes you will be feasting on your deliciously cooked homemade banana waffle.
Extra flavor – Peanut butter banana waffles
For a bonus flavor, and if you are not allergic to peanut butter, go ahead and add in 1 1/2 cup of smooth or creamy peanut butter. You can use any brand you like. Add this into your waffle batter when you have mixed the above ingredients. Once the peanut butter is in the batter, whisk it again.
You now have peanut butter banana waffles.
What oil to use for waffles?
If you are a die-hard fan of oil and don’t want to substitute it, you may be wondering what is the best oil to use for waffles. A short online search showed different types of oil you can add to your waffle batter.
Vegetable oil, olive oil, canola oil, and coconut oil are the most widely used and recommended ingredients. These are all good for health having low levels of saturated fat that cuts down cholesterol levels.
Coconut oil is a good choice, but you have to keep it at room temperature to prevent it from turning into hard solid oil. You would have to melt it before using it in the batter. However, coconut oil is said to make crispier waffles.
You can experiment with different oils to found it which tastes better.
How much oil do you use for waffles?
When it comes to making waffles, the amount of oil added to the waffle batter varies. It depends on how many batches you want to prepare, but the usual amount is 1/2 to 1 cup of oil mentioned in most recipes. So you should go with this measurement at the start.
As you are mixing your waffle batter, you can add more oil if needed. A teaspoon of oil will be enough, mix it, and if you still feel the need to improve the consistency, go ahead and pour in some more.
If you are going with the above banana waffle or peanut butter banana waffle recipe, you will not need to add oil at all.
You may want to spray or brush your waffle maker with a bit of oil.
Conclusion
Can you make waffles without oil? The bottom line is you most certainly can, and to demonstrate, I have shared a recipe above. Even though oil is the most preferred ingredient because of its various health benefit.
