The History of Waffles

Surprising to many people, waffled originated in China and were so unlike what we consider waffles to be today, that we could argue, the Chinese waffles weren't waffles at all. In China, there was a shortage of eggs, milk, flour and butter, ingredients that seem indespensible for waffles now, but the Chinese made their "waffles" out of what they commonly had: beans, rice, cheese, skim milk and fried them or "baked" them over hot stones into flat cakes, much like pancakes. These first "waffles" were in fact cakes from the pan and were gridless. Over time these cakes from the pan were introduced to Europe and at some point in time, the name "waffle" was attached to the cakes. Variations of the name "waffle" are throughout northern Europe:

Germany ........ waffel
England ........ wafre
France ......... Gaufre
Netherlands .... Wafel

It wasn't until 1734 in a small restaurant in England where the waffles started to take on the gridlike appearance, and this was through one of those fortunate "accidents". On a chopping board a cook was beating a steak with a tenderizing hammer and became distracted enough to beat the meat while talking. However, when his attention was back on the job, he realized that he had instead been beating a dough wad with his hammer and the wad had the grid imprints deeply impressed in it. The dough was flattened and didn't need rolling out with a rolling pin, so the cook flung it in the pan to cook ... and there began the era of putting gridded lines on the waffle.

Waffles also changed over time in how they were served. Instead of serving them just as bread with a meal, over time sweeteners and toppings were added, perhaps to make a decorative appearance to honor someone or for festive occasions. In an case, syrups and butters were frequently added, but not to the extent that the toppings dripped ... that was an even later development.

In our modern era, waffles have become street foods, fancy dishes at ice cream parlors, or favorite orders, especially for kids, at the morning pancake houses and at family-style restaurants. And thus, new recipes have appeared and shaped waffles have come into demand, which also has called for the development of molded waffles makers.

Brussels, Liège and American-style Waffles

There are basically three kinds of waffles broadly recognized today, two kinds of Belgium waffles and the American waffle. The shaped waffles are most commonly thought of as originating from Belgium, and from within Belgium are two areas that recreated the waffle - Brussels and Liège.


The Brussels waffle is recognized by its rectangular shape. The waffle batter becomes soft but it is not particularly sweet. The toppings added are what gives it the flavor desired with syrups and fruits.


The Liège waffle is circular with outer edged un-defined. Its texture is a bit heavier than that of Brussels and so the batter becomes chewier. The batter may have caramel or vanilla added and so the topping is kept simple, just with a bit of brioche or a dusting of vanilla and pearl sugar. This particular style of waffle can be traced back to the 18th century.


And then there is the American waffle. It was introduced to the US in one of the many world fairs in New York (which one, I don't know). But as are many things introduced, the waffle was transformed by the Americans to better meet the American taste buds. And so a slightly sweet batter was desired, one that would make soft and pliable waffles. The fixed shape based on location in Belgium lost its shape pointing to its origin and the American waffle was equally popular as a square, triangle, or rectangle but one thing the Americans seemed to like is the shape needed to be clearly defined and not without definitive edges like those of Liège. Toppings were not fixed but over time, Americans have shown a strong preference for lots of drippy syrup and melted butter.




I have my students Na Jiwon and Ahn Jisung to thank for this interesting presentation on how history is intertwined with food culture. Good job, ladies!