Best Store-Bought Frozen Waffles, Tested by Food Network

Kids and grown-ups agree these waffles belong in your freezer.

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April 27, 2021

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Breakfast plate of waffles and raspberries, butter and maple syrup

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Breakfast plate of waffles and raspberries, butter and maple syrup

Photo by: Mehrab

Mehrab

As much as we love a home-cooked breakfast here at Food Network, there’s no denying store-bought frozen waffles are one of life’s greatest inventions. Kids love them for their endless topping possibilities; grown-ups can’t resist the convenience. But you can’t just pick up any waffles in the freezer aisle and have them check all the boxes when it comes to flavor, texture and accessibility. (Trust us, we ate a lot of waffles!) If you need a quick and delicious store-bought breakfast option, look no further — we put our toasters to work and found the best five waffles you should stock up on.

$4.79

While these "protein-packed power waffles" pride themselves on delivering 12 grams of protein for two waffles, thanks in part to the addition of whey protein, we found their fluffy texture and buttery flavor to be their best attributes. These waffles have the right hint of sweetness, and they’re delicious eaten out of hand, straight from the toaster, yet they go well with syrup too. (Some waffles, we found, were a bit too sweet when topped with maple syrup — not these.) We also loved that they held their texture nicely and did not get soggy with syrup.

$2.79

When testers blindly tasted all nine waffle varieties in a row, all testers agreed Van’s had the best flavor. While cinnamon is pretty far down the ingredients list, its warm flavor made its presence known in the most appealing way. Van’s waffles are very soft on the inside yet crisp on the outside when toasted until hot. Testers worried a little that the waffles’ soft texture would cause them to turn soggy when topped with syrup, but the addition actually made them a little crispier.

$2.29

We could not test frozen waffles without including the first of its kind on the market — and the classic did not disappoint. The box directions say to heat the waffles on your toaster’s "lightest or lowest heat setting" and that two toastings may be required. While other frozen waffles with similar directions needed two toasting cycles to be heated through, the Eggo waffles did not! One cycle on low and they were soft, fluffy and ready for eating. Their slightly sweet flavor paired perfectly with maple syrup, and their light texture was not compromised with the addition of syrup.

$2.49

These gluten-free waffles made it into our testing pool simply because they were a homestyle variety, but one bite and we knew they deserved a spot among the "winners." (Consider this a plus if you’re vegan or living a gluten-free lifestyle!) No matter whether you cook these waffles in a toaster or toaster oven, you should definitely follow the box’s first instruction and allow them to thaw slightly before toasting — you’ll need only one cycle on low for perfect results! The waffles have a hint of vanilla flavor and an irresistible fluffy texture. Taste-testers agreed the kitchen smelled like sugar cookies were baking in the oven when, in reality, waffles were about to pop out of the toaster.

$2.99

One look at this box and you’ll notice it says these waffles are "so tasty you could skip the syrup!" Well, we have to agree. Taste-testers thought these homestyle waffles tasted like a waffle cone (in a good way). They were also thicker than other waffles in our test, though extremely soft; they did not hold up to maple syrup well, which made us think they’re best eaten out of hand, sans fork.

How We Tested

Each waffle variety was tested on low and high settings, as well as how directed on the box. We opted for only round waffles, and we tried them plain, fresh from the toaster, as well as topped with pure maple syrup. A total of nine waffles were tested, all homestyle or plain varieties with minimal added flavors, and we believed these five were the best in terms of texture and flavor.

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