What are Japanese Waffles? (And how to make them)

We all want to try something new every once in a while, new experiences, new adventures, and, of course, new cuisine. Japanese waffles or ワッフル (Waffuru) are definitely a great option if you’re a fan of sweet savory foods for your breakfasts or brunch. Making them at home would certainly be a worthy new challenge that would reap great benefits for your tummy. 

A waffle is a cake-like food made by pouring the batter in between patterned pans to give it a characteristic shape and pattern. It comes in many flavors, we’ve got Belgian waffles, buttermilk waffles, Brussels waffles, American waffles, Hong Kong egg waffles, and so many others. But today, our focus is Japanese waffles and how you can make them with simple ingredients at home. 

What Makes Japanese Waffles Awesome

There are different types of Japanese waffles, and what makes them famous is that they do not taste like regular waffles. Mochi waffles for example have a crusty exterior but are chewy inside and Taiyaki is usually filled with red bean paste unlike the usual waffle that is not normally filled. 

Japanese people are generally great fans of sweet food, things like candies and waffles are very popular amongst the people. It is no surprise that their variation of waffle will be so creative. There are so many varieties of waffles that you can find different cafés and restaurants who serve their own brand of delicious waffles.

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Types of Japanese Waffles

There’s more than one type of Japanese waffles, which are all delicious varieties of the traditional waffles. There is the Taiyaki which are fish-shaped snacks often sold by vendors, and then you have mochi waffles. Let’s focus on mochi waffles because their shape is closer to that of regular waffles. 

What are Mochi Waffles Made of?

The reason why they are called mochi waffles is because of the key ingredient that sets it apart from the other kinds of waffles. The special ingredient is called soft glutinous rice flour.

Glutinous rice flour is not to be confused with rice flour. If you’re wondering whether one can be replaced with the other, it cannot. Rice flour is made from the common type of rice that most people would be familiar with and are most likely to have in their homes. Glutinous rice flour is made from short grain rice, or “sticky rice” usually called mochigome. This type of rice has a much higher starch content, making it an excellent thickening agent.

A popular brand is “mochiko” which is available in Asian grocery stores or “glutinous rice flour” in some other stores.

The rest of the other ingredients needed to make Japanese waffles are standard and you can find them in almost any grocery store close to you. Here’s a list of the ingredients you need to make enough Japanese waffle for four people;

• One and a half cup all-purpose flour
• One cup Mochi rice flour
• Three tablespoons baking powder
• A quarter teaspoon of salt
• A quarter cup of sugar
• One and half cups milk
• Two eggs
• Half teaspoon vanilla extract

You’re going to need your mixing bowl, waffle waker (there are different types to choose from), the toppings and that’s pretty much it. You can take things a little further with sweeteners like fruits, honey or maple syrup. It’s entirely up to you.

Making Japanese Waffles (Mochi Waffles Recipe)

Not everyone wants to, or is able to, go to a café, but that shouldn’t be a hindrance for anybody because the good news is that you can make Japanese waffles at home. No need to be intimidated by this though, they’re incredibly easy to make, and you don’t need to be experienced with making other kinds of waffles in order to pull it off. Japanese waffles take about thirty minutes to prepare so it makes a great breakfast meal or even dessert.

Now that you have all of your ingredients ready, you can start prepping to make your Japanese waffles. 

Step-by Step Process of Making your Japanese Waffles

1. Get a bowl and whisk your eggs until they are properly mixed together and start to froth slightly. You don’t really need any special tools for this.
2. After you’re done mixing the egg, you can add your milk into the mix as well as the vanilla extract. Once they’re in, whisk them all together until everything looks frothy again. 
3. Next, move on to the dry ingredients which are regular flour, sweet rice flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Take all of your dry ingredients and put them into another bowl. Mix them all together until they are blended.
4. Now that both bowls are prepared, mix the wet and dry ingredients together. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones. What you’re looking to create is a batter that is similar to the pancake batter. You don’t need to pour all of the wet ingredients in at once, you can do it little by little until you get the consistency you’re looking for. Adding the wet ingredients slowly doesn’t truly affect the consistency, it only makes it easier to mix.
5. Some people prefer to use waffle makers to make their waffles. There are no strict rules as to what kind of waffle maker you’re allowed to use to make your Japanese waffles, there are no restrictions on size either, so go on ahead and do it however you like.
6. Pour your waffle on the waffle maker and close it until it is ready. Voilà, your waffles are done!
7. Mochi waffles have a golden-brown exterior that is crunchy when it is done. On the outside, they are soft and chewy, likely due to the sticky texture of the sweet rice flour. This is a texture that most other waffles simply cannot boast of.
8. Mochi waffles are popular in Japan because you can choose to make them sweet or savory. They can be served whenever you want, for breakfast, brunch, dinner or simply desserts. You can use several toppings like bananas, ice cream, strawberries or berries and syrup, chocolate or honey will go perfectly as well. One thing is for sure, Japanese waffles will not disappoint you. 

If you want some ready-made Japanese waffles, keep an eye on our latest Japanese Snack Box where we regularly feature some Japanese waffle snacks!

This article was originally written by our freelance writer Umm-Kulthum Abdulkareem, and edited by us.