Gluten-Free Buckwheat Waffles
This simple, 100 percent buckwheat flour recipe yields light and crisp waffles that are nice and fluffy on the inside! Extra waffles freeze well for later.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
I have news! I can’t believe I haven’t told you all sooner. Seems like most big blogger announcements involve engagements (nope), babies (definitely not) and cookbook deals (not yet).
Here’s mine: I’m going down to Austin, Texas, for the whole month of February with my good friend Ali! We’re going because it’s cold and we can. It was Ali’s idea and I’m so glad we’re actually making it happen.
I can’t wait to sample Austin’s finest street tacos with Ali and clink margaritas with Jeanine. I’m eager to soak up some of the city’s youthful energy and open up to new possibilities. I’m looking forward to an exercise in minimalism, too. I’m only bringing the bare essentials for the month and it should be a good reminder of how little I really need.
Cookie and Henry are coming along, too, of course. We booked an amazing, light-filled house on Airbnb that has a fence built all the way around it, so I won’t worry so much about Cookie, and one of my friends is renting my place while I’m gone. It has all worked out pretty perfectly so far.
Ali is far more organized than I am and created a spreadsheet of kitchen tools that we should bring. I haven’t looked at it yet, but you can bet I’ll be moving “cocktail shaker” to the top. I don’t think my waffle maker will be coming along with me so I’m getting my fill of waffles while I still can.
You all know that I have high standards when it comes to waffles. They must be: a) crisp on the outside, b) fluffy on the inside, and c) light but made with whole grains so they stick with me for longer than a couple of hours.
These 100 percent buckwheat waffles meet all of those qualifications and then some. So what else? They possess buckwheat’s rich, nutty flavor, which makes them more unique than my go-to oat waffles. Plus, since they’re made with buckwheat flour, I can share them with my gluten-free friends. I think you’ll love them!
Don’t have a waffle maker? Try some buckwheat pancakes instead!
Gluten-Free Buckwheat Waffles
This simple, 100 percent buckwheat flour recipe yields light and crisp waffles that are nice and fluffy on the inside! This recipe yields waffles for two to three people, so multiply the recipe as needed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup buckwheat flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar (I used coconut sugar)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ¼ cups buttermilk, shaken (see notes to learn how to make your own with any kind of milk)
- ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) melted butter or coconut oil
- 1 large egg
- Topping suggestions: maple syrup, almond butter and/or fresh banana slices
Instructions
- Preheat your waffle iron. If desired, preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit to keep waffles warm until you’re ready to serve.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the buckwheat flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
- In a liquid measuring cup or another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, melted butter and egg. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir them together until there are only a few small lumps remaining. Give it a few more stirs if you see any liquid that hasn’t fully incorporated. Commenter Monisha says her waffles turn out lighter and more crispy if she lets the batter rest for 5 to 10 minutes, so you might want to give that a try.
- Pour batter onto the hot waffle iron plates, close the waffle iron and cook until the waffles are barely letting off steam and they are lightly crisp to the touch (this might take longer than your waffle iron suggests). Carefully lift waffle out of the waffle iron and serve immediately or place in the oven to keep warm. Avoid stacking the waffles or they will lose their crispness. Repeat with remaining batter as necessary. Serve with maple syrup, almond butter and/or sliced banana on top.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my buckwheat pancakes.
How to make your own buttermilk: Measure 1 tablespoon + ¾ teaspoon vinegar into a 2-cup capacity liquid measuring cup. Pour in any variety of milk until you reach the 1 and ¼ cups line (regular cow’s milk, almond, soy, oat, rice, low-fat coconut milk should all work). Let the “buttermilk” rest for 5 minutes before using.
Make it dairy free: Make your own buttermilk with non-dairy milk and use coconut oil instead of butter.
Storage suggestions: These waffles freeze very well in sealed, freezer-safe bags. Just pop them in the toaster to warm them up.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
P.s. Here’s a fun interview I did with Angela of Eat Spin Run Repeat. Thanks for having me, Angela!
Hi from Australia :) Myself and my family ( including our 2yr old) love your buckwheat pancakes ( in fact I’m making them right now). I noticed you’ve adapted the waffle mix from the pancake mix and that you updated the pancake recipe to include an extra egg last year. Would you recommend a second egg in your waffle recipe? I got a waffle maker for Christmas and have been excitedly trying out waffle recipes- I’d never made waffles before that. Thanks so much for your thoughts and all your recipes
Hi Deborah, I didn’t find the same issues. If you try it, let me know if you try it!
These turned out beautifully, thanks Kate! For those using metric, 165 g of buckwheat flour = 1 cup.
Will be trying this recipe. I’ve been reading that a griddle pan can be used as a sub for waffle irons. Where do you stand on this? Either way, I’ll let you know how I find it.
Thank you so much for all your recipes. You’re a real favourite of mine.
I prefer using a waffle maker to make sure these turn out. I hope you try them!
Made a fouble recipe tonight & they were delicious!! Fluffy, moist, and just delicious. A big treat for my GF husband who doesn’t get all that often! Thank you for the freat recipe!
You’re welcome, Jen! Thank you for taking the time to review.
Absolutely perfect recipe! We have them every Sunday morning.
I love that! Thank you for sharing, Patricia.
Thank you for this great recipe! How easy to make! I made buttermilk with pea protein milk. I love that it’s barely sweet, I made savoury one and paired it with hummous.
Delicious! I added a pinch of ginger and a pinch of cloves for extra flavor!
Thank you for sharing, Maryann!
I just had one for dinner. This recipe is outstanding!!! It will be my go to for waffles!! Thank you!!!
You’re welcome, Jo Ann! I’m glad you will make these again.
Those were incredible!! Ours turned out really crunchy on the outside and moist and fluffy inside. Loved it!
Hooray! That’s great to hear, Maria.
Great recipe! I make it with Oat Milk and the recommended faux buttermilk method, works great.
The only difference that I do is to cut the warm coconut oil into the dry ingredients before adding the egg/buttermilk mixture. That seems to work better for me.
I also agree that letting the baking powder and baking soda work for 5 minutes before cooking works very well.
Thank you!
Sorry, forgot the rating…
This recipe is so great. I add some rice flour, oatmeal flour and flax meal. My kiddo calls it Oreo waffles. Thank you
Thank you for your review, Tina! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I like these waffles a lot! I have made several of your recipes and have not been disappointed. When I am searching for a particular recipe and see cookieandkate as the author I stop and check it out! Thank you, Kate, for your thoughtful recipes.
I’m happy to hear you enjoy them, Ginny!
Very disappointed. I think these had a lot of promise…I managed to get out one waffle but all the others stuck terribly even with repeatedly spraying the iron with oil. The one waffle was indeed lovely, but the mess left on the iron was like I have never experienced and I ended up having to throw my faithful little Toastmaster in the dumpster. Will be buying a new waffle iron but will stick to another recipe. Very sad.
I’m sorry you didn’t love these, Jennifer. What type of oil did you use? Did you allow it to preheat enough before adding your waffles?
I keep making these — this is about the tenth time! Now I have my 3 yr old grandson helping, measuring, stirring and always excited to watch the process. It’s pretty magical and I/we love your recipe. Used oatmilk for the buttermilk and it works great. This time added an extra egg. A little softer, but they’re still great. Freezing the most for toaster — which makes them crispier. Served with frozen banana, blueberries, whipped cream & maple syrup but the next toaster batch I’ll serve up salty with smoked salmon & co, blini style.
I’m happy to hear that, Jillene! Thank you for your review.
These waffles tasted fantastic but I have two recommendations to make them even better. First issue is the butter/oil: I used coconut oil instead of butter as specified in the recipe because I thought it was a healthier option. I doubled the recipe so used 1/2 cup of melted coconut oil. That seemed like a lot of oil and It clumped up in big chunks when I added it to the buttermilk and egg. Next time I will use melted butter to see if it combines better with the cold liquid. Second issue: I did not grease my waffle iron because I thought the batter had enough oil and the plates are non-stick. The first waffle stuck and was difficult to remove. I sprayed the waffle iron with cooking spray for the remaining waffles and they released easily. I recommend that greasing the iron be added to the instructions.
I appreciate you sharing what worked well for you.
They tasted great but made a mess of my waffle iron. I sprayed between each waffle and still they stuck and came out in pieces.
If I make them again I’ll try adding some xantham gum to see if they hold together better.
Very light. These are the best buttermilk buckwheat waffles that I have ever had. I didn’t need to use syrup or butter on top of them. This will definitely be a favorite of mine. Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m excited these are a favorite, Luann.
Consistency too soft. You can press your finger through it; plus, no taste at all.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy these, GK.
Fantastic! I only had egg nog to use in place of the milk and they were sooo SOO good.
I’m happy they still turned out, Marilynn!
Easy and yummy. I took out cinnamon (husband dislikes), used Japanese white sugar (laying next to me on the kitchen counter), coconut oil; added fresh blueberries to some. YUM! Thank you
Thank you for sharing how you made these, Polly!
I made these this morning. The cinnamon makes these really tasty! also had some monkfruit sweetener onhand which works just fine in place of sugar.I have a 7″ round wafflemaker so it made 5 waffles this way. I
Waffles freeze really well so I just throw them in the oven to reheat them.
I’d recommend if you don’t want to fuss with making your own buttermilk to buy some when you shop.
Thank you for sharing, Gordon! I’m happy you enjoyed it.
I made this three times already with my (3 yr) grandson when he spent the night here. He LOVES to make and of course eat eat them. He doesn’t see fresh waffles anywhere else (Switzerland) Last time when I said now we need eggs, he pointed into the corner and said “There’s eggs Jiji!” (he’s sitting on a high bar stool right next to me) And I looked and said, “You’re right those are eggs, but they’re cooked, and hard. We need raw eggs- you know- they’re more “Fludderig” (German word for wobbly) He giggled as I cracked the raw eggs into the milk, then touched my triceps and said, “Jiji you’re a little “Fludderig” here” I make them with keto sweetener and use keto maple syrup for myself. Oat-milk works fine for me.
I love to hear that!
I made this today. They came out very good. Tho batter was on the runny side
This recipe is perfect, the waffles were amazing! I’ve tried many recipes but this one has been the best so far. These were light and crispy and the cinnamon, like another reviewer stated, gives it such a great flavor with the buckwheat. Thank you for this wonderful recipe! This will be my go to recipe for waffles!
I’m glad you love these waffles, Melissa!
Thank you for the recipe. It was delicious!
You’re welcome, Gayane!
Made these with coconut oil, which although melted and room temp, solidified while i mixed the batter. the result was a dry waffle with some lighter bits in between. Next time i would try butter as the taste was great.
Made it with no sugar, a dash of maple syrup, and hemp milk “buttermilk,” so yummy! I also did 3/4 cup buckwheat and 1/4 cup bobs gluten free. Going to add these as a staple!
These were amazing! My son, who detests anything gluten free, because it has no flavour or texture, loved these. Thanks so much for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Anna! Thank you for your review.
I mixed 50/50 buckwheat and brown rice flour and used coconut oil. Really tasty and lighter than expected!
I’m glad it turned out!
Thank you for the recipe. The waffles were delicious
I made these waffles this morning. They were very good, light and fluffy. My husband is gluten free so these worked out well. Instead of sugar I put a little honey. I was out of date paste which I would usually use. Instead of any oil I always use unsweetened organic applesauce. I will definitely make these again. Thank you Cookie and Kate for all the good recipes!
Inedible! Taste is sour/bitter and texture is bubbly (from homemade buttermilk, I suppose). Worst waffles I’ve ever made.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t love these. I appreciate your review.
We loved this recipe! We were surprised by how fluffy and crispy these waffles were! I was also pleased it was 100% buckwheat and made with other pantry staples so we can just throw it together. This recipe is a keeper!
Great to hear, Cecelia!
This is my favorite waffle recipe. Unlike other buckwheat waffle and pancake recipes that I have tried, these are lightly textured instead of being too heavy and filling. The buckwheat, buttermilk and touch of cinnamon taste great together.
Thank you for sharing, Luann!
I really wanted to love these waffles, but I found them too soft (a bit like a soft sponge cake), barely crispy and it tasted really strongly of baking soda (which I did measure out accurately). I made the faux buttermilk using coconut milk (17% fat) and apple cider vinegar, so I’m wondering whether it could have partially been because of that? Also, I’m not convinced that my egg was large – medium at best. However, when trying making vegan cupcakes in the past I’ve had the same issue with the baking powder dominating the flavor… is it possible that I have the wrong kind of baking powder??? I’d love to know if you have any tips because I’d love to make these work!
Thanks!
Ps. There was no mess on my waffle iron from the baking. That part worked perfectly!
I’m sorry to hear that. Next time try my How to Make Buttermilk recipe. Also make sure you are using aluminum free baking powder.
I did make the buckwheat waffle recipe. I used goat kefir for the milk and 2 egg yolks for the egg. It came out just right. Thanks for the recipe. Anne
Husband new to Gluten-free diet, was also told to Use millet so I picked up buckwheat flour. Very pleased with this recipe, followed it exactly, and surprised I was able to make buttermilk with almond milk and white vinegar! Waffles turned out great, just as described. ONLY Concern is for amount of butter: 4 tablespoons 45 waffles is a lot. And I don’t view coconut oil as Healthy alternative. any suggestions on that would be appreciated but otherwise I’m a happy camper :-)
Thank you for sharing your feedback, Matty!
Thanks Kate,
I made this recipe dairy free and it came out great. I did whip the egg white and fold it back in for extra lift. I also let it sit for about 20 minutes before starting to cook the waffles. A nice way to do a gluten and dairy free treat.
Paul
OMG – Maybe the best GF waffles I’ve ever had. I’m on a restricting diet to help with a liver and parasite cleanse and buckwheat is the only “grain” (flour-like substance) allowed on both, so I grabbed some bulk buckwheat to break things up, and wasn’t expecting this texture. These are almost light and crunchy with a soft interior. I have celiacs so haven’t had a waffle texture like this in years, even with almond flour. They turned out dark dark brown, almost black, and looked like dark chocolate, but wow they were so good. I replaced the sugar with a small pinch of allulose since I can’t have sugar right now. Added a little grassfed butter and wow – incredible. Even my picky toddler was impressed. Thank you for a great recipe!
You’re welcome, Jennifer! I appreciate your review.
These are soooo yummy and light and crispy! I used almond yogurt in place of the buttermilk and they turned out great.
Great tip for how to make your own buttermilk! I found that really useful since I never buy buttermilk and frequently buy non-dairy milk like almond milk or oat milk. I’ve used this tip in my own recipes on my blog Lauren’s Veggie Kitchen.