Sunday, November 19, 2017

Bleg:

So years ago, I had a waffle maker that made wonderful, crispy, fairly  thin, yet fluffy waffles. It had 2  square plates that were removable for washing. They were extremely hard surface. And no, as this was a late 50's era wafflemaker (I bought it at thrift shop in the early 90's), they were not nonstick nor were they stainless or otherwise rust resistant.

And there is the rub.
I had never done more than clean em with a washrag and soapy water, then rinsed and dried with a towel and then put back into the wafflemaker proper and briefly turned it on so as to heat the plates, and then spritz a bit of bacon grease or other oil to keep 'em from rusting......They required bit more care that a teflon lined plate, but not much...

And they made really, really excellent crispy waffles.

So my cousin comes to live with me after a really bad domestic issue in another part of the country. She's afraid he ex is gonna track her down and kill her when he gets out of jail....so she asks if she can stay with me for a while.

Sure, why not, I got a spare room. If he shows up half a country away, I think it shows intent, so no worries about defending the homestead and all that. So she moves in. And, of course, as women are wont to do when they move in, began cleaning my bachelor pad......

Now my cousin had, as part of the domestic issue, a significant head injury and was on several medications that kept her....functional, but had odd side effects, some of which were that she failed to connect cause and effect sometimes.

Like in the case of the wafflemaker.

First off, in an attempt to "clean" the plates, she SCRUBBED OFF THE SEASONING (which should be a legal excuse for a particularly heinous murder, IMO) but then, to compound the issue, took the waffle iron plates and RAN THEM THROUGH THE DISHWASHER....twice. (She meant well, she really did).. See, they rusted the first time through, so she scrubbed 'em and ran them through again.

Thus the demise of the wafflemaker. The plates, once pitted by rust, would not release a waffle, once one was made upon them. Simply too much mechanical "bite" no matter how much oil one used. I even left the waffle on the plate and let it burn, hoping the carbon would fill in the holes....nope, no joy.

Which sucked, 'cause my Mirro brand wafflemaker made waffles that people praised. Stuff of legends and all that. Crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside.

I've scoured Ebay for a working replacement, searched thrift shops, etc. No joy.

I've purchased many new wafflemakers, and while some are good (most are crap) none get hot enough to make that crispy texture. Cheap ones, mid range, incredibly expensive ones.......no joy. Domestic, imported, european, cheap Chinese....not what I am seeking. None of them seem to get hot enough to make crispy waffleses. I've bought used "Vintage"  ones from EBay, and some do a ok job (Some are as pitted as the old wafflemaker)  , but few last, as they are all 50+ years old and then have to get shipped and I think the vibration kills 'em, so they break quickly. . I've bought commercial ones, cheap ones, expensive ones and everything in between. NONE of the new ones get as hot as the "vintage ones", and they just don't make good waffles.

So, to the BLEG:

Anyone got a suggestion for a (NEW) wafflemaker that meets my specs? I'd prefer square rather than round, but if I can find one that gets hot enough to make crispy waffles rather than the soft ones, I'd buy it. Prefer thin waffles rather than thick as well, but CRISPY instead of soft is the key. I'm tired of spending bucks on used crappy Ebay irons that are pitted and don't work or don't last , or new ones that don't heat properly (but most of those I can return)...


Cause I miss me my crispy thin waffles on Sunday morning. 

10 comments:

One too many said...

Chefs choice classic waffle maker, good housekeeping says it has a crispy setting. Traditional waffles, I'm sure you've probably already tried it.

B said...

That is actually one of the best I had found so far. I tried the square version and it was close. Thanks

Phil said...

This is going to hurt but I'm pretty sure I saw that exact same waffle maker with the removable plates at Goodwill last weekend for $1.69 a pound.
If I had known then I would have bought it and sent you the plates.

C'est La Vie.
Good luck on your quest.

B said...

Yeah, I've found a few out there, but the plates are usually trashed.

I'm still looking for a whole Iron.

greendiver said...

If you have not already tossed the offending plates, try seasoning them with flaxseed oil. Put them on a cookie sheet, lather them with the oil and put them in the oven at blistering hot for about 1-1 1/2 hrs. leave in oven until cool. The oil does a fine job of sealing pores. Worth a shot.

B said...

GreenDiver:

I tried. Every trick possible. The plates were pitted from rust. I no longer have the iron.

BB-Idaho said...

Seems a common problem. Our waffle maker failed about 15 years ago
and my wife was so mad at several failed waffles that we haven't had them since. So, when I go out for breakfast, I order a Belgian waffle. Even then, I run into a place that makes under heated ones
now and then. I would think a semi-pro waffle afficinado like yourself might checkout cafes that offer good waffles and ask about
what waffle maker they use, the heat and even the batter? If you get
a decent one, by all means let us know!

Spikessib said...

Perhaps a cast iron camping type waffle iron would work? They can be used on a stove top as well as a campfire, though probably not on a glass or ceramic top. And since you preheat them before use you can get it as hot as you need to make crispy waffles.

B said...

Spike: I'll have to give that a try. God knows I've tried all the electric ones, residential AND commercial.

Roger8133 said...

Have you tried re-seasoning the old plates? Rub them with crisco and put them on your gas grill or inside your oven at 400 degrees for about an hour. I like the grill because it smokes. I've done this with old cast iron frying pans that were rusted and pitted after using a wire brush on them to clean them. They don't stick anymore.