You've Been Cooking Your Frozen Waffles All Wrong

There's always a new food or cooking hack out there waiting to be discovered that will have you asking, "Where has this been all my life?!" Sometimes it's as simple as swapping out your flour for the chewiest chocolate chip cookies ever, and other times it's even easier than that. Rapper Tyler the Creator has a food hack that will change the way you prepare frozen waffles and have you saying, "Leggo my Eggo," and really mean it.

In a video for Odd Future, Tyler declares, "We don't need a toaster when you're making Tyler's waffles." He then tosses the useless appliance aside because he has a better way — he actually cooks his frozen waffles in a pan on the stove. This ridiculously easy food hack simply involves slathering both sides of the waffle in butter and placing the waffle in the pan. Sprinkle some cinnamon on one side while the other side is cooking and then flip to the other side after around 45 seconds. Add some cinnamon to the cooked side while the other side is down, and remove your waffle when both sides are golden brown. People on the video set seemed to really enjoy it, so this hack seems like it's definitely worth trying out to up your breakfast game.

Of course, there's more than one way to hack a frozen waffle. If you have a little extra time before running out the door, you might want to consider Refinery 29's frozen waffle hack. They recommend cooking frozen waffles in the oven instead of simply throwing them into a toaster and calling it good. While preheating your oven to 375 degrees F, place your frozen waffle in the toaster, but make sure to set it on low so that it only defrosts — you don't want it to get crispy. Then, top it with crumbled breakfast sausage, cheese, and a fried egg before putting it in the oven until the cheese melts and starts to brown up a little. 

There are really no limits here; by all means, swap out that sausage with some crumbled bacon or a slice of ham. And, if you're about that spicy life, add a squeeze of Sriracha or a dash of Tabasco. This dish is certainly more time consuming than both the toaster and Tyler the Creator's method. But hey, sometimes frozen waffles just need a little extra love.

If we're going to be topping waffles with sausage, eggs, and cheese, we might as well consider stuffing them with other savory things and turning them into waffle tacos. The first step is forming your frozen waffles into a taco shell-like shape. Trust us, it's easier than you might think. According to what executive chef Samantha Cowens-Gasbarro told Insider, you can simply wedge thawed frozen waffles between the rungs of an oven rack and bake them. Food Network recommends letting the taco shell-shaped waffles cook at 350 degrees F for about five minutes. Once they're done and hold their shape, you can let your taste buds be your guide and go crazy with the fillings.

Insider suggests stuffing your waffle taco shells with refried beans, ground beef, bacon, shredded lettuce, salsa, and sour cream. Sounds amazing, right? But, can we also talk about a breakfast taco situation with chorizo and scrambled eggs? That would most definitely be worth getting out of bed for.

Finally, we've come to the frozen waffle hack that might just top them all – frozen waffle pie crust. To learn about it, we went straight to the frozen waffle motherland: Eggo's website, where they have a recipe for frozen waffle pies. This phenomenon will make you wonder why you ever bothered with fussy graham cracker crusts or homemade pie dough to begin with.

To make your own frozen waffle pies, just coat custard cups with cooking spray, or use a muffin tin like the food blog Savory Spin does. Then, microwave a few frozen waffles one at a time for 15 to 20 seconds – just until they're thawed. Next, press one waffle into each cup and fill it with frozen yogurt and sliced fruit. Top each pie with a swirl of vanilla yogurt and freeze them for two hours. That's it! Dessert doesn't get much easier than that. Although, with frozen waffles as an ingredient, these pies could easily be on the menu for breakfast as well. Either way, with these hacks in tow, your frozen waffle game and your recipe repertoire have officially been upped.