How to make waffles that don’t stick to the griddle?

After greasing top and bottom squares of the waffle iron with butter and on another occasion with oil, they still stuck to the metal and separated when I opened the griddle.

(1) How do you avoid having the waffles stick to the metal?

(2) Do you close the waffle maker as soon as you pour the batter onto the griddle, or do you wait for the batter to start setting and then close it?

(3) Are the waffles supposed to be crispy, or soft and how do you keep them warm without being soggy?

don’t use butter it has water in it and is havock on a waffle iron. Use vegetable spray like pam or food release. I use plain vegetable oil in a pump sprayer and its cheap that way.

Close the waffle iron immediatly after the batter is poured into the iron and dont try to open it until the steaming has stopped at the very least.

Waffles are supposed to be crispy when done cooking and what ever you do, DONT use pancake batter. There is a major difference between waffle bater and pancake batter.
The first one or two will always stick, its normal with waffle irons.
Here are a couple waffle batter recipes I use which I think will be helpful to you. Good Luck!

Light Crisp Waffles
“Fine Cooking Magazine”

A required rest in the oven not only adds to the crispiness of the waffles but, allows you to make a big batch so everyone can eat at once.

3 1/2 oz. (3/4 c.) AP flour
1 oz. (1/4 c.) cornstarch
1/2 tsp. table salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 c. buttermilk
1/4 c. milk
6 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 large egg separated
1Tbs. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Heat oven to 200 degrees F. and heat the waffle iron. Mix the flour cornstarch, salt, baking powder and soda in a medium bowl. Measure the buttermilk, milk, and oil in a pyrex measuring cup; mix in the egg yolk and set aside.
In another bowl, beat the egg white almost to soft peaks. Sprinkle in the sugar and continue to beat until the peaks are firm and glossy. Beat in vanilla.
Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed. Drop the egg white onto the batter in dollops and fold in with a rubber spatula until just incorperated.
Pour the batter onto the hot waffle iron (1/2 to 2/3 cup depending on your waffle iron) and cook until the waffle is srisp and brown. (follow your manufacturers directions for timing then adjust to your liking). Set the waffle directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp. Repeat with remaining batter, holding the waffles in the oven (don’t stack them). When all the waffles are cooked, serve immediately.
Serves 5, 8 inch waffles.

Pumpkin Waffles with Cranberry Syrup

Waffles:
1 ½ cups AP flour
1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 ½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 large egg
1 Tbs. oil
1 tsp. vanilla
2 egg whites

Preheat oven to 250°with a large baking pan to hold cooked waffles. Combine AP and whole wheat flours with sugar, powder, soda, pie spice, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the “dry” ingredients and set aside.
Combine buttermilk, pumpkin, egg, oil, and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth Add the buttermilk mixture plus 1/3 cup water to the “dry” ingredients; stir until a moist batter forms. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, beat egg whites with a hand blender on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently fold whites into the batter mixture until no white streaks remain. Preheat cast iron waffle iron, or electric, according to manufacturers directions. Coat iron with vegetable spray and spoon 1/3 cup batter for each 4” waffle ( about 1 heaping cup for an 8” round waffle), spread batter to the edge of the iron and close the lid. Cook 3 to 4 minutes or until steaming stops. Turn the cast iron every 1 ½ to 2 minutes to keep both sides hot.
Makes 16 4” waffles or 4 to 5 8” waffles

Cranberry Syrup

¾ cup honey
¼ cup cranberry juice
1 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) cranberries

In a 8” Dutch oven or medium pan, bring honey and cranberry juice to a boil over medium heat. Ad ¾ cup cranberries and cook until they pop, about 5 minutes. Add remaining cranberries and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Makes about 1 cup

The Waffle irons I use are 80 to 130 years old and stick on me the first few times but after they are hot and get going they work flawlessly.