Sourdough pikelets are the easiest and tastiest way to use up that leftover sourdough starter discard. They are even easier to make than my sourdough pancakes and take less than 5 minutes to make. I like to add a few chopped chives to my pikelets and have them for breakfast!
What's In This Blog Post
I know people don't care much about family history and recipes but this is truly the first family recipe I have shared here on Sugar Geek Show so darn it, I'm going to share a little bit about why I love pikelets!
I grew up eating pikelets. I had never even had a pancake until I was in my teens. My dad is from New Zealand and if you're from New Zealand, this is your version of the Betty Crocker cookbook. The Edmonds Cookery Book. 
Everything we made pretty much originated from this book. This is the actual cookbook my Mom and Dad used. I never thought to even ask my Dad if he still had it because he isn't much of a baker or a cook and my Mom has long since passed away.
I recently invited him over to test out some Sourdough bread I was making. He has a gluten intolerance and I wondered if he could actually eat sourdough bread because I had read that people with an intolerance can actually eat it with no pain.
Hop on over to my sourdough bread recipe to see how that went!
As I was making the bread, I decided to make some pikelets out of the discard and it brought back all my memories of eating them as a kid. I quickly called my Dad and asked him if he still had that old cookbook and what do you know... he did.
Now, these sourdough pikelets are not exactly like the ones I had growing up, these are made from discard while the ones I had growing up were made with fresh flour and baking powder. But the texture is almost identical and quite delicious!
Ok, that's my schpeel about pikelets 😀 Thank you for letting me share that with you!
What Is A Pikelet?
A pikelet is similar to a pancake but pancakes are made with a thinner batter and are usually eaten at breakfast. Pikelets are made with a thicker batter and can be eaten at any time of the day.
I often like to add savory ingredients to my pikelets chives, cheese, bacon, or even roasted corn! Mmmmmm so good.
A pikelet is actually the same thing as crumpet except it is not cooked in a metal ring. Pikelets are commonly referred to as the poor people's crumpet because not everyone could afford a metal ring to bake in!
What Ingredients Do You Need?
You only need a few ingredients to make easy sourdough pikelets from your discard. I typically have about a cup of discard leftover. If you have more or less, you can adjust these ingredients as needed.
Most importantly you need baking soda! This reacts with the acidity in the sourdough discard and gives it that rise!
How To Make Pikelets Step-By-Step
Making sourdough discard pikelets could not be easier. Seriously. Mixing ingredients takes less than 5 minutes. All you need is some un-fed sourdough discard!
Step 1 - Preheat your pan for 15 minutes on medium-low heat.
Protip - The key to perfect pikelets is cooking them low and slow.
Step 2 - Just add the baking soda, salt, and sugar to the sourdough discard and stir! You will immediately notice that the batter puffs up from the baking soda.
Step 3 - Add some butter to the pan and let it melt. This makes our pikelets nice and crispy!
Step 4 - The batter will be thick so I like to use my hand to divide it. You can get about three small pikelets from one cup of discard.
Step 5 - Cook the pikelets for 5 minutes on one side or until the edges are starting to look dry and you can see some holes in the top.
Step 6 - Flip the pikelet over and cook for another 3 minutes.
For best results, hide from other family members and devour immediately!
Related Recipes
How To Make Sourdough Starter
Sourdough Bread Recipe
Sourdough Pancake Recipe
Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough discard unfed
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 Tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Pre-heat your pan on medium-low for 15 minutes (surface temp should be around 300ºF)
- Combine all your ingredients together (except the butter) in a bowl. You will notice the mixture get's puffy and bubbly.
- Melt the butter in the hot pan
- I use my hands to divide the batter into three pikelets by pouring the batter into the pan from the bowl and then pinching the dough with my fingers to separate it.
- Cook your pikelets for 5 minutes or until the edges of the pikelets start to look dry and you can see some holes forming on top.
- Flip your pikelet over and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Preheat your pan on medium-low for 15 minutes before cooking your first pikelet
- You can add in mix-ins like chopped chives, bacon, or cheese! So good!
- Low and slow is your friend when making pikelets. If it seems like your pan is too hot, then reduce the temperature to low.
- You can increase or decrease this recipe for any amount of sourdough discard that you have.
Nutrition
S M R says
Hi there, is it just me...I cannot find the actual recipe for these pikelets? Would love to try them! 🙂
Elizabeth Marek says
Just added it for you! Enjoy!
S M R says
Thank you so much for adding the recipe! Tried these babies - WOW, delicious! Got rave reviews from friends and family, and 3 days later they still feel fresh and soft. Disclosure: I saw another recipe that used large mouth canning rings, so I did these crumpet-style (grease the rings and put them in the pan, lip side up. Don't overfill! a scant 1/4 cup was almost too much). So amazing toasted with jam!! Thanks Liz 🙂
Elizabeth Marek says
That's a great idea with the canning ring lids! Smart!
Patty says
It says to combine all the ingredients, but then says to melt the butter in the pan. I’m assuming the butter doesn’t go in the mix?
Elizabeth Marek says
Oops! Sorry about that! The extra butter won't hurt them, I will update the recipe
Christine Yarbrough says
My first, and the pikelets are superb!
Elizabeth Marek says
I love that so many people are discovering their love for pikelets!!
Nancy Kim says
Just tried this recipe today and fell in love with pikelets! So thankful you shared this recipe. Sadly, I only got one bite before my sisters devoured them all xD Amazing recipe, Liz! Can't wait to make more when I get some more discard hahaha
Lucia says
Delicious !
Super quick and easy, going to add corn and spring onion next time. Thanks for sharing Liz xx
Joan says
I just started with making bread, etc. from sourdough when COVID19 hit. Never baked from scratch much, but my friend introduced me to sourdough, then it was off to the races! She raved about crumpets, but I had no rings to use, so I ran into your blog about Pikelets!! I made them using a cast iron frying pan, and your recipe... awesome is the word!! My husband ate 4 of them, and I got one! Next time I make double the recipe!! Thank you, Liz!
Wish I could get my hands on that cookbook! Now I will need to search for that! I'd love to make genuine NZ dishes!
Heather says
I love finding recipes that have a family history connection. This is a treasure! I'm going to make these tomorrow for lunch!! Thanks so much for sharing!!
Michele says
OMG. These are so good and easy to make. I can't wait to try experimenting with flavors.
Bethany says
Delicious and a great way to use up discard without using a bunch of other ingredients!! I was surprised how good they were. I did plain on half and then ham and cheese on the other half, next I'll do sweet ones. Thank you!
Elizabeth says
What hydration starter is best to use for these? They look delicious, but it doesn't seem as if a 100% hydration starter would yield pikelets as thick as those shown in the photo?
Elizabeth Marek says
My starter is about 70% hydration
Shawnie says
My first recipe with my new adventure into Sourdough! Looked up easy discard recipe and found this - they were great and super easy! I added green onion, so tasty! Thanks!!!
Glenda says
These are easier than pancakes and are very tasty as plain. I will try different flavors. I love that you can use a lot of sourdough discard. Have you tried freezing them?
Glenice says
Can't wait to try these!!
Michelle says
Hi Liz. Thank you for sharing this easy recipe. My pikelets look like pancakes and did have a thick batter. Do you think it is because I used 100% hydration starter?
Elizabeth Marek says
Im not sure but you can add in more water next time if you need it.