Sourdough Discard Pancake Recipe

4.84 from 121 votes

Sourdough Discard Pancake Recipe

How to make light, fluffy, and delicious sourdough pancakes from your discard. Five minutes to mix, fluffy in the pan, perfect for using up your starter discard. A great way to start the day with a tangy, hearty breakfast.

Prep Time5

Cook Time5

Total Time10

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings: pancakes

Calories: 276kcal

Author: Liz Marek

Ingredients

10 ounces all-purpose flour about 2 cups spooned and leveled
1 cup sourdough discard more or less is ok
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 Tablespoons Sugar
14 ounces milk about 1 ¾ cups
2 large eggs
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons butter for the pan

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Before you begin: Pull your sourdough discard, eggs, and milk out of the fridge 30 minutes before mixing so they're not ice-cold. Cold batter doesn't spread or rise the same way warm batter does. Preheat your skillet on medium-low heat for 15 minutes (surface temp around 300º F).
Combine all ingredients in one bowl and mix until just combined. It will be lumpy and that's ok. Don't over-mix.
Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in the hot skillet.
Pour about ½ cup of batter into the skillet for each pancake. Cook for 5 minutes or until the edges look dry, holes have formed and stayed open on top, and the bottom releases cleanly from the pan.
Flip the pancake and cook for another 3 minutes. Only flip ONCE.
Serve immediately with more butter and your favorite topping.

Video

Notes

Ingredient notes:

A full cup of discard gives you the most sourdough flavor. Less is fine if that's what you have, the pancakes will just be milder.
Use a kitchen scale to weigh the flour. Cup measurements vary by up to 50 percent depending on how you scoop.
Save sourdough discard in the fridge for up to a week. Any longer and the flavor turns bitter.

Optional overnight ferment:

Mix everything EXCEPT the baking soda and baking powder the night before. Refrigerate overnight.
In the morning, whisk in the baking soda and baking powder right before cooking. The reaction is immediate and dies within 5 to 30 minutes, so cook the batter fast.
Cold-fermented batter doesn't spread the same way warm batter does. Bring the bowl out 20 minutes before cooking, or let the batter sit at room temp for 10 minutes after adding the leaveners.

Pan options:

Cast iron is ideal for even, low-and-slow heat.
Non-stick griddle works for batch cooking 4 to 6 pancakes at once.
Sheet pan pancakes: pour all batter into a parchment-lined half-sheet pan and bake at 425º F for 12 to 15 minutes. Slice into squares for meal prep.

Make-ahead and storage:

Mixed batter without leaveners: fridge up to 24 hours.
Mixed batter with leaveners: cook within 30 minutes.
Cooked pancakes: fridge up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Cooked pancakes in freezer: flash-freeze single layer for 1 hour, then bag, up to 3 months.
Reheat from frozen in the toaster (best), microwave 15 to 20 seconds, or 325º F oven for 8 minutes.

Mix-in ideas:

Sweet: chocolate chips, blueberries, banana, lemon zest, vanilla extract
Savory (drop sugar to 1 Tbsp): chives + cheddar, bacon, ham + Swiss, scallions

Substitutions:

Whole wheat: swap half the AP flour for whole wheat AND add 2 extra tablespoon of milk.
Dairy-free: oat milk closest in texture, almond milk works, coconut milk adds richness.
Egg-free: 1 flax egg per egg (1 tablespoon ground flax + 3 tablespoon water, sat 5 minutes). Pancakes are slightly denser.
Active starter instead of discard: 1:1 swap, milder tang and slightly more rise.

Critical do-nots:

Don't over-mix the batter. Lumps are good. Tough, rubbery pancakes come from over-mixing.
Don't flip more than once. Flipping deflates the pancake.
Don't press down on the pancake with the spatula. Squeezes out the air pockets.
Don't stack hot pancakes. Traps steam, makes them soggy. Use a wire rack in a 200º F oven to hold them.

Nutrition