Sourdough Discard Pancakes

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Make these fluffy sourdough discard pancakes using your sourdough starter discard.

You can make the batter the night before and pop into the fridge for quick easy pancakes in the morning!

If you are building your sourdough starter, you will need to discard regularly to ensure it thrives.

The discard can really add up fast. These fluffy sourdough discard pancakes are a quick, easy way to use up your discard.

My kids LOVE pancakes so these are a regular meal at our house. While I don't necessarily need to discard in order to maintain my mature sourdough starter, I feed it a little extra to make sure I am able to make these.

I love making them the night before and allowing them to ferment a little before we cook them for breakfast. It's an easy way to get some of the good stuff into my growing boys, served alongside these sourdough scrambled eggs.

Fluffy sourdough discard pancakes

Oven Baked Sourdough Discard Pancakes

If we are really in a hurry in the morning, I sometimes oven bake our pancakes. You'll find the full instructions for sourdough discard sheet pan pancakes here.

I place a sheet of parchment paper into a shallow tray or roasting pan and then pour the pancake batter into it.

If I have time I'll sprinkle some frozen berries and shredded coconut on the top. But they are great plain too.

I bake in a moderate oven for around 15 to 30 minutes. The batter is very forgiving so it's hard to muck them up! This method works whether you make the batter and bake immediately or make the batter the night before.

Once baked, I just cut them into squares and the kids love them! They cook up nice and fluffy.

My boys absolutely love this whipped honey cinnamon butter on their sourdough pancakes! You might also like to try this sourdough Dutch baby oven pancake, sourdough pumpkin discard bread or these sourdough crepes.

Sourdough Pancakes In The Thermomix

If you have a Thermomix, these sourdough discard pancakes are even easier to make.

You can place all the ingredients into the bowl at the same time. Mix on speed 4 for about a minute and voila - easiest Thermomix sourdough discard pancakes ever!

If you want to make overnight sourdough pancakes, you can ferment the ingredients in the Thermo jug overnight on the counter and then just add the egg, butter, vanilla, baking powder and salt the next morning. It makes for an easier clean up with less bowls to wash!

A Few Things To Note

  • You can prepare these pancakes the night before by creating a "preferment" and then adding eggs, butter, vanilla, baking powder and salt the next morning (see recipe notes for directions).
  • You can replace the milk with buttermilk if you want to. This is a great way to use up the buttermilk from making your own butter or cultured butter.
  • These pancakes are suitable to cook the day before and store in the fridge. You can microwave them in the morning for a quick and easy breakfast.
  • You can freeze the cooked pancakes. Wait until they are cool and then freeze with pieces of parchment paper in between so they don't stick together.
  • You could make mini pancakes which are fantastic for lunch boxes or toddler breakfasts.
  • If you want to add frozen berries, add them just before you flip the pancakes. Raspberries and blueberries work really well.

Further Reading

If you love this recipe, you might enjoy these ideas:

  • If you'd prefer whole wheat pancakes, these sourdough pancakes are full of goodness with whole wheat flour, oats and banana.
  • If you're looking for the easiest discard bread ever, you'll find my proven recipe here - it's super popular in my Facebook Group!
Fluffy Sourdough Discard Pancakes

Sourdough Discard Pancakes

The fluffiest pancakes you'll ever eat, made with your sourdough discard. Create a waste free sourdough routine by making these pancakes with your discard.
4.39 from 171 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 20 Pancakes
Calories 72 kcal

Equipment

  • Mixing Bowl
  • Frying Pan

Ingredients  

  • 100 g Sourdough starter discard 
  • 200 g All Purpose Flour you can sub up to 100g whole wheat flour
  • 200 g Milk you can sub with buttermilk if you'd like (see notes)
  • 50 g Butter Melted
  • 40 g Sugar
  • 1 Egg
  • 8 g Baking Powder
  • 3 g Salt (a pinch of salt)
  • 5 g Vanilla Extract

Instructions 

  • Add the sourdough starter, milk, egg, butter, vanilla and sugar to a bowl. Whisk well until just combined.
  • Now add the flour, baking powder and salt to the liquid ingredients and whisk until well combined and a batter forms.
  • This batter is ready to use straight away (see notes below if you want to ferment the batter overnight).
  • Heat a large frying pan and add a little oil and butter to grease it.
    Cook the pancakes to your desired size (use a mini soup ladle to scoop out the mixture).
    Let all the bubbles fully form on the surface before you flip them over.
    A lower heat is better as it lets the bubbles develop without burning the outside.

Notes

TO FERMENT PANCAKE BATTER OVERNIGHT:
If you'd prefer to ferment the batter overnight, you need to use the following instructions and then finish it off in the morning before you bake them:
  1. Add the Sourdough Starter, sugar, milk and flour together in a bowl and mix until well combined. Leave it on the counter overnight (it's perfectly safe to leave the milk overnight, however if you're worried it can go in the fridge for up to 24 hours).
  2. In the morning, add eggs, baking powder, melted butter, salt and vanilla essence and mix well until it forms a batter.
  3. The batter made this way will be quite stretchy because of the overnight fermentation of the flour.
  4. Cook as instructed in the regular recipe above.
 
DAIRY FREE SUBSTITUTIONS:
If you'd prefer to make these sourdough discard pancakes dairy free, you can use any type of plant milk instead of dairy milk (almond and oat milk both work well). You can use vegan butter or just leave it out altogether. Cook them in whatever oil you prefer.
 
MILK OR BUTTERMILK:
you can use either milk or buttermilk in these sourdough waffles. If you make your own butter or cultured butter, you will have plenty of buttermilk on hand. This is perfect to include in this recipe.

Nutrition

Calories: 72kcal Carbohydrates: 10g Protein: 2g Fat: 3g Saturated Fat: 2g Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g Monounsaturated Fat: 1g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 15mg Sodium: 262mg Potassium: 28mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 3g Vitamin A: 91IU Calcium: 38mg Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Share your creation with us @ThePantryMama or tag #thepantrymama!

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4.39 from 171 votes (147 ratings without comment)

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51 Comments

  1. These pancakes are great! I just tried them for the first time. I was wondering if they would have a tangy flavor because of the discard, but they did not. The had great flavor and texture, and fluffy like it stated. They were a little bit on the sweet side for me, I might cut down on the sugar and vanilla just a little bit, but overall they were excellent and 5 stars from me. My husband and daughter liked them too, so we'll definitely be making them again! A keeper recipe, thank you very much Pantry Mama!

    1. 5 stars
      I’m not great at following directions so instead of mixing the liquids first and adding the dry next, I just dumped everything in the bowl and mixed. I used plain milk and cooked on a griddle. These turned out so fluffy and delicious. New favorite pancake recipe! (New to sour dough and my starter doesn’t want to double yet so I have lots of discard..happy to find this recipe).

  2. Hi, I have a question. I mix 100g BRM WW to 300g of APF as suggested but the batter turn out to be very thick. Is it supposed to be thick ?

  3. 1 star
    I love so many of your recipes and always go to you for advice so I looked forward to trying these pancakes. My attempt resulted in a huge disappointment, way too thick and heavy, even after diluting with much more milk.

  4. Wow! These pancakes are so delicious and fluffy! By far the most fluffiest pancakes I have ever eaten. Im new to making recipes with sourdough and this recipe was easy to follow. I’m definitely saving this recipe.

  5. 5 stars
    50g butter is listed with the ingredients, but isn't mentioned in the body of the recipe. I drizzle it into the batter after the rest of the ingredients are incorporated, but when is it supposed to be added?

    1. I was reading the comments and saw your comment and thought to myself, I haven’t tried this recipe yet! lol My name is spelled the same way! And I would put dark chocolate chips in too! Have a great day!

  6. 5 stars
    The best pancake recipe ever made. Definitely plan ahead for overnight fermentation! Perfect amount of tangy, sweet, and ever so fluffy! Thank you!!

  7. My batter came out really thick. I measured everything accordingly. Did I do something wrong or is it supposed to be really thick…almost like bread dough.

    1. The thickness of the sourdough pancake batter will depend on the type of flour you use, as well as the hydration of your sourdough starter. You can just add a bit of extra milk to thin the batter out a little 🙂

    2. My batter was thick as well. I liked using 1/2 AP and 1/2 whole wheat so will add the additional milk next time as you suggest, Kate. The flour and texture was delicious in every other way however! I will definitely make again!! Thank you, Kate!

  8. 5 stars
    Made these with discard and baked. Perfect. My teenage boys loved them. I see the long fermented version of these listed. I would love to try that. Weird question but would the long fermented version be made with discard as well or with active starter? Thanks

    1. So glad your boys loved them! Mine do too! You can use either discard or active starter for the long fermented version 🙂

  9. These are hands down the best pancakes I've ever had in my life. If anyone is looking for a pancake discard recipe, look no further. I added about 2-3 tbsp Saigon cinnamon and at this current moment im fighting the urge to throw up because I felt like I needed to eat them all.. thank you so much for this recipe, I will never not use this whenever I make pancakes in the future. Thank you thank you thank you a million times 🙏💙

  10. 5 stars
    Best pancakes that I’ve ever had. My husband, who is not a pancake guy couldn’t stop eating them.

  11. Do you use the sweet buttermilk you get after making your own butter or do you culture that buttermilk first?

  12. These were so, so good!! Definitely a keeper recipe! I replaced the sugar with maple syrup and they still turned out great. From now on, this will for sure be my go to discard pancake recipe!

  13. 4 stars
    Made these a couple of days ago and they were some of the best pancakes I've ever had. I did mess up and accidentally added everything at the same time, but they still came out wonderfully. I didn't use all the batter the first day so I just added a little milk the next morning to thin it back out(it got super thick) and they were just as good as the 1st day.

  14. We loved this recipe !! I’m excited to try different variations using almond milk instead of milk. My hubby and kiddos ate them up !!

  15. 5 stars
    Best pancakes I’ve ever made! They are so so fluffy and taste perfectly sweet, not tangy at all. If you like the tangy factor, do the overnight ferment option 🙂

    My husband isn’t the biggest pancake fan and said these are the best pancakes he’s ever had. Absolutely delicious and a great way to use up that discard!! Definitely will be making these again and again.

  16. 5 stars
    I just made this recipe for my husband and myself. We DEVOURED them! So easy to make and SO DELICIOUS!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes.

  17. We are vegan so if we leave the egg out and use plant based milk and butter, will there be an issue? Use more baking powder for leavening or is the egg a binder of sorts? Thanks for your recipes.

    1. I haven't tried without egg I'm sorry. I would try subbing some banana for the egg thought, that should work 🙂

  18. 5 stars
    Wow, the yummiest and easiest pancake recipe I've ever tried. Officially my go to recipe. I wish I doubled the recipe the night before.

  19. 5 stars
    These were delicious! I used discard and made right away. The recipe made eight 4-5" pancakes, not 20. Mine do appear to be the same thickness as the ones pictured.

  20. 5 stars
    A great way to use discard. Tried both-overnight and ready to use and both are just so delicious. I can't stop eating them. I make the batch, freeze the extra pancakes and have them fo the next 5 days for breakfast. Thanks for the recipe. Outstanding.

  21. 5 stars
    I made these as directed except I used oat milk. I had to add a little water to thin the pancakes out a bit because the batter was too thick, probably from the oat milk. They were very good and had a wonderful flavor.

  22. 5 stars
    We love this recipe so much that we have vowed not to use any other recipe! It’s perfect! It’s like bringing the best pancake house to our home! (We have only ever done the fermented recipe since it’s nice to split the work over two days).

    Have you ever tried using rye flour? We are fans of it and wasn’t sure if you had found a measurement that didn’t dry out the batter. If not, I may just experiment myself.

  23. 5 stars
    These are some of the best pancakes I've ever had! They are so fluffy. I recommend subbing some of the AP flour for whole wheat. Delicious!

  24. 5 stars
    Best of about 5 similar recipes I've tried. I'll be adjusting the sugar down next time as they were a touch sweet for our tastes, and also trying the dairy free option for my son. Quantity in the recipe may be slightly off, 1x made 10 pancakes around 15cm diameter.

  25. 5 stars
    These were excellent. The only thing I did differently was to add a little cinnamon to the batter. My son said they tasted like donuts and he didn’t even need syrup.

  26. 5 stars
    OMG!
    I never ever leave comments but had to for this. I made this recipe but followed it for overnight prep… the best pancakes I have ever had! So good!
    Going into my family recipe list!
    Thank you
    Thank you!