I bet you can guess why I love English muffins!
Yep, all those nooks and crannies, little empty pools, perfect for catching all the melted butter!
This easy recipe ferments and rises overnight at room temperature so you awaken to a soft, manageable dough.
In the morning roll out the dough, cut out the muffins, preheat the griddle, cook these little sourdough puffers low and slow, and voilà, a beautiful butter-holding breakfast!
What Should You Eat on These Sourdough English Muffins?
If you are passionate about real food and love to make your own, try making my real Cultured Raw Butter.
For a special treat add a foraged jam or jelly like this immune-boosting Elderberry Jelly from Practical Self Reliance.
Or maybe you have some wildflowers in your yard? Try a very unique Wildflower Jam from Nitty Gritty Life.
Love the simple things in life? Me too. Nothing beats a buttery sourdough English muffin with Honey Sweetened Strawberry Jam like the one found at Texanerin Baking!
Try these muffins as the bread for an egg sandy with this delicious Pastured Pork Breakfast Sausage.
Or try them as the base for every kid’s favorite “Engamuff pizza!” Just spread each half with tomato sauce, mozzarella, and a few favorite toppings and bake at 375ºF until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
Whatever You Top Them With, These Overnight Sourdough English Muffins Are Sure to Become a Family Favorite!
Overnight Sourdough English Muffins
An easy to work with, traditional sourdough English muffin, perfect for holding a variety of toppings (like butter!)
Ingredients
- 250 grams (1 cup) sourdough starter, at 100% hydration
- 510 grams (2 cups) milk
- 600 grams (4 cups) organic bread flour
- 12 grams (2 teaspoons) salt
- 20 grams (2 tablespoons) coconut sugar, or honey
Instructions
The Night Before
- In a large bowl with plenty of room for proofing, gently mix all ingredients either by hand or in a stand mixer until a smooth sticky dough is achieved.
- Cover the bowl and let it proof at room temperature overnight, 8 to 12 hours.
The Next Morning
- With wet hands, do one series of stretch and folds around the dough in the bowl, deflating the dough, and loosely preshaping it into a ball. Wait 5 to 10 minutes before continuing.
- Generously flour your work surface.
- Turn the dough out on the floured surface and pat flour onto both sides.
- Pat or roll the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick sheet. Add more flour if you notice sticking.
- Use a large biscuit cutter to cut out as many muffins as possible. Make sure they are floured on the bottom and move them off to the side of your work surface to rest.
- Gather the remaining dough and brush off any loose flour. Shape the dough into a ball and re-roll it to 3/4-inch thickness. Cut out the muffins and set them aside. Repeat this step one more time if necessary.
- Let all the muffins rest for 30 minutes.
- Preheat a large cast-iron griddle to medium-low. Make sure it is thoroughly heated through.
- Add the muffins to the griddle with an inch of space around each. Cook them for 5 to 7 minutes per side. They should be golden to dark brown and fully puffed when done. Cool them on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
These muffins freeze really well and defrost quickly!
For a longer fermentation, the dough can be refrigerated after the initial proofing for up to 72 hours.
Want To Learn Everything About Sourdough?
Start with this free guide:
Kathy
Saturday 25th of March 2023
I have an electric cast iron griddle. Will this work for cooking or do I need a cast iron to use on the stove top? Do you spray the pan/griddle before cooking?
Butter For All
Monday 27th of March 2023
Hi Kathy!
Sure, your electric griddle will work. You don't really need to oil the pan. A little flour or cornmeal will keep the muffins from sticking.
Loretta
Tuesday 21st of March 2023
Hi!! Should the starter be fed or can it be un-fed?
Butter For All
Monday 27th of March 2023
Hi Loretta!
Honestly, either one IF the starter is still fairly fresh and active. I wouldn't use really old discard unless you want it to be very sour and perhaps take a long while to bulk ferment!
Dee
Sunday 12th of March 2023
I am a sourdough newbie. I’ve made a couple different sourdough discard recipes, but this is my first recipe using my now matured starter. My family absolutely raved about them! This recipe will definitely be on repeat!
Butter For All
Tuesday 14th of March 2023
Wonderful, Dee!
I'm so happy to hear it. :)
Diane
Saturday 11th of March 2023
Hi, I mixed up the recipe per the directions and then after the proofing on the counter I put the covered container in the refrigerator for about 20 hours. When I took the container out and let come to room temperature the dough was not like any dough I have ever mixed up. It was not wet and not to dry. It was not stretchy at all in fact it pulled apart no matter what I did. I was trying to do stretch and folds but that did not work. I could only knead it and even then it did not form a stretchy dough. It's sorta like a biscuit dough. I have not cooked the muffins yet. I decided to let the dough proof and rise a bit more at room temp. What could be the problem? I ground my own hard white wheat berries for the flour. My starter was very strong. I am baffled for sure.
Butter For All
Tuesday 14th of March 2023
Hi Diane,
That is surely very strange. It sounds like the dough over-proofed to the point of breaking down all gluten completely. That is easier to do with fresh ground whole grains because the starter goes crazy with the extra vitamin and minerals, and less starch over all. So proofing time will generally be much shorter with whole grains. I would use that dough to make something that doesn't require any leavening at all as the dough is probably proofed out. You could add eggs and milk and a little sugar to make crepe batter. Or add some butter and roll it out for crackers. So sorry that happened. I hope you'll try again with a shorter bulk ferment!
Hope that was helpful!
Courtney
Liz
Thursday 19th of January 2023
Any idea if I could use plain, raw milk yogurt in place of the milk in this recipe? I have a surplus of yogurt.