Chewy, fluffy, light and puffy.
These are just some of the ways to describe these irresistible sourdough pancakes.
If you don’t have a sourdough starter going you better get on that ASAP. These real fermented sourdough pancakes are a treat you don’t want to be missing out on.
What Makes This Sourdough Pancake Recipe Unique?
My technique uses a thick overnight sourdough batter of flour, water and sourdough starter. This thick batter ferments overnight night at room temperature. The next morning you will add the additional ingredients and continue fermenting the batter until is bubbly.
This special technique allows you to make pancakes without any leavening besides the wild yeast in your sourdough starter!
Think of this recipe as a guide!
I’ve found that with the many variables of sourdough, following someone else’s recipe is almost impossible. I will try my best to describe things and give examples but in some cases you will have to use your judgement. Always know that I’m only a few clicks away to answer questions!
Traditionally Fermented Sourdough Pancakes
- 4 Cups Organic AP Flour 560 grams
- 2 Cups Filtered Water 460 grams
- 1/2 Cup Active Sourdough Starter 125 grams (100% hydration)
- 4 Tablespoons Butter 64 grams
- 1/2 Cup Milk 115 grams
- 3 Tablespoons Coconut Sugar 30 grams
- 4 Eggs
- 1 Teaspoon Salt 7 grams
In a big ceramic or glass bowl mix the flour, water and starter into a sticky, thick batter. Depending on the consistency of your starter you may need to adjust the flour or water measurements. Think almost as thick as a muffin batter. Cover with plastic wrap and let this ferment overnight on your counter, or in the oven with the light on if your house is kept on the cooler side.
First thing in the morning check on your batter. Hopefully it will have lots of bubbles and a pleasant sour odor. If this is the case proceed with the next steps. If not, you may need some help troubleshooting your starter and I am here to help with that! Just reach out to me.
Melt the butter and whisk it with the milk, sugar, eggs and salt. I like to use a glass measuring cup for this step. Slowly incorporate the butter mixture into the fermented flour mixture. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and evenly distributed. This will take some elbow grease! The consistency should be like a typical pancake batter. If it looks thin add some flour 1 Tablespoon at time. If it seems too thick add a little more milk. This is when judgement comes into play. Cover again and let the mixture ferment for at least one hour.
Preheat your griddle over medium heat (I use a cast iron griddle) and season it with a light coating of coconut oil. Cook your pancakes to golden brown.
Serve your sourdough pancakes with any of you favorite toppings.
Want to learn everything about sourdough? Well, I have the free guide for you!
I use a lot of recipies found online and NEVER leave feedback but these pancakes are AMAZEBALLS. Mind blown. That is all.
Hi Yem!
Possibly the best comment ever! Thanks for taking the time, I really appreciate it!
Courtney
Hey Thanks so much for a REAL “sour jack” recipe. Most are made with baking powder or soda and are not real sourdough, they are airy and grainy. These are gooood. Chewy and moist like they should be. Want you to know I was a bit skeptical when I made the “starter” the night before, it looked more like bread dough, but they turned out great—my first batch by the way.
Hi Paul!
Thank you so much for the great feedback! One thing I’ve never done is used baking powder or soda with my starter. You could say I’m a bit of a purest that way! All the recipe here are traditionally fermented and leavened!
Thanks again for the comment and happy baking!
Courtney
Hi Courtney! Looks like an interesting variation on a Yukon-style flapjacks, going to give it a try. Are you sure that proportions are correct for Pancake Starter Batter? Those amounts (560g flour, 230g water, 110g starter) result in 46% hydration (assuming 100% hydration starter) – and this is no batter, this is pretty stiff dough. I find the idea of making a biga for pancakes batter pretty fascinating, but based on your description of bubbling batter next morning, this is not what you had in mind. I suspect that 2.5 cups of flour would be about right amount to get proper consistency of batter at the end, and ‘starter’ would be a (pretty slack) dough at 85% hydration which is not unreasonable for a muffin indeed. Looks like I will have a lot of leftover biga after I am done with those pancakes, perfect for the next loaf of bread! 🙂
Hi Olek,
Yes, It is a very thick batter to start because you add the additional ingredients in the morning. You can adjust the water as needed, you don’t want it to be dry. But I will double check my measurements asap because now you have me wondering if I made a mistake. I have to admit I don’t usually measure my pancakes batter, lol. I’ve been doing it so long I just do it by feel!
If you try the recipe, please let me know how you like it. I’ve been doing it this way for many years now so I can have a TRUE sourdough pancake that rises well! 🙂 Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Courtney
You caught a mistake and I appreciate it so much! It should read 2 cups water 460g. I have updated the recipe!!! I also updated the starter to reflect a half cup at 100% hydration (125g).
Thank you again so much for your thoughtful comment!
Could I make this with white wheat flour?
Hi Lindsey!
Absolutely!!! You may need to adjust the liquid, but that goes for any sourdough recipe. Hope you enjoy them, this is one of our favorites for a long time now!
Courtney
I love your website and your recipies! Thank you!
Hi Ashley,
Thank you for the kind words! I love being here!
-Courtney