Overnight Sourdough Pancakes

Fluffy and light, these overnight sourdough pancakes are so easy to make and they taste amazing! They are the perfect use for your spare or discarded sourdough starter.

Overnight sourdough pancakes

Mix the main pancake batter for the sourdough pancakes the evening before you want to eat them. This way the bacteria in your sourdough starter can begin breaking down the starches in the flour.

This helps with digestibility and the acid in the starter also creates a fluffy and tender pancake.

You can make the pancake batter up to 24 hours in advance and store it in the refrigerator. It makes breakfast so simple the following day, as the main batter is already done!

Same-day sourdough pancakes

The fermenting time can be shortened to 2-4 hours at room temperature instead. If you want to skip this step entirely you can but the fermenting time creates a lighter pancake. 

The starter

There are three reasons to use sourdough starter in pancakes. Firstly, the acid in the starter will help create a super fluffy pancake as it reacts with the baking soda. Secondly, the sourdough starter is left to ferment the batter overnight first, which can help with digestibility.

Thirdly and most importantly! Flavor. The sourdough starter brings more flavor to the pancakes.

The best starter to use is a discard starter that hasn’t been recently fed, so it’s runny and acidic.

If your starter is not very acidic or you are shortening the fermenting time, you can add ½ tablespoon white vinegar or apple cider vinegar to the batter along with the baking soda to enhance the reaction between the acid and baking soda. This makes an extra fluffy pancake.

Ingredients

Find the ingredient amounts at the bottom of the post in the printable recipe card. Here is a run down of what you will need. 🙂

• Flour – all-purpose flour
• Milk – Use cow’s milk or plant-based milk.
• Sugar – This can be substituted for another sweetener of your choice.
• Sourdough discard starter – The addition of the starter helps to break down the flour and make these pancakes easier to digest. The acid in the starter helps to create a fluffy pancake too.
• Eggs, salt – Eggs add structure, salt adds flavor.
• Baking powder and baking soda – The baking powder and baking soda add lift and it is the baking soda that reacts with the acid in the sourdough starter to create an extra fluffy pancake. 

Step by step instructions

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, milk, sugar, sourdough starter, eggs, and salt. Cover the bowl with a plate or a lid and pop it into the refrigerator overnight (or up to 24 hours.)

This gives the sourdough starter time to do its work, breaking down the flour and making it much easier to digest.

In the morning, whisk in the baking powder and baking soda.

Preheat a cast-iron or non-stick pan over medium-high heat, then grease the pan with butter.

Ensure the pan is hot, and the butter is sizzling, then pour in around ⅓ cup of batter for each pancake. If the pan gets too hot, turn down the heat a little once you’ve poured in the batter. 

The batter will spread out in the pan, and won’t rise just yet. Bubbles will start appearing on the surface of the pancake. Once bubbles cover the whole area (about 2-3 minutes), flip the pancake over and finish cooking the other side for another minute or 2. 

Transfer the pancake to a plate and continue with the rest of the batter until it is all used up, stacking the pancakes in a pile as you go. 

Serve the sourdough discard pancakes warm with plenty of butter and maple syrup (or apple syrup), or cream and raspberry sauce.

Related recipes

Want them a little more special? Try sourdough blueberry pancakes instead or sourdough pumpkin pancakes. If you love berries in pancakes, you might like these strawberry banana pancakes. They’re so light and tender.

There are plenty of ways to use up sourdough starter! Try sourdough chocolate banana bread, Pumpkin Sourdough Muffins or sourdough cheese scones.