Learn how to make the best sourdough discard waffles with this easy recipe. These waffles are made with leftover sourdough starter like, for example, the extra starter you may end up with after feeding. They are a little crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
I put off using discard to make breakfast foods like waffles for years, opting instead to make sourdough discard crackers with fun toppings on repeat (like almost weekly!). Then, one day, I had too much discard in my fridge, so I decided to give it a go. That day, I discovered that the secret ingredient to the best waffles is well-fed mature sourdough starter. These sourdough waffles are probably the best waffles I've ever had, and now I make this recipe quite often. I hope you will love it as much as I do!
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Ingredients
Like most waffle recipes, you don't need much to make sourdough waffles. Here's what you need.
- Sourdough starter—use discard or extra starter from a mature, well-established starter that is well fed. Avoid using discard from the first few days of building up a new starter because it may be contaminated with other microorganisms that aren't so healthy (or tasty!)
- Flour—I use bleached all-purpose flour for all my recipes. Unbleached should also work
- Leavening—this recipe relies on a lot of baking powder to create light waffles. Please read about the difference between baking soda and baking powder if you are unsure
- Milk—I usually make this recipe with 3.25 % (whole milk), 2 % or even 1 % cow's milk. I use whatever milk I have in the fridge
- Eggs—I use large eggs for all my cooking and baking. You may experience textural differences if you use smaller or larger eggs
- Butter—this recipe was tested with melted unsalted butter. If using salted butter, you may have to adjust the added salt in the recipe
- Salt—I bake with Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount
- Vanilla—I use pure vanilla extract but it is optional and you don't have to add it! You can use homemade vanilla if you've got it
Please see the recipe card for exact ingredients and quantities.
Replacing Sourdough Starter
This recipe calls for leftover sourdough starter (the stuff you discard from feeding, for example). Technically, you could replace it with a 50/50 mix of water and flour.
My starter is actually fed with a 1:1 ratio of all-purpose flour and rye flour, so the starter in the photos is 50/25/25 of water-to-all-purpose-flour-to-rye flour. If you don't have sourdough starter, you can replace it in the recipe with 125 grams of water and 125 grams of flour (either 100 % all-purpose or a mix of all-purpose and rye).
Other Variations
- Dairy-free - you can replace the milk with your favourite non-dairy milk substitute, like almond milk or soy milk, and replace the melted butter with melted coconut oil
- Whole grain—replace a portion of the all-purpose flour with a whole grain flour that you like. I would replace half or less of the flour by weight to ensure the texture of the waffles isn't changed much. Whole-grain flours may absorb more liquid, which may necessitate adjustments to the consistency later.
- Chocolate chips—fold in 175 grams (1 cup) of chocolate chips or chocolate chocolate to the batter to make chocolate chip sourdough waffles. User more or less depending on how much you want to load the waffles.
- Berries—fold 1–2 cups of blueberries into the batter to make blueberry sourdough waffles. I prefer to use fresh for this.
Note that adding chocolate chips and blueberries may gunk up your waffle maker. Something to keep in mind when you make some of these changes because this might impact the time and effort it takes to clean your machine!
If you are looking for waffles without discard, try these cheese waffles or these multigrain waffles.
Instructions
Homemade waffles are so easy to make and relatively quick too! The longest part is cooking the waffles if your machine only makes one at a time. Here's how to make these sourdough waffles.
Step 1—Combine all the dry ingredients in one bowl. I like to use a Danish dough whisk to mix them really well (image 1). In a separate bowl, combine all the wet ingredients except the melted butter using a balloon whisk (image 2). I keep the butter aside and add it later because if the milk is too cold, the butter clumps and hardens into lumps that don't incorporate evenly into the waffle batter.
Step 2—Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, along with the melted butter (image 3) and whisk them together (image 4). The batter will be fairly thin and bubbly with some lumps (image 5). It will thicken a little as it rests while you preheat the waffle iron.
Step 3—I use a Breville waffle maker that calls for 125 mL (½ cup) of batter per waffle and doesn't need to be greased (image 6). I cook the waffles until they are evenly golden brown (image 7).
Note: For this recipe, I use a Breville waffle maker that requires ½ cup (125 mL) of waffle batter per waffle. My old maker could only handle about 80 mL (⅓ cup) of batter so if you are using a different machine, you might get a different number of waffles.
Tip: Since this recipe makes a lot of waffles and you can only cook one at a time on my machine, I like to keep waffles warm in a low oven. I set them in a single layer on a sheet pan.
Storage
I store leftover waffles stacked on a plate with small pieces of parchment between them to prevent sticking. I cover the stack with foil.
You can also freeze them and defrost them in a warm toaster oven or the oven (not too hot!).
Top Waffle Tip
Don't overmix the waffle batter. There will be a few lumps, and that's okay. Let the batter rest to allow the flour to absorb the liquid while your waffle maker preheats. Please refer to the cooking instructions of your waffle iron to know what setting to use, how much batter you need to scoop per waffle, and whether or not you need to grease it before pouring the batter. Make sure the waffle maker is hot before cooking the waffles, or the results will be uneven.
Serving Suggestions
I enjoy serving my waffles with fresh fruit and lots of maple syrup. But you can also make delicious and more elaborate waffle toppings if you have the time. Try these other waffle toppings:
You can also top waffles with scoops of your favourite ice cream. I love to pair these waffles with sliced strawberries and cardamom ice cream!
If you tried this recipe for sourdough waffles (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
📖 Recipe
Sourdough Discard Waffles
Equipment
Ingredients
- 500 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat)
- 250 grams sourdough starter ripe/fed
- 10 mL pure vanilla extract
- 2 large egg(s)
- 250 grams bleached all-purpose flour
- 25 grams granulated sugar
- 20 mL baking powder
- 5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
- 85 grams unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, starter, vanilla, and eggs.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- Pour the wet mixture over the dry mixture, add the melted butter, and stir to combine them. Let the batter rest uncovered.
- Preheat the waffle maker and cook the waffles according to the instructions.
Notes
- This recipe calls for leftover sourdough starter (the discard when feeding your starter, for example). Technically, you could replace it with a 50/50 mix of water and flour.
- My starter is actually fed with a 1:1 ratio of all-purpose flour and rye flour, so the starter in the photos is 50/25/25 of water/all-purpose flour/rye flour. If you don't have sourdough starter, you can replace it in the recipe with 125 grams of water and 125 grams of flour (either 100 % all-purpose or a mix of all-purpose and rye).
- I bake with Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt. If using table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty.
- Dairy-free—you can replace the milk with your favourite non-dairy milk substitute, like almond milk or soy milk, and replace the melted butter with melted coconut oil
- Whole grain—replace a portion of the all-purpose flour with a whole grain flour that you like. I would replace half or less of the flour by weight to ensure the texture of the waffles isn't changed much. Whole-grain flours may absorb more liquid, which may require you to adjust the consistency later.
- Chocolate chips—fold in 175 grams (1 cup) of chocolate chips or chocolate chocolate to the batter to make chocolate chip sourdough waffles. User more or less depending on how much you want to load the waffles.
- Berries—fold 1–2 cups of blueberries into the batter to make blueberry sourdough waffles. I prefer to use fresh for this.
- Note that adding chocolate chips and blueberries may gunk up your waffle maker. Something to keep in mind when you make some of these changes because this might impact the time and effort it takes to clean your machine!
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