Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (2024)

By Author Lori Elliott

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Categories Recipes, Sourdough

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Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (1)

If you’ve ever made your own sourdough starter from wild yeast for making homemade sourdough bread you’ve probably found yourself wondering what else you can use it for besides just bread. And if you’ve been maintaining a sourdough starter for any length of time, then you know that it can multiply pretty quickly when you feed it and you can end up with a lot of extra. But rather than just throwing away the extra sourdough starter, it’s nice to be able to use it to bake with, so I decided to gather up a big list of ideas for sourdough recipes to make with a sourdough starter.

These recipes all use homemade wild yeast for a sourdough flavor and for a rising agent. Some of the recipes use only sourdough yeast with no other types of yeast or rising agents like baking powder and soda and they are slowly fermented overnight. Some of the recipes use a mix of sourdough yeast and regular store bought yeast to give the sourdough flavor and to help give the dough a better rise. And a couple of the recipes use the sourdough starter mostly for the flavor and use primarily other rising agents. I’ve tried to indicate how the sourdough starter is used for each of the recipes listed below.

This list has a little bit of everything, including breakfast items like waffles and donuts, several different bread options, and other baked goods like rolls. There are also a couple of recipes for making different types of sourdough starters like rye and gluten free ones, too.

So if you’re like me and you’ve ever found yourself wondering what to make with your homemade sourdough starter, here’s a list of over 30 different recipes to make with your sourdough starter:

If you love sourdough baking, and you're looking for more recipes to try, here are some great ideas for recipes that you can make with a sourdough starter.

Breakfast Recipes

Here are some great sourdough breakfast recipes to try:

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Overnight Sourdough Spelt Waffles

Photo Credit:www.occasionallyeggs.com

These vegan waffles are made with spelt flour and you can prepare the batter the night before so it's ready to go in the morning when you wake up.

Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (3)

Overnight Sourdough Waffles

Photo Credit:savorthebest.com

These overnight sourdough waffles use similar ingredients to traditional waffles, but they use a sourdough starter as the leavening agent rather than baking powder or soda.

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Red, White and Blueberry Sourdough Waffles

Photo Credit:www.cookingwithcarlee.com

These waffles are made with buttermilk and plenty of blueberries and served with strawberries or other fresh berries.

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Sourdough Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar

Photo Credit:www.baking-sense.com

These sourdough yeast donuts are fermented with sourdough yeast rather than commercial yeast, and they have a delicious cinnamon sugar coating on them.

Bread Recipes

Bread is what we often think of when we think of sourdough baking. Here are some great sourdough bread recipes to try:

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Easy Homemade Sourdough Bread Recipe from 1869

This old-fashioned sourdough bread recipe from 1869 is an easy recipe for beginner bakers because you only have to knead the dough once and you can let the dough rise in the same pan you bake the bread in.

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Honey Whole Grain Sourdough Bread

Photo Credit:www.butterforall.com

This honey whole grain sourdough bread uses heirloom and ancient grains, and it is naturally fermented and leavened.

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Pain de Méteil ~ 45% Rye Sourdough Hearth Bread

Photo Credit:practicalselfreliance.com

This sourdough rye bread uses enough rye flour to give the bread a nice flavor but not so much that it is difficult to bake with. It also uses a blend of sourdough yeast and standard yeast to help the bread rise.

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Kaylen's Bread

Photo Credit:thegoodheartedwoman.com

This simple sourdough bread recipe is easy to make and has just five basic ingredients.

Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (10)

No Knead Sourdough Bread

Photo Credit:www.earthfoodandfire.com

This simple and basic sourdough bread recipe can be made without having to knead the dough.

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Sourdough Rye Bread Bowls

Photo Credit:soupaddict.com

These sourdough rye bread bowls are made with a blend of sourdough and standard yeast, and they are a fun way to serve homemade soups and stews.

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How to Make Sourdough Focaccia: a Step-by-Step Tutorial

Photo Credit:heartbeetkitchen.com

This sourdough focaccia recipe is made with olive oil and includes a drizzle of butter, garlic, and oregano on the top.

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Sourdough Pumpernickel Bread Recipe

Photo Credit:www.baking-sense.com

This dark sourdough pumpernickle bread is made with rye flour, whole wheat flour, and other flavorful ingredients like coffee, cocoa, and molasses.

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Hokkaido Milk Sandwich Loaf

Photo Credit:thisoldgal.com

This hokkaido milk sandwich loaf is made with a slow fermentation from sourdough yeast and the texture is very soft and pillowy.

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Sourdough Rye Bread

Photo Credit:www.carolinescooking.com

This sourdough rye bread recipe is made with a blend of rye and wheat flours and is traditionally fermented using a rye sourdough starter.

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Country Sourdough Bread

Photo Credit:thisoldgal.com

This country sourdough bread recipe uses a blend of whole wheat and all purpose flour and it has a long fermentation with a traditional sourdough starter.

Einkorn Sourdough Bread

Photo Credit:savorthebest.com

This rustic sourdough bread recipe uses ancient einkorn flour for a nice depth of flavor and a soft texture in the crumb.

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How to Make Sourdough Focaccia

Photo Credit:flouronmyface.com

This step by step recipe for sourdough focaccia gives detailed instructions with photos and a video to show the process of preparing and kneading the dough.

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Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread

Photo Credit:www.lanascooking.com

This recipe uses a blend of whole wheat and white bread flour, and it uses both wild sourdough yeast and packaged yeast. There are also instructions for making your own wild yeast starter

Other Sourdough Baked Goods

These non-bread baked goods are made with sourdough yeast.

Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (20)

Sourdough Crescent Rolls

Photo Credit:www.cookingwithcarlee.com

These crescent rolls have a slightly sweet flavor with a bit of a sourdough taste and they are leavened with a blend of sourdough yeast and standard yeast.

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Sourdough English Muffins

Photo Credit:www.beyondthechickencoop.com

These English muffins have a nice flavor from the sourdough starter but they rise quickly because of the addition of standard yeast. They are perfect for spreading with homemade jam or jellies.

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Old Hartford Election Cake

This old-fashioned 19th century recipe was once very popular to serve at elections. It is a spice cake with raisins and currents that is leavened with traditional sourdough yeast.

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Sweet And Buttery Sourdough Pie Crust - Traditionally Fermented For A Nourished Diet

Photo Credit:www.butterforall.com

This sweet and buttery sourdough pie crust recipe is made with a traditional slow fermentation with sourdough yeast and it is perfect for making pies and other recipes that call for pastry dough.

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Japanese Hokkaido Milk Hotdog Buns

Photo Credit:thisoldgal.com

These Japanese Hokkaido milk hot dog buns are soft and fluffy and made with a traditional slow fermentation with sourdough yeast.

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Vegan Sourdough Banana Bread

Photo Credit:www.theroastedroot.net

This vegan sourdough banana bread recipe has a nice flavor from the addition of the sourdough starter but it also has baking soda for additional leavening to allow it to still be a quickly made bread.

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Vegan Fried Chicken and Sourdough Biscuits – Vegan Yack Attack

Photo Credit:veganyackattack.com

These vegan sourdough biscuits are made with a mix of all-purpose four and whole wheat pastry flour and they use both sourdough yeast and baking powder for leavening so they are quickly made.

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Winter Root Vegetable Pizza with Spelt Sourdough Crust

Photo Credit:www.occasionallyeggs.com

This winter root vegetable pizza recipe has a spelt crust traditionally fermented with a sourdough starter and you can top it with root vegetables or with any toppings of your choice.

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Sourdough Cheese Crackers - Taste Love and Nourish

Photo Credit:www.tasteloveandnourish.com

These sourdough cheese crackers are made with whole wheat flour, olive oil, and nutritional yeast to give them a cheese flavor, and they are made with only sourdough yeast.

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Rye Sourdough Spaetzle with Caramelized Cipollini & Sautéed Mushrooms

Photo Credit:thegoodheartedwoman.com

This rye sourdough spaetzle recipe uses a rye sourdough starter, and it can be made quickly in just 30 minutes.

Other Sourdough Recipes

These other sourdough recipes include a drink made with a sourdough culture and recipes for how to make your own sourdough starters.

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How to Make Kvass

Photo Credit:practicalselfreliance.com

This traditional probiotic drink recipe is made with a sourdough starter and leftover bread to create a refreshing beverage.

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How to Make Homemade Yeast

This recipe gives detailed instructions for how to make your own homemade sourdough yeast using just flour and water.

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Homemade Rye Sourdough Starter

Photo Credit:practicalselfreliance.com

This recipe explains how to make a sourdough starter using rye flour rather than using wheat flour and show the step by step process.

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Gluten-free Sourdough Starter--{Grain-free too!}

Photo Credit:wholenewmom.com

This recipe describes how you can make a gluten-free sourdough starter to use in gluten-free baking, and there are options for making it grain-free too.

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How To Make Sourdough Starter From Wild, Natural Yeast

Photo Credit:craftinvaders.co.uk

This recipe shows the step by step process for how you can make your own sourdough starter from wild natural yeast.

Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (35)
Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (36)
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The information in this post is not to be taken as medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease.

Over 30 Sourdough Recipes to Make with a Sourdough Starter (2024)

FAQs

How can a sourdough starter be 20 years old? ›

As long as the starter is being fed regularly and rising and falling as it's meant to, a starter really can't be too old. Of course, it could also have been preserved in a dried form or even stored in the fridge. If the starter isn't dried and has not been fed regularly, then it could become moldy and no longer viable.

How many years can a sourdough starter last? ›

Your sourdough starter is the foundation of baking sourdough bread. Through proper maintenance and a little attention, it can last indefinitely and provide you with countless healthy and delicious loaves of bread.

When should you not use sourdough starter? ›

After a few days, your daily 1/4 cup flour and water won't be enough to sustain your entire jar of starter, and your starter will be slow and sluggish, not much better than discard itself. But that's not necessarily a bad thing, depending on what you want to bake with it.

How do you feed a large amount of sourdough starter? ›

Sourdough Feeding Ratios:

So If you're using 50 grams of starter, add 50 grams of water and 50 grams of flour. If you want to feed a sourdough starter by volume, the ratio of starter to flower to water is 1:1:1.75. So you would use 1/2 a cup of starter to 1/2 a cup of water to just under a cup of flour.

Can you overfeed your sourdough starter? ›

Premature discarding and overfeeding will weaken your starter and elongate the process. Don't discard and re-feed a weak starter before it shows increasing bubble activity or height from the previous feeding. If you don't see more bubbles or a faster rise each day, skip a feeding, and give it more time.

What is the oldest living sourdough starter? ›

Blackley's sourdough starter, created from 4,500 year-old yeast, is considered the oldest sourdough starter, per Oldest. Other starters like the Saint Honoratus Wheat also are quite old. A bakery called Chrissi's Farmhouse Bakery uses it and said, “This noble starter dates back 900 years.

What is the oldest sourdough starter ever? ›

The world's oldest sourdough starter is supposedly over 5,000 years old. The statistic states that there exists a sourdough starter, a mixture of flour and water used to ferment dough, which is believed to be over 5,000 years old, making it the oldest known sourdough starter in the world.

Does sourdough starter taste better with age? ›

For most bakers, the answer is a clear no. Maurizio Leo, author of the award-winning bread cookbook The Perfect Loaf, still uses the first starter he ever made; it's now 12 years old. And while he's sentimental about that starter, he says its age doesn't really impact his bread.

How do I know if I killed my sourdough starter? ›

Keep feeding your starter, and you'll see normal activity (bubbles) return in a few days. If your starter has a bit of dark liquid on top, it's not dead! It simply means it's hungry and that it's time to feed it. Unless your starter has a pink or orange hue or is beginning to mold, you probably haven't killed it yet.

What is the best flour for sourdough starter? ›

All-purpose Flour

It strikes a perfect balance of softness and structure, making it an ideal choice for various recipes. Due to its wide availability and affordability, all-purpose flour is often my top recommendation for creating and maintaining a sourdough starter.

What is the best flour to feed sourdough starter? ›

All-purpose flour works great for feeding starter, but adding a little whole grain flour can help give it a boost if needed.

Why throw away half of sourdough starter? ›

Discarding half is wayyyy LESS wasteful than keeping it around or “sharing” the other half with a friend because… The sourdough starter is not a viable starter until 3 to 5 days old and sometimes longer. It takes that long for the organism balance to get established.

Should I stir my sourdough starter? ›

It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and cover with a tea towel secured with a rubber band. Place the jar at room temperature for 24 hours, until you begin to see the mixture bubbling up. It is important that you stir the sourdough starter every day in the morning and in the evening.

What happens if I forgot to discard starter before feeding? ›

If you didn't discard a portion of your starter each time you feed it, two things would happen: Your starter would grow to an enormous, unmanageable size. Your starter would likely become more and more inhospitable to the bacteria and yeast we want as the mixture would become ever more acidic.

Can you freeze sourdough starter? ›

Sourdough starter stored in the fridge will stay in good shape for the occasional baker who might be making a loaf or two every couple of weeks. But if you need to store it longer—for instance, if you won't be baking much in the summer—the freezer is your best option.

Why do you have to discard so much sourdough starter? ›

Discarding some first allows you to add this fresh food, whilst maintaining your starter at a manageable size. Not discarding your starter will also affect the flavor of your starter. Not discarding before you feed will cause too much acidity which may eventually be detrimental to your microbes.

What to do with day 1 sourdough starter discard? ›

You can always use this discard by directly mixing it into a dough for baking. Your discard, as long as it's in good shape, will leaven any bread dough just as well. The discard is just like a levain you would make for a recipe. The only difference is it's the same makeup as your starter.

How much sourdough starter can you keep? ›

Over the years, I've found keeping around 200g of starter ready to go at any time ideal for the amount of baking I do here at home.

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