Sourdough crumpets are at the intersection of pancakes and English muffins. The batter is easy to make, requiring only four ingredients. Best of all, you can use your weekly unfed sourdough starter discard straight from the refrigerator. Perfect for breakfast or snack with butter and jam, crumpets are a great use for discard and are delicious to boot!
Why this recipe works
- You can use your unfed sourdough starter discard straight from the refrigerator
- Quick and easy to make, you'll have them ready in under 15 minutes
- Sourdough crumpets have a soft interior with a hint of sourdough tang and a buttery exterior that crisps up nicely in the toaster
What do you make when you're craving a warm, toasty English muffin, but don't want to wait around to make a yeasted dough? And you've got some sourdough starter discard that you want to use up?
The answer, my friend, is to make Sourdough Crumpets.
Made from a batter like pancakes and cooked on the stovetop like English muffins, crumpets are easy to make and come together in no time. In under 15 minutes, you'll satisfy your cravings!
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What you need
What's great about making Sourdough Crumpets is that there is very little you have to do to make them. If you're like me and keep your sourdough starter discard in the refrigerator until you're ready to use it, you can use that discard chilled, eliminating the need for it to come to room temperature.
Since you're using your sourdough starter discard, you don't need any additional flour. And it doesn't matter if the discard is fed or unfed since the leavening comes from a tiny bit of baking soda. The sugar and salt are added just for flavor.
Butter is used just to grease the english muffin rings and the griddle, so you can use a butter substitute to make this a dairy-free and vegan recipe.
Sign up for my weekly featured recipe and you'll get two recipes, Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread and Mint Chocolate Chunk Scones!
How to make crumpets
Step 1: Butter the rings
Use a paper towel, a napkin, or your finger to grease the insides of 4 or 5 english muffin rings with some butter. Make sure that the butter is spread evenly, but not too heavily (photo 1).
Step 2: Make the batter
Whisk together the sourdough starter discard, sugar, baking soda, and salt (photo 2). The batter will rise and bubble a bit, becoming almost billowy.
Step 3: Fill the rings and cook
Heat an electric skillet or griddle over medium-low heat (around 300°F if measuring with an infrared temperature gun). Spray the surface with a bit of canola oil spray, then add a tablespoon of butter to melt and sizzle.
Place 2 to 4 English muffin rings on the griddle close to the heat source. Use a large cookie scoop to portion out about ¼ cup of the batter (don’t overfill the rings). Cook the crumpets until the tops look dry and pockmarked with small bubbles, about 5 minutes (photo 3).
Step 4: Flip the crumpets
Carefully flip the crumpets over, then remove the rings with tongs (photo 4). Be careful - the rings are hot if you use your fingers. The rings should slide right off, but you might have to poke at the crumpets a bit to loosen them.
Cook the crumpets until the bottoms are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove the crumpets to a plate. Repeat with any remaining batter, re-greasing the rings and adding another pat of butter to the griddle if needed.
Questions asked and answered
Here are some questions you might have...
The nature of your sourdough starter will determine how much baking soda and salt to use. However, using too much baking soda will give the crumpets a metallic taste, and using too much salt will make them bitter. Only increase the salt to ½ teaspoon if the discard is weak, or increase the baking soda to ½ teaspoon if starter is very sour. If you’re unsure, use the lesser amount.
If the griddle temperature is too high, the outside of the crumpet will brown too quickly, not giving the inside enough time to cook. This is especially true if you overfill your rings. Try not to fill your rings with more than ¼ cup of the batter, and turn the heat down if they seem to be browning too fast.
I mentioned using english muffin rings (aka crumpet rings) above. These are rings that are about 4-inches in diameter, and the ones I use come in a pack of six.
However, you don’t have to use these rings to make crumpets. You can also use wide mouth canning jar bands, making sure you grease the inside very well. And if you don’t have either, you can use the dough to make a free-form toaster pancake called spikelets. They won’t be as high or pocked with holes as crumpets, but they’re just as tasty!
Pro tip: Uses for your sourdough starter discard
When you maintain a sourdough starter, you need to regularly discard some when you feed it so it doesn't overflow your crock. That discard can be used in a variety of ways so you don't have to throw it away.
This easy recipe for crumpets is just one way of using your sourdough starter discard. You can also make sourdough bagels, sourdough biscuits, and even sourdough spice cake, just to name a few suggestions.
For a more ideas, check out my sourdough recipes page.
Crumpets for breakfast or anytime
These sourdough discard crumpets have a soft interior with a hint of sourdough tang and a buttery exterior that crisps up nicely in the toaster.
Served warm with butter and jam, or toasted to get even more crunch, you'll have a treat for breakfast or afternoon snack.
Crumpets will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for several days. And since they freeze well, you can make extra crumpets to have anytime!
The next time you have sourdough discard you don't know what to do with, make these quick, easy, and tasty crumpets.
You'll be glad you did!
Slainté! L’chaim! Cheers!
Tammy
Related Recipes
When you maintain a sourdough starter, you have a dilemma. What do you do with your unfed sourdough starter discard? I've got lots of suggestions for sweet and savory ways to use your fed sourdough starter and the sourdough starter discard.
Good news for sourdough bakers! I've published an e-book that allows you to discover a new method to feed your starter with less flour, making your baking both sustainable and scrumptious. Learn how to have the right amount of starter for your favorite sourdough bread recipe, and explore various bread baking pans to level up your baking game. Plus, dive into a bonus recipe for a naturally-leavened sourdough bread using unfed starter that will fit into your busy schedule for fresh bread any time. Head over to my shop and get your copy today!
And if you sign up to receive my weekly featured recipe email, I'll send you the recipe for Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread. Enjoy!
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Recipe
Easy Sourdough Discard Crumpets
Equipment
- spatula
- tongs
Ingredients
- 1 to 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, or butter substitute, divided, see Recipe Notes
- 1 cup sourdough starter discard, unfed, cold or room temperature
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- ⅜ teaspoon baking soda, see Recipe Notes
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, see Recipe Notes
Instructions
- Use a paper towel, a napkin, or your finger to grease the insides of 4 or 5 english muffin rings with some butter. Make sure that the butter is spread evenly, but not too heavily. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the sourdough starter discard, sugar, baking soda, and salt. The batter will rise and bubble a bit, becoming almost billowy.
- Heat an electric skillet or griddle over medium-low heat (around 300 °F if measuring with an infrared temperature gun). Spray the surface with a bit of canola oil spray, then add a pat of butter to melt and sizzle.
- Place 2 to 4 English muffin rings on the griddle close to the heat source. Use a large cookie scoop to portion out about ¼ cup of the batter. Don’t overfill the rings. Cook the crumpets until the tops look dry and pockmarked with small bubbles, about 5 minutes.
- Carefully flip the crumpets over, then remove. Be careful - the rings are hot if you use your fingers. The rings should slide right off, but you might have to poke at the crumpets a bit to loosen them.
- Cook the crumpets until the bottoms are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove the crumpets to a plate.
- Repeat with any remaining batter, re-greasing the rings and adding another pat of butter to the griddle if needed.
- Serve the crumpets warm with butter and jam, or toast them to get even more crunch.
- Crumpets can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for several days, or frozen in an airtight bag for longer storage.
