How to Make Sourdough Waffles

Make perfect fluffy waffles with sourdough discard or active starter. this recipe makes excellent sourdough pancakes too!

Sourdough has become incredibly popular over the last few years and with good reason! So many of my friends can tolerate wheat-based bread made with sourdough better than others.

It makes sense. The sourdough works to essentially “pre-digest” (not a technical term) the wheat, making it easier for your digestive system to process and adding a prebiotic component.

With that said, this sourdough waffle recipe is incredibly versatile. While I recommend making your batter the night before you cook the waffles so it can ferment thoroughly, there are shortcuts you can use to get around it. Because let’s face it, we don’t always have the brain space left to add making breakfast ahead of time to our nightly routine.

When you don’t have time to let it ferment overnight, you simply let it ferment for the time you have available – if any – and add some baking powder to the batter to ensure your waffles turn out nice and fluffy.

When I’m sharing old-fashioned recipes like sourdough, I like to call back to how we did it growing up, in my Amish community, or later, in school. You know, just so y’all know, I’m not pulling these recipes out of nowhere.

But I hate to say it, sourdough waffles are relatively new to me. To tell the truth, we didn’t have a waffle maker. That Amish community I mentioned? No electricity. Of course, I heard about waffle irons that could be used on your stovetop, but we never had one. I don’t know if they were rare, or my mom just didn’t think it was worthwhile when we could make pancakes instead.

In any case, the principles of baking science and sourdough fermentation still apply. Fortunately, with waffles, you can make a lot of practice batches in a fairly short time. My kids, it turns out, love sourdough waffles. So, I’m thankful for this little electric appliance called a waffle iron.

Is this a sourdough discard recipe:

Yes and no.

I have a little bit of beef with sourdough discard recipes. While they have value, that value is minimal compared to properly fermented recipes.

First of all, I make my bread in such a way that I don’t have sourdough discard. After all, waste not, want not.

Secondly, the whole point of sourdough, for me, is that it actively ferments your wheat and makes it better for you. You don’t get much of that when you add inactive discard to a recipe and immediately cook it.

So, while, yes, this can be made as a sourdough starter discard recipe, and I’ve included instructions for that in the recipe card below, I’ve also included instructions for making this as an overnight-proofed sourdough recipe.

Sure, sometimes you don’t have time to get the ball rolling twelve-plus hours before breakfast, and a little sourdough is better than no sourdough. That’s when it’s time for a discard recipe for me.

Ingredients for making sourdough waffles

The ingredients for this sourdough waffle recipe are pretty simple and straightforward – and likely already in your pantry.

• Sourdough starter
• Flour
• Milk
• Sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Melted Butter
• Large eggs
• Salt
• Optional: Baking soda

Ingredient substitution

Like with most waffle or pancake recipes, there are several substations you can make and still end up with a good waffle.

For instance, sub oil, such as light olive oil or melted coconut oil, for the butter. Use honey or brown sugar instead of granulated sugar. You can also control the sweetness of the batter by adjusting the amount of sugar. Remember that this will also affect how moist or dry your waffles are.

Use buttermilk. You can also use partly whole wheat flour, which adds a nice depth of flavor and heartiness.

How to make sourdough waffles

For overnight waffles, combine flour, sugar, active sourdough starter, vanilla, butter, and water together in a large bowl to form a thick batter.

Cover and let ferment at room temperature overnight.

In the morning, whisk in eggs and salt.

Heat the waffle iron and bake the waffle batter as normal.

For quicker waffles, stir dry ingredients together, including baking soda, then whisk in wet ingredients, using either sourdough discard or active sourdough starter.

Let rest for 30 minutes.

Heat your waffle iron and bake as normal.

Storing leftover waffles

Sourdough waffles are great for making ahead and freeze well.

• After making the waffles, let them cool completely. I like to lay them out on a single layer of wire cooling rack.
• Then, pack them up in ziplock bags, pressing out as much air as possible before sealing them up.
• Once cooled and bagged, you can store them in the refrigerator for a week.
• To freeze waffles: Lay them out on a baking sheet to freeze in shape and fit in the toaster later on.
• Put frozen waffles in a ziplock bag, seal, and freeze for about 2 months.
• To reheat, unbag and place in the toaster, or oven, frozen until hot.

More waffle recipes:

• Gluten-Free Belgian Waffles
• Paleo Pumpkin Spice Waffles
• Gluten-Free Waffles

Topping ideas for sourdough waffles

There are no end of variations for waffle toppings! Some of my family are die-hard maple syrup lovers, while others will put nearly anything on their waffles.

I like to serve fresh berries or fruit with waffles, and sometimes, for a treat, I make homemade strawberry syrup or blueberry soup to put on our waffles, depending on what’s in season. Chocolate chips and peanut butter are also really good.

Whipped cream is also a great addition! We recently discovered the joy of cherry pie filling and whipped cream on them.

More sourdough recipes to try:

• Sourdough Sandwich Bread
• Sourdough Hamburger Buns
• Easy Sourdough Tortillas
• How to Feed Sourdough Starter
• How to Dehydrate Sourdough Starter

 

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