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Overnight Sourdough Pancakes

These overnight sourdough pancakes are a delicious way to use your excess sourdough starter. They are soft, tender, and fluffy and remind me of breakfast at grandmas house. Letting the sourdough sit overnight will give it the best sourdough flavor, but for a milder flavor, you can cook them right after you mix the batter. This is how you need to start your day.

syrup pouring on a stack of pancakes with bacon in the background
What a great weekend breakfast!

We love our sourdough bread, and I make it on repeat in this house. That means I have to maintain my sourdough starter even when I am not baking bread. Many times when I feed my starter, I simply toss out the excess or give it to a friend.

Other times I tap into one of my recipes that I can use with the excess starter. This recipe for overnight sourdough pancakes is one of my most loved, mostly because it reminds me of my childhood.

Food that evokes nostalgic memories of grandma’s house will always make it on my “favorites” list.

Ingredients Needed

Here is a list of the ingredients you will need for overnight sourdough pancakes. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details. 

  • Sourdough starter
  • Buttermilk
  • Flour
  • Sugar
  • Butter
  • Eggs
  • Salt
  • Baking soda
  • Baking powder

Recipe Highlights

Here is a brief overview to get an idea of what to expect with this recipe for sourdough discard pancakes. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details.

This recipe is incredibly simple to toss together, and the results are absolutely amazing. The overnight fermentation gives them a pronounced tangy sourdough flavor. In my mind, that is what a good sourdough pancake is supposed to taste like.

However, I know some people prefer a more mild hint of sourdough, and that is definitely achievable with this recipe. 

If you like a less ‘tangy’ pancake you can just let it sit for a few hours. And for an even milder flavor, you don’t have to let them sit at all. Just mix the ingredients up and pour the batter on a skillet.

stack of 8 sourdough pancakes
Could you eat the whole stack? Would you?

This recipe is divided up into two steps. The first step is to make a sourdough sponge which will sit overnight. The second step happens in the morning when you combine the rest of the ingredients and make the pancake batter.

The Overnight Sponge

  1. Mix sourdough starter, buttermilk, flour, and sugar together in a large bowl. Cover the batter with plastic wrap and let it sit on the counter overnight.

In the Morning:

  1. Stir the butter, eggs, salt, and leavening into the batter. Mix well to combine.
  2. Pour a ladle full of batter onto a preheated skillet and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on each side until golden brown.
Stack of partially eaten pancakes
Add some bacon, eggs and OJ for a full meal!

Tips for Success

  • When you use your discard for this recipe, ensure you have enough starter left to maintain so you can make more sourdough recipes like spelt sourdough bread or einkorn sourdough bread.
  • Make sure you put the overnight sponge in a large bowl. The bowl should be big enough to allow the batter to double in size. During the night, it will fill up with lots of gas pockets and double in size, then start to sag back down.
  • Even though there is some natural leavening in the batter from your sourdough starter, you still need to add some additional leavening in the form of baking soda and baking powder.
  • Make sure the skillet is hot before you add the pancake batter.
  • If you have additional discard, try making our sourdough pizza dough or sourdough crackers.

stack of sourdough pancakes with a pat of butter on top
Light and fluffy pancakes!

More Recipes You Will Love

Did I mention you need a sourdough starter if you’re going to make these overnight sourdough pancakes? If you don’t have a starter, you better get started making one. Check out our Wild Yeast Sourdough Starter. Give it several weeks to grow then start making the best sourdough recipes of your life! 

These overnight sourdough waffles are amazing. The batter is a bit thinner than our pancake recipe and it makes perfectly crisp waffles that are tender and soft on the inside. You might have a hard time deciding which one you like best. 

There isn’t an overnight step to these sourdough ricotta pancakes. You can just wake up and whip them up. The ricotta gives the pancakes a custard-like center. Crazy good!! 

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syrup pouring on a stack of pancakes with bacon in the background

Overnight Sourdough Pancakes

Yield: 12 pancakes
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 4 minutes
Total Time: 14 minutes

Sourdough pancakes made with a portion of your sourdough starter that you would otherwise discard. These pancakes are light and fluffy with just a hint of sweetness. This is one of the most delicious ways to use your extra sourdough starter.

Ingredients

The Night Before Cooking:

  • 1 cup sourdough starter (240 grams)
  • 1-1/2 cups buttermilk (336 grams)
  • 1-1/2 cups flour (180 grams)
  • 2 tablespoons sugar

In the Morning:

  • 6 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

Instructions

The night before:

  1. Mix sourdough starter, buttermilk, flour, and sugar together in a large bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let sit on the countertop overnight.

In the morning:

  1. Preheat your skillet.
  2. Stir in the melted butter, eggs, salt, baking soda, and baking powder into the batter. Mix well to combine.
  3. Pour 1/4 to 1/2 cup of batter onto the preheated skillet and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until it starts to bubble then flip the pancake and cook for 1 to 2 more minutes until it is golden brown.

Notes

If you use a measuring cup to measure your sourdough starter, make sure you stir it before you measure it. Otherwise, if you use a scale there is no need to stir the starter.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 176Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 358mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 1gSugar: 4gProtein: 5g

Nutrition information is a guideline only, is calculated automatically by third party software, and absolute accuracy is not guaranteed.

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Alena

Friday 19th of May 2023

If making a double batch, do I need to double the amount of starter along with the other ingredients? Or will it still work with starter amount for 1 batch. I normally don’t have that much discard starter, but 1 batch of pancakes isn’t enough for my family 😬.

Dahn Boquist

Friday 19th of May 2023

If you don't have enough starter for a double batch then add 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour to the batch and that will replace the amount of starter that you don't have.

Chuck

Thursday 5th of January 2023

How does waiting 4 more hours in the morning help, if you're not using add'l leavening? Should feed it and then wait 4 more?

Dahn Boquist

Thursday 5th of January 2023

I'm sorry that was confusing, I will fix that. If you stir additional ingredients into the batter, it essentially "feeds" the sourdough again and after a few hours, it will rise without additional leavening. Instead, if you add leavening along with the rest of the ingredients in the morning, you can make the pancakes right away.

Nancy

Friday 11th of November 2022

I came across this recipe in 2020 while looking for sourdough buttermilk pancakes. These are the only pancakes I make now. They are so tasty. I estimate I have made them over 20 times. They freeze wonderfully and reheat in the microwave. My husband and I eat them for lunches. After the overnight on the counter I have left batter in fridge for another day then let warm up and added rest of ingredients with great results. Thank you for sharing this recipe We enjoy pancakes more than a couple times a year now.

Dahn Boquist

Friday 11th of November 2022

These pancakes are definitely a crowd-pleaser! I'm glad you've found a recipe that you love, and that's so versatile. Thanks for the comment.

Mary Sibert

Sunday 10th of July 2022

Very tasty pancakes..I knew I had to double this recipe for my family and it did not dissapoint!

Dahn Boquist

Sunday 10th of July 2022

I’m glad you enjoyed them. Doubling the recipe is a good thing 😉

Lois

Thursday 25th of November 2021

Excellent pancakes! We loved them.

Dahn Boquist

Thursday 25th of November 2021

Thanks, Lois!

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