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Skip the morning chaos, these overnight sourdough pancakes do the heavy lifting while you sleep. The batter ferments overnight for rich, tangy flavor and pancakes that are light, fluffy, and just crisp enough around the edges. When morning comes, all that’s left to do is stir, cook, and pour the coffee.
If you’re in the mood for waffles instead, try my overnight sourdough waffles. They’re crisp on the outside, fluffy inside, and just as easy to prep ahead.
Here’s Why This Sourdough Pancake Recipe Works
Deep sourdough flavor: An overnight sponge gives these pancakes complex, tangy notes that short-rise recipes can’t match.
Low-effort mornings: The hard work’s done the night before. Just stir a few ingredients into the fermented batter and start cooking.
Works with starter or discard: No need to be picky. This batter handles both and it is the best breakfast recipe. And we have more sourdough recipes to put your starter to good use.
Amazing texture: These pancakes stay fluffy inside with crisp, golden edges. No rubbery centers or sourdough chewiness.
Recipe Tips
Use a large mixing bowl: The batter expands overnight. Give it room to rise so it doesn’t overflow or stick to the wrap.
Cover loosely overnight: This keeps the batter from drying out while still allowing a little airflow.
Preheat your skillet: Go for steady medium heat. You want golden edges, not scorched bottoms.
Give them room: Cook in batches and don’t crowd the pan. Each pancake needs space to spread and cook evenly.
Stir down the sponge gently: In the morning, you don’t need to fully deflate the batter, just enough to mix in the final ingredients.
Adjust thickness if needed: If the batter feels too thick to pour easily, add a splash of buttermilk.
Keep pancakes warm while cooking batches: Place them on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven while the others finish cooking.
Overnight Sourdough Discard Pancakes
These overnight sourdough pancakes make the most of your starter with barely any effort in the morning. They’re fluffy, flavorful, and full of that tangy depth only time can build. Smart, simple, and ready when you are.
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Overnight Sourdough Pancakes
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Ingredients
The Night Before Cooking:
- 1 cup sourdough starter, you can use active starter or discard for this recipe; 240 grams
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk, 340 grams
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 180 grams
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
In the Morning:
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
The night before (sourdough sponge):
- Mix the sourdough starter, buttermilk, flour, and the sugar in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit on the countertop overnight.
In the morning finish the pancakes:
- Preheat your skillet.
- Stir in the melted butter, eggs, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Fold into the batter until well combined.
- Pour ¼ to ½ 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.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
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?
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.
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.
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.
Very tasty pancakes..I knew I had to double this recipe for my family and it did not dissapoint!
I’m glad you enjoyed them. Doubling the recipe is a good thing ?
Excellent pancakes! We loved them.
Thanks, Lois!
Made these today (last night) and they were yummy! thank you so much for the recipe. 🙂
Julie, thank you so much for your feedback. We are so happy that you made and enjoyed this pancakes!
Made these and LOVE them! Thank you! we even eliminated the baking soda and powder from the morning mix, and just let it sit out for 4 more hours and they are delicious. Thanks again!
Thanks for the comment Elaine, I’m glad to hear you liked them. Great way to start the day 🙂
Normally my family sits down to eat pancake breakfast together but on the morning I made these for the first time it was a hectic day. Each of us ate at different times yet all of use ate the pancakes in the same manner…we made pancake tacos! They were so thin yet not flimsy and the taste was absolutely devine!
That sounds great. Good idea to make them thin and use them as tacos. I bet that was a great breakfast
I’m guessing 1/2 AP and 1/2 WW would be okay? Well, I’m gonna try it 🙂
Oh, I am sure that would work great. You may need to adjust the liquid a bit.
Lol! It is! I haven’t come up with a name yet. 😀 I made the pancakes this morning and OMG! So delicious and tender. I added a few fresh blueberries while they were in the pan. Yum!! Thanks for the great recipe!
Stay safe, stay healthy! 🙂
Blueberries should make this a great pancake! Thanks for the comment. You stay safe too Sue
After much trial and error over the last few years, I finally have a healthy, robust sourdough starter. I’m going to try this pancake recipe this weekend! Looks delicious!
Woo hoo! Keeping that sourdough starter is almost like keeping a pet LOL. Enjoy your pancakes!