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Sourdough Discard Crackers
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Deliciously easy sourdough discard crackers, with oregano, garlic and more – perfect for snacking, dipping and devouring. Prepared in 15 minutes and fully baked in 30 minutes, this bake yields 20 crackers that are ideal for parties and dipping in hummus.
What is sourdough discard?
If you have had the pleasure of making a sourdough starter, or if you have been gifted a sourdough starter, or even bought a ready to go sourdough starter, you probably want to bake some bread. Bread is obviously the main purpose of creating this sourdough starter, but you can also create a wonderful variety of other bakes with the discard, that have a delicious new level of flavour thanks to the properties of the sourdough culture.
If you fed a starter to bake with, or just because you want to keep it alive, anything you take out of that jar is technically sourdough discard. Whether you are taking it out of the jar to bake bread, make these crackers, or anything else… it’s discard. Technically it’s also just sourdough starter, but it’s coined the name of discard as you are ‘discarding it’ from the jar.
Baking with sourdough discard
You can add discard to almost any bake, but you have to factor in the levels of flour/water that are in that discard, when creating a recipe. Luckily, making sourdough discard crackers is one of the easiest and most pleasant ways to bake with discard, and the recipe is incredibly easy.
Often, you need to take out a quantity of liquid, and a quantity of dry, to add in the addition of the discarded sourdough starter, but I usually make these discard crackers if my starter has been in the fridge for a few days, or if I ran out of time to make a bread loaf, and they are truly quite addictive – and you don’t need to do any maths with a recipe.
Sourdough crackers
As starter/discard is a simple mix of flour and water, it creates a good base for a simple mixture, of adding some melted butter and some flavours, and creating these beauties.
I often use flavours such as dried oregano, garlic granules, salt and pepper, and then some black sesame seeds on top before baking. You can make them lightly spicy by using chilli based spices, or more herby with some mixed herbs, Italian herbs, or even thyme. The salt and pepper are always a necessity to me, but they are in anything savoury I do. It’s entirely up to you and what you typically prefer.
Mix everything to a thick paste, spread thinly onto a large baking tray and bake in a preheated oven. You can have a uniform shape to the crackers by scoring the sheet, 10 minutes into baking, with a knife and then breaking them up easily once baked and cooled. These are wonderful for dipping into houmous, having with cheese, or anything else.
FAQS
What can I use as a swap for garlic and oregano?
If you don’t have garlic granules or dried oregano, you can easily swap them for any of your favourite dried herbs or spices. Smoked paprika, onion powder, dried rosemary, or chilli powder all work fantastically. Just keep the total spice quantity to around 2 teaspoons to maintain the right flavour balance.
Can I use fed sourdough starter instead of discard?
Yes, you can use active, fed sourdough starter if that is what you have on hand. However, using cold, unfed discard straight from the fridge works just as well and is the best way to prevent kitchen waste without needing to wait for your starter to peak.
Why are my crackers soft instead of crunchy in the middle?
Crackers need to be spread into an even, paper-thin layer (a couple of millimetres thick) across the tray. If the paste is too thick in the centre, moisture will get trapped. If they feel soft after cooling, simply pop them back into a low oven at 150°C for 5 to 10 minutes to dry out completely.
Can I use oil instead of melted butter?
Yes, it adapts beautifully to liquid oils. If you want to make these vegan or dairy-free, you can swap the 35g of melted butter for an equal amount of olive oil or vegetable oil, which will still yield a crisp, delicious crunch.
Sourdough Discard Crackers
Deliciously easy sourdough discard crackers, with oregano, garlic and more – perfect for snacking, dipping and devouring
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Servings: 20 crackers
Ingredients
- 250 g sourdough discard
- 35 g butter (salted/unsalted) (melted)
- 1 tsp garlic granules
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- black sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190ºc/170ºc fan and line a large baking tray with parchment paper
- Grab the sourdough starter – this can be unfed and fridge cold, or have been fed and at room temperature
- Pour into a bowl, and add the melted butter, garlic granules, oregano, salt and pepper
- Mix to combine
- Spread onto the parchment paper, using a palette knife, spoon, or spatula until its even and a thin layer (a couple millimetres thick)
- Sprinkle over the sesame seeds
- Bake in the oven for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and score with a knife into squares
- Bake for a further 20-25 minutes, until golden
- Leave to cool for 20 minutes and then use the score lines to break the crackers up
Notes
- These last in an airtight container at room temperature for a week
- These can freeze for 3+ months
Storage and freezing
While these easy sourdough discard crackers taste fantastic when served fresh and warm from the oven, it is a well-known secret that the flavours actually improve and become much richer after sitting in an airtight container as the herbs settle.
Leftovers can be cooled completely and stored securely inside an airtight tin at room temperature for up to a week or frozen for up to three months.
Related recipes
I do love a sourdough discard recipe, if you do too, you should try my Triple Chocolate Sourdough Cookies or the decadent Sourdough Chocolate Brownies.
If you haven’t learnt how to make your own sourdough starter I have a easy to follow recipe on my blog, you can follow that here.
I Used Italian garlic seasoning (no black sesame as none in the cupboard!) and it worked so well! Mine is a dough starter kept in the fridge. Great way to use up the discarded, more recipes like this or for other sourdough bakes would be great!
These turned out really well I used coconut oil instead of butter to make them dairy free. This is a great way not to waste sourdough discard!
Absolutely delicious!! I used chilli flakes and marjoram in mine along with the garlic granules. I didn’t have black sesame seeds so I used white sesame seeds. Mine did catch so next time I think I’ll check on them after 15 minutes instead of 20 minutes. Really delicious with cheese. Thank you Jane for another brilliant recipe
Hi Catherine, did you eat them with cheese or did you add the cheese to the mix? Thanks
This will be a new go-to recipe for me whenever I have sourdough discard! The recipe is very simple, straight-forward, and flexible. I baked mine longer than usual because I love toasty crackers and the results were excellent. I added a variety of herbs and spices to the dough and then sprinkled all over the top some everything bagel seasoning. My husband said they were the best crackers he’s had!
I followed Jane’s sourdough starter instructions and have successfully made my own sourdough bread. Thought I would try this recipe as well; very easy to make and very tasty!