Sourdough Discard Flatbread by Make It Dough (2024)

FAQs

Can you use sourdough discard to make sourdough starter? ›

Absolutely! A jar of sourdough discard serves as an insurance policy against starter death. If you have some discard on hand, remove a spoonful of it and feed it fresh flour and water in a clean jar. You should have a bubbly starter ready to bake with after a couple of feedings, depending on the discard's condition.

You can store sourdough discard in a separate container, then bake with it when you want — for instance, maybe you fed your starter on Tuesday, leaving you with discard that you want to use to bake pancakes on Saturday.

Sourdough discard is the unfed portion of your sourdough starter that you remove before you add fresh flour and water. Because of it's unfed state, it's not used to bake the delicious bread you know as sourdough, but more often than not, used in sourdough discard recipes.

If your flatbreads are too dense, it's probably because you did not knead the dough enough. Make sure your dough looks completely smooth after kneading. You should also make sure that your baking powder is still viable or your flatbread will not rise as they bake and will turn out dense and hard.

You can store mature sourdough discard in the refrigerator indefinitely. As long as there is no mold, it is good to use. It may develop a grayish liquid on top called “hooch” which can be poured off before use or stirred in. If you stir it in, the flavor will become more sour.

What to do with sourdough discard? Don't throw it away! Instead, use it to make delicious and nutritious treats like pancakes, waffles, muffins, and bread. Sourdough discard is a great source of natural yeast and flavor, and can add a unique tangy taste to your baked goods.

You can always use this discard by directly mixing it into a dough for baking. Your discard, as long as it's in good shape, will leaven any bread dough just as well. The discard is just like a levain you would make for a recipe. The only difference is it's the same makeup as your starter.

Use it immediately for baking: If you are going to bake something right away (same day), you can keep the discard at room temperature until you're ready to bake. Cover it with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out until you're ready to use it. Check out a few of my favorite sourdough discard recipes here.

It can be at room temperature or come directly from the fridge. The texture is less bubbly (if bubbly at all) when compared to fluffy active starter. Sourdough discard is not active enough to make bread dough rise, and despite its name the “discard” does not have to be thrown away.

Sourdough discard recipes not only reduce waste but also offer health benefits, making them a wonderful addition to a balanced diet. The fermentation process of the sourdough starter increases the availability of certain nutrients and can help improve digestion.

What happens if you don't discard sourdough starter? ›

If you don't get rid of the excess, eventually you'll have more starter than your feedings can sustain.

Is it healthy to eat sourdough everyday? You could eat sourdough every day, but it isn't necessarily healthy to do so. A healthy diet is characterized by balance and moderation. Whether or not it is healthy for you to consume sourdough every day depends on the rest of your diet.

If you're an avid bread maker, or a novice trying it for the first time, you may have a few questions about the process. One of the most common questions Bob's Red Mill Experts get asked is, "can you over-knead bread?" In short, the answer is yes.

Making the Flatbread Dough

Add the salt followed by the yoghurt and combine into a nice soft dough. If the dough is too sticky add a touch more flour.

Flat breads are made throughout most of the world. Examples are pita (from the Middle East), chapati and naan (India), tortilla (Mexico) and focaccia (Italy). The bread may be leavened (have a raising agent of yeast or sourdough) or unleavened.

Can I use sourdough discard to make a new starter (levain)? Absolutely! One of the amazing benefits of sourdough discard is that you can use it to create new starters, which are known as levains.

Yes you can use sourdough discard straight from the fridge, you don't need to let it come to room temperature if you don't want to. What is this? If you are using it straight from the fridge it may be a little stiff or thick, so you'll need to ensure you mix it really well.

If you don't get rid of the excess, eventually you'll have more starter than your feedings can sustain. After a few days, your daily 1/4 cup flour and water won't be enough to sustain your entire jar of starter, and your starter will be slow and sluggish, not much better than discard itself.

Room-temperature starter should be fed every 12 hours (twice a day) using the standard maintenance feeding procedure: discard all but 113g, and feed that 113g starter with 113g each water and flour.