Once you've tried these sourdough pancakes you'll never want to try another pancake recipe again. Check it out below.

Fermented foods

It seems you can't scroll through your Instagram feed these days without someone banging on about the latest thing they've got fermenting on their kitchen counter - I should know, I'm one of them! I've been pickling things for years and the top shelf is full of different veggies getting super sour and crisp in a vinegary brine. We even came back from America with not one but two scobys so that we could start making kombucha at home (a kind of fermented tea). But, it's sourdough that I'm writing about today or, more precisely, sourdough pancakes.

Sourdough is just dough that has been made using a 'starter' of flour and water which is fermented by natural yeast and bacteria. It takes about a week to create a sourdough starter from scratch but it's worth the wait as the yeast and bacteria come alive and turn these two simple ingredients into some light, bubbly and full of sour flavour. No two sourdough starters taste the same because the wild yeast and bacteria differs from place to place. Jon and I both have a start: mine is called Ryan because he was made with 100% rye flour and Jon's is called Pelly, short for 'pellicle' which is the name given to the colony of microbes that form on top of sour beers as they ferment. I know, we are complete and utter nerds.

So why are fermented foods having a moment right now? Fermented foods like sourdough are great for improving digestion and helping to boost your immunity! The fact that they are also seriously tasty and packed full of tart, zingy flavours helps!

Sourdough discard

I've been nurturing my sourdough starter for a couple of months at this point. In the first few days I fed him 50g of rye flour and 50g of water. Once he was well established I popped him in the fridge to slow down his growth. Then, whenever I want to use him to make bread, waffles or pancakes I take him out of the fridge and give him another feed. Usually this is 50g rye and 50g water. Once I've used him I pop him back in the fridge.

At no point do I scoop any of him out and throw him in the bin.

I'm one of these people who does a lot of research before they ever start learning a new hobby or skill. I kept reading about discarding sourdough starter but I couldn't work out why. Bloggers every where had come up with recipes that you could make instead of throwing the starter away. But, I don't see why it should ever go in the bin.

If you look after your starter in the same way as I do, it is strong enough to make a great loaf but equally you never have excess starter. Most recipes only call for 50g or so of starter and so if you've just fed it 50g of rye and 50g of water you aren't taking more than you've given. The net volume is roughly the same before feed and after bake. If you come across a recipe like this one where you take more than the previous feed, you might want to do one more feed before you put him back to sleep in the fridge. Either way you're not throwing anything away!

Be confident that you can enjoy these pancakes whenever, wherever. You don't just have to save them for when you've got sourdough discard. Heck, you could enjoy these every weekend if you really wanted to! And seeing as sourdough is great for your gut health, why the hell not?!

The recipe

There's no real magic to this recipe. But, the tart flavour of the sourdough starter takes the humble pancake from good to GREAT!