Easy Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

These mouth-watering sourdough chocolate chip cookies hit the sweet spot. Dripping with gooey chocolate chips, these decadent cookies are flaked with sea salt and enriched with the complex flavors of sourdough discard.

After numerous attempts and much taste testing, we’ve cracked the code to the perfect cookies. My four young chefs in training and neighborly taste testers all give the stamp of approval!

Jump to Recipe

These soft and chewy cookies have all the essential ingredients in a classic chocolate chip cookie- but the added sourdough discard offers a deeper dimension to the texture and flavor. *Insert chef’s kiss!*

As a busy mom of four, every recipe on my blog has to pass the quick and easy test. These sourdough cookies are so easy to make, and they satisfy the sweet tooth!

There are no special steps or unique ingredients for this recipe. You’ll need basic pantry ingredients for these cookies, as well as sourdough starter discard.  

Let’s dive into all the ingredients; then, I’ll hold your hand (with photos) and walk you through the simple, easy steps! 

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, we may make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Notes On Ingredients

Remember that high-quality, fresh ingredients always perform best when baking cookies.  Here are the highlights from this recipe:

• Unbleached flour- I love to use high-quality organic flour when possible.
• Salt- The sweetness of chocolate chip cookies must be offset by salt! That’s how you get that perfect juxtaposition of flavors. 
• Sourdough Discard- Sourdough discard adds a unique flavor and depth to this treat. For this recipe, I used sourdough starter that is no longer active. In this case, I fed the starter the evening before, and by mid-afternoon the next day, the starter was no longer bubbling and active. I made my cookies at this time. 
• Brown Sugar + White Sugar: What would a cookie be without sugar!? (lost and hopeless, that’s what!). I always try to reduce sugar if I can do so without sacrificing taste, and I think we’ve done a bang-up job doing so here. 
• Eggs- Whole eggs help hold together the dough and allow the cookies to spread properly when baking.
• Vanilla Extract-  Use a high-quality vanilla extract to compliment the salty chocolate flavors of this cookie. 
• Sea Salt- It may be my oceanside upbringing, but a little sprinkle of chunky sea salt seals the deal for making these cookies the best. Sprinkle a little (or a lot) on the cookies as they cool. You’ll thank me later!

Variations

You can always add more or less chocolate chips or sub them with unique ingredients. My mom’s favorite thing to do is add miniature chocolate chips to her recipe. 

Feel free to change up the classic chocolate chips with chopped gourmet chocolate, m and m’s, pecans, white chocolate chips, mini chocolate chips, miniature peanut butter cups, or whatever else strikes your fancy!

Supplies

You’ll need a few basic supplies for this recipe. A kitchen scale will come in handy when measuring out sourdough discard. I use this specific cookie scoop for all of my cookies, which helps to keep the cookies uniform in size. 

You’ll also need two large bowls, a hand or stand mixer, a set of measuring spoons, parchment paper, baking pans, a whisk, and a spatula.  

How To Make

First, mix all of the dry ingredients. Whisk very well, making sure all the ingredients are combined.

Next, blend the brown and white sugar, butter, vanilla, eggs, and discard. Use a hand or stand mixer and blend until the ingredients are fully incorporated. The batter will be creamy.

Slowly add the flour mix to the wet ingredients. I add about one-third of the flour at a time and mix well. Make sure the batter is fully incorporated. 

Now, add the chocolate chips to the batter and fold in with a spatula. You should have a beautiful soft dough chock full of chocolate chips.  

Grab your cookie scoop and drop dough onto a cookie pan lined with parchment paper, then chill in the refrigerator for at least twenty minutes. 

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. The cookies should look slightly underdone when you pull them from the oven. They will continue to firm up as they cool! As soon as the cookies are done baking, sprinkle with finishing salt.

Cool on the pan for five minutes before transferring to a cookie rack. 

Tips

• I do not have enough room in my fridge to stack pans of cookie dough (who does!). So, I will chill my dough in its bowl until it’s time to scoop up the next batch. When chilled, the dough is a little stiffer to shape and form, and you may have to use both hands to form the cookie dough balls. 
• You may be wondering when sourdough discard is ready to use. The truth is, you can use your sourdough at any time for this recipe. But bubbly, active sourdough will give you a puffier cookie. Most people use “discard” from their sourdough when the starter is inactive and no longer bubbly (this is what I used in my recipe). 
• The amount of cookies depends on the type of cookie scoop you use, as the scoop affects size. I use this KitchenAid cookie scoop, which gives around 2 dozen cookies.
• Oven temperatures can vary! Keep an eye on your cookies and pull them from the oven when they are almost done but still look a little bit gooey. Removing the cookies just a tad early will give that irresistabiy soft and chewy texture.