What To Do With Leftover Sourdough Discard

Learn how to use sourdough discard creatively for a no-waste kitchen!

I share the best ways to use your discard here, from delicious sweet treats to savory recipes, feeding your chickens, and more.

What Is Sourdough Discard?

Sourdough discard is the portion of leftover sourdough starter you may have after using your active starter to create bread. 

Here is an example of how a starter works in relation to producing discard: 

• You have a base amount of 50 grams of starter. 
• You feed your sourdough starter in a ratio of 1:2:2 (starter: flour: water). 
• That ratio means you feed your base amount of starter 100 grams of flour and 100 grams of water, resulting in 250 grams of starter.
• Once your sourdough starter is active, you use 100 grams of it to make same-day sourdough bread. 
• This leaves you with 150 grams of leftover starter. Since you want to keep a base of 50 grams to feed, you have 100 grams of leftover starter. 

You technically now have 100 grams of discard work with.  You may be tempted to throw this starter away if you new to sourdough.

But there are several fun ways to use up this starter, resulting in delicious recipes and a no-waste sourdough kitchen!

Remember that you do not need to keep this much starter on hand unless you want to.  

You can easily keep JUST the starter you need to make your weekly or monthly bread loaf, then stash your sourdough starter in the fridge until the next time you want to bake.  

If you are a daily bread baker like myself, you will probably find yourself with a surplus of sourdough starter.

How To Store Sourdough Discard

I like to store leftover discard in an airtight container like a mason jar with a tight lid. You can store discard in your fridge indefinitely!  

Remember that the liquid may separate, or a dark liquid may form on top of the discard. This darker layer is called hooch, which simply means that the discard in the fridge is hungry. 

You can store discard at room temperature for up to 36 hours. I tend to stash mine in the fridge right away so that I have them for recipes later in the week.

Learn how to make your own starter and how to maintain it here.

7 Fun Ways To Use Up Leftover Sourdough Starter 

Don’t throw your discard in the trash, it’s a baking goldmine! Here are 7 fun and delicious ways to use up your discard!

1. Save Up For Big Batches Of Discard Recipes

My favorite way to use up sourdough discard is to make double batches of pancakes, waffles, and crepes.

I have four kiddos, and they could always use a second (or third) waffle. I love to keep a jar of discard in the fridge, add to it daily, and then bake a double batch of waffles or pancakes on Saturday morning. 

Storing up the discard is a great way to feed a crowd.  Save your sourdough discard and use it to double or triple the pancakes on Saturday morning. 

Here are a few other fun sourdough discard breakfast ideas:

• Pumpkin muffins
• Discard bagels
• Quick breads like this mouth-watering chocolate chip loaf

2. Backup For Your Starter

Technically speaking, sourdough discard is just a portion of unfed starter. Keeping a discard jar in your fridge is like fire insurance, it’s the perfect backup for your main starter.

If something goes wrong, just remove a potion of your starter from the fridge, feed it equal portions of flour and water for a few days, and you’ll be back in business.

If you regularly store leftover starter in your fridge you’ll always have a backup. You know you always have a fresh, healthy starter just waiting to be fed and nourished if something goes awry with your regular starter.

I once put baking soda in my starter by mistake, and I was very relieved to have some backup starter in the fridge to rely on!

3. Add It To Desserts

Sweet recipes are the perfect way to use up your starter.  From chocolate chip cookies to chocolate cake, cinnamon rolls, and pies, these sweet treats are an excellent way to use up leftover sourdough. 

This chocolate chip recipe has been going viral on Pinterest for months and months. 

4. Use It For Savory Dishes

Use your sourdough starter in savory dishes. Pizza dough, easy crepes, and crackers are some of the best ways to use up a lot of discard.  

You can also use discard as a base for skillet dinners, pouring a thin layer into a hot skillet and adding savory ingredients like sausage, beef, cheese, and vegetables. 

5. Make Starter-Only Recipes

My favorite recipes use sourdough discard ONLY. The excess starter is already fermented, the grains are broken down, and they are easily digestible.

When you use this discard to make crackers or waffles, you are reaping the benefits of using a flour source that is much more gentle on your gut. These healthy sourdough starter recipes are usually quick and easy to make, a double win for busy moms!

These recipes also often use up a lot of discard at once—usually at least one cup. 

6. Feed Your Chickens

You can give your chickens a tasty treat by adding sourdough to their diet once a week. Doing so will give your chickens a boost. They benefit from the probiotics and vitamins that are tucked into the discard. 

A fun way to feed your chickens discard is to create seed balls. Combine sunflower seeds and rolled oats with discard, then form into balls.

Refrigerate until the seed balls are hard, then toss them into the coop. Your flock will love it! 

*Always give your chickens access to water when feeding them discard.

7. Use Starter To Feed Your Plants

Did you know that discard is rich in vitamins and minerals that can benefit the garden?

You can save and use your discard on indoor and outdoor plants.  Dilute a small amount of discard with water, then apply it to the base of your plants, avoiding the leaves.  

In a large outdoor space, this could use up a ton of your discard, resulting in a lush, thriving garden. A no-waste sourdough kitchen is yours to be had with these awesome ways to use up discard.

Please let me know in the comments what your favorite way of using discard is, and feel free to share your best sourdough discard recipes in the comments!