Soft, light and pliable English type pancakes made with rye sourdough. They’re a great way to either refresh your sourdough or use up any surplus discard. And you only need four ingredients for the recipe: wholemeal rye flour, water, eggs and olive oil. Well maybe five if you include salt.
And following on from last week’s grapefruit curd, I have another egg recipe for you. It must be something to do with clearing out all those eggs before Pancake Day. After all, it’s not known as Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) for nothing.
Dive Right In
- Why Make Rye Sourdough Pancakes?
- Rye Sourdough Pancakes
- Ingredients
- How To Make Rye Sourdough Pancakes
- What To Put On Pancakes
- Savoury Pancake Toppings And Fillings
- Sweet Pancake Toppings And Fillings
- Keep In Touch
- The Recipe
Why Make Rye Sourdough Pancakes?
Rye sourdough pancakes are not only delicious, but they offer numerous nutritional benefits. They also make a wholesome and tasty option for a satisfying dinner or dessert.
Here are a few more reasons why you might want to make rye sourdough pancakes.
- Enhanced Flavour Profile – Wholemeal rye flour has a distinct, slightly nutty flavour that adds depth to your pancakes. Combine this with the tanginess of sourdough and it creates a unique and delicious taste that sets these pancakes apart from traditional ones made with wheat flour.
- Gut Friendly – Sourdough fermentation not only enhances flavour but it also makes the pancakes more gut friendly. It can help break down anti-nutrients present in grains, which in turn makes the minerals more bioavailable. Additionally, some people find that rye is easier to digest than wheat.
- Nutritional Benefits – In addition to the sourdough element wholemeal rye flour has many benefits. It has a much higher fibre, vitamin, mineral and micronutrient content than refined wheat flour, for example.
- Reduces Waste – Rather than throw your sourdough discard away, you can put it to good use and make these pancakes. Throwing good food away, is rarely a good idea.
- Sourdough Refresh – Rye sourdough pancakes are an excellent way to restore your rye sourdough starter. If you’ve neglected it for a while, it doesn’t matter too much if it’s not super active. Unlike bread, where you need it nice and lively.
- Supporting Local and Organic Producers – If you source your rye flour and other ingredients locally and opt for organic options, you’re supporting local growers and sustainable agricultural practices. This often has positive impacts on the environment and local communities.
Rye Sourdough Pancakes
When I’ve left my rye sourdough starter in the fridge rather longer than is good for it, I usually need to refresh it a couple of times before it’s ready to make bread. This leaves me with rather a lot of sourdough discard. Sometimes I make flatbreads with it, but the easiest way to use it is to make these rye sourdough pancakes.
In case you’re wondering, they don’t really taste like sourdough, just normal pancakes. But they are a little bit richer and have a more complex flavour. They have a mild, but very pleasant sourness which works well with both sweet and savoury fillings and toppings. They’re a little bit thicker than my standard wholemeal pancakes, but they’re quite light in texture.
I’ve heard some people complain that their rye sourdough pancakes are tough or cardboardy. Well you don’t need to worry about these ones. Mine are soft and pliable. And just as much so when cold as when they’re warm.
This was the second time I refreshed my starter this week and it’s back to full liveliness once again. It normally lasts between three and four weeks before it needs attention. This is just as well as I don’t think I’m organised enough to bake bread every week.
What surprised me the first time I made these rye sourdough pancakes was the tantalising scent of sweet spices. It comes through whilst it’s cooking.I’ve no idea where it comes from as I don’t add any spices, but it’s a bonus.
I’ve only ever tried making British style pancakes with my rye sourdough discard so far. But one day I’m going to try making American style pancakes. I’ll let you know how I get on.
Ingredients
Although I’ve said there are only four ingredients involved in these rye sourdough pancakes, if your batter is thick, you’ll need to water it down. Milk is a good option for this as it provides a little more richness and structure.
Eggs
Do make sure you use free range eggs. I know they’re more expensive, but some things are worth the extra money. I try to buy organic eggs as the chickens in an organic system are less intensively stocked.
Olive Oil
Use extra virgin olive oil for these pancakes. It has a much better flavour profile and is also, generally, unrefined.
You can swap the olive oil for butter if you prefer, but I find the oil works really well.
Wholemeal Rye Flour
If you can get hold or stoneground rye flour, so much the better. Generally, the more unrefined the flour, the better it is for both you and your sourdough. Try to go organic if you can too.
How To Make Rye Sourdough Pancakes
There are a couple of things you really need to remember in order to make this recipe sucessfully. First you need to ferment the flour, water and sourdough starter several hours before you want pancakes. And secondly, make sure you take out your future sourdough starter from the ferment before adding the other ingredients. Otherwise, it’s all plain sailing.
Please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full instructions and quantities of ingredients used.
Step 1. Make Ferment
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, water and your rye sourdough starter together.
How much sourdough starter you use will depend on how much of it you normally keep. I store mine in the same jar, so I aways know just how much to put back in again after the ferment. It weighs around seventy five grams (2 ½ ounces or ⅓ cup).
Cover the bowl with a plate and leave to ferment for ten hours or overnight. It’s fine to leave it for a few hours longer if that fits in better with your schedule. I usually start the ferment first thing in the morning, so it’s ready to make pancakes in the evening.
Stir everything together once again, then remove the initial amount of sourdough starter that you used and put it back in the fridge. Don’t forget this bit. I did once and lost my precious sourdough starter. I was devastated as it had been given to me by the bread guru Andrew Whitley and I’d had it for such a long time.
Step 2. Make Pancake Batter
Crack the eggs into the ferment bowl, then add the salt and oil. Give it a good whisk. A balloon whisk does a great job.
You want the consistency to be slightly thicker than that of unwhipped double cream. So if your mixture is too thick add fifty to a hundred millilitres of water or even milk. Milk adds a certain richness and is good for creating a softer texture than water. However, as you need so little liquid, if any at all, the difference is minimal.
Cover the bowl with the plate and leave to rest for fifteen minutes or so. Give a final stir just before using.
Step 3. Cook Pancakes
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat. Brush the bottom with half a teaspoon of oil, or melted butter if you prefer. Then pour in a not quite full ladleful of batter.
English pancakes are thicker than French ones, but you don’t want them to be too thick. You only need enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan. Tilt the pan slightly to allow the batter to spread or use a spoon to spread the batter out.
Cook for one to two minutes or until the top is almost dry. To tell if the pancake is done, shake the pan. If the pancake comes loose, it’s ready.
Flip the pancake over and cook the other side for one to two minutes. It’s ready when it shakes free and the underside is slightly brown.
If you’re feeling brave you can try tossing the pancake. I used to do this with no qualms at all when I was a child, but as an adult, I sort of lost confidence. Probably something to do with me being the one to clear up any resulting mess.
Step 4. Serve Pancakes
Slide the finished pancake onto a plate. You can eat it straight away or pop it in a warm oven until you’ve finished cooking the rest of the pancakes. Just keep stacking them up on the same plate, they won’t stick.
Either way, spread or top your pancake with your chosen filling and either roll it up or flip one side over the filling to create a sort of pasty shape.
Spoon on or spread your pancake with your favourite toppings. If you’re stuck for ideas, I’ve listed a few below. If the filling is bulky, it’s best to fold the pancake over the filling, but if it’s a spread, roll it up or fold into quarters.
What To Put On Pancakes
There are so many delicious pancake toppings and fillings to choose from. It all very much depends on your own preferences. Go sweet, go savoury or mix them up.
Savoury Pancake Toppings And Fillings
Sweet fillings and toppings are all very well, but you can make an excellent main meal with pancakes. Load one half of the pancake with your chosen filling, then flip the other half over to cover. Just make sure the filling isn’t too runny. Serve two per person. A green salad on the side is usually a good option.
Here are a few suggestions:
- Cheese And Spinach Sauce – one of my all time favourites.
- Leek And Mushrooms – one of the easiest fillings to prepare. I have a recipe for leek and mushroom savoury pancakes right here on Tin and Thyme.
- Lentils – swap the grain in this vegan black lentil bowl for pancakes and serve the greens alongside. Alternatively try this spiced lentil pancake wrap recipe.
- Pretty much anything you’d put in a wrap.
- Pulled Jackfruit – this recipe for pulled jackfruit in a homemade smoky barbecue sauce is a good one.
- Roasted Veggies – try this recipe for roasted Mediterranean vegetables. Serve it with, or without, hummus or scatter some feta cheese over the veg before folding the pancake.
Sweet Pancake Toppings And Fillings
Feeding a crowd? One of the best things to do for sweet pancakes if there’s more than two of you, is to lay out a whole series of potential toppings and then let people help themselves.
Here are a few suggestions:
- Banana and Chocolate Sauce – slice half a banana over the pancake, then drizzle over some homemade chocolate sauce.
- Caramel sauce – salted or otherwise. This is always a good bet. Salted caramel sauce is massively popular, but how about making my blood orange caramel sauce?
- Chocolate and Cream – grate a little chocolate over the pancake, spread a spoonful of clotted cream over the top, then drizzle with a little honey or maple syrup. Roll the chocolate and cream pancakes up and tuck in.
- Fruit Curd and Crème Fraîche – use any homemade fruit curd for this one along with a spoonful of crème fraîche or whipped cream.
- Keep It Simple – drizzle some honey, maple syrup or golden syrup over your pancake. Alternatively spread with jam, nut butter or biscoff.
- Lemon Curd and Strawberries – this is one of my favourites. A spoonful of whipped cream doesn’t go amis either. Has to be homemade lemon curd though.
- Sugar and Lemon – this is the traditional English way to eat pancakes. Just sprinkle the pancake with a little sugar, squeeze over some lemon juice then roll the pancake up.
Keep in Touch
Thank you for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make these rye sourdough pancakes, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do you have any recommendations or advice for using sourdough discard?
Please rate the recipe. If you post pictures of your creations on social media, use the hashtag #tinandthyme so I can see them.
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If you’d like more pancake recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious and nutritious, of course. And if you’d like more recipes made with rye flour, I have a fair few of those too.
Choclette x
Rye Sourdough Pancakes
Rye Sourdough Pancakes
Equipment
- cast iron skillet (25 cm, 10 inch)* optional
- balloon whisk (affiliate link) optional
Ingredients
- rye sourdough starter see note 1
- 250 g rye flour
- 420 ml water
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus 4 tsp for frying – or 15g melted butter
- ¼ tsp sea or rock salt
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, water and your rye sourdough starter together.rye sourdough starter, 250 g rye flour, 420 ml water
- Cover the bowl with a plate and leave to ferment for ten hours or overnight. It’s fine to leave it for a few hours longer if that fits in better with your schedule.
- Stir everything together once again, then remove the initial amount of sourdough starter that you used and put it back in the fridge.
- Crack the eggs into the ferment bowl, then add the salt and oil. Give it a good whisk. If the mixture is too thick add 50-100 ml water or milk. You want the consistency to be slightly thicker than that of unwhipped double cream. Milk is a nice option as it’s richer than water and helps to make the pancakes soft.2 eggs, 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, ¼ tsp sea or rock salt
- Cover the bowl with the plate and leave to rest for fifteen minutes or so. Give a final stir just before using.
- Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat. Brush the bottom with half a teaspoon of oil, then pour in a ladleful of batter. English pancakes are thicker than French crèpes, but you only need enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan. Tip the pan or use a spoon to spread the batter out.
- Cook for two to three minutes or until the top is almost dry. To tell if the pancake is done, shake the pan. If the pancake comes loose, it's ready.
- Flip the pancake over and cook the other side for one to two minutes.
- Either serve straight away, or place on a plate and keep in the oven at 50℃ (40℃ fan, 122℉, Gas ¼) until all of the pancakes are done. Just keep stacking them up on the same plate, they won’t stick.
Sue Hunter says
These are delicious pancakes, I’m so glad I spotted your recipe.
My favourite way to use sourdough discard is to make crackers.
200ml discard, 28g butter melted, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 tsp dried herbs(mixed, Italian or herbs de Provence)
line a baking tray with baking paper, spread the mixture thinly with the back of a spoon. Bake at 170 C for 10 mins, score into squares then bake a further 30-40 minutes. Flip part way through if the bottom is still soft. Lovely with all kinds of savoury spreads.
Choclette says
I’m glad you spotted the recipe too Sue. Thanks for letting me know. Thank you too for your cracker recipe – it looks to be a really good one. I shall give it a try.