This fried sourdough starter (discard) recipe is the quickest and easiest way to use your sourdough starter/ discard. These bite-sized sweet sourdough discard fry bread balls are delightful treats and full of sourdough starter flavor. Pan-deep-fried in avocado oil, they have crispy cinnamon and coconut sugar coating and are fluffy and soft inside- ready in about 2 minutes!
What makes these fried bread balls so tasty and flavorful is that they are made with sourdough starter. Besides its health benefits, sourdough starter adds a unique flavor to these bites that make them so irresistibly good!
These pan-deep-fried sourdough starter bread balls are so easy to make without much effort and always available to make in no time whenever you crave them. No need to roll or shape the dough; just grab and drop the batter in hot oil. I used avocado oil to make this recipe healthier.
So do not hesitate and make these yummy fresh fried sourdough starter bread balls using your sourdough starter/ discard in this recipe and enjoy them as a snack or dessert.
Jump to:
What is a sourdough starter?
Sourdough starter is naturally colonized yeast and acidic bacteria from your kitchen. You simply used sourdough starter instead of package yeast to make all kinds of baked goods such as bread. It adds a delicious tangy flavor that is so irresistible. It takes only flour and water to make a sourdough starter from scratch in about two weeks. Here is a great blog post on how to make a sourdough starter.
Ingredients
- Active sourdough starter. I fed my sourdough starter with a cup of all-purpose flour beforehand, so it was bubbly, nice, and ready to go. You may use sourdough discard too. If you are using sourdough discard, mix ¼ tsp. baking soda per cup of sourdough discards to make it extra fluffy. The leftover sourdough starter is called sourdough discard which is flat and not active/bubbly.
- Honey. You may use sugar instead. Use agave to make it vegan.
- Salt. It just takes a pinch to bring out the flavor.
- Oil. I used high-smoke point avocado oil and heated it slowly. I used the leftover oil to make homemade popcorn!
- Sugar. I used coconut sugar. Use any sugar you have on hand.
- Cinnamon. Use more of any other sweet spices like anise seeds or cardamom.
How to make fried sourdough starter
Step 1. Prepare the dry and wet ingredients. Mix the coconut sugar and cinnamon and put them aside. Place active sourdough starter, honey, and salt in a bowl and mix.
Step 2. Heat up the oil. Pour avocado oil into a saucepan and heat it on medium-low heat.
Step 3. Deep pan-fry them. When the oil looks heated and shiny, take one spoonful of sourdough starter mix and drop it inside the saucepan. I drop two at a time. Do not overcrowd the saucepan. Be patient and let them fry on each side until golden brown.
Step 4. Coat them. Then take the fried ones out and coat them with the coconut sugar and cinnamon mixture while they are hot.
And continue with the rest.
Step 5. Serve and enjoy! Served them hot and fresh as a sweet treat. I served them with tea or coffee for adults and with milk for kids.
Tips for the best sourdough fried bread
- Use high smoke point oil. High-smoking point oils such as avocado oil is perfect for frying, so it does not leave any burning flavor or taste.
- Heat up the oil well. Ensure the oil is hot and shiny before adding the batter; otherwise, it will stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Sprinkle with some sugar. Do not skip coating for extra sweetness. Or use any other glaze you like the best.
- Get creative with coatings. You may add other herbs (thyme, basil), spices, or seeds to the sugar coating.
- Make them fluffier. If you are using sourdough discard, add ¼ tsp. baking soda per cup of sourdough discard and mix them.
- Make the balls small. This way the interior of the sourdough balls cooks evenly.
- Use medium-low heat. Fry them on medium-low heat, so the inside cooks through and the oil does not get burned.
- Make popcorn. I used leftover oil and made popcorn.
- Adjust the sweetness. I made this recipe as healthy as possible. So it is sweet enough to call it a delicious dessert. But feel free to adjust the sweetness to your taste.
Substitutions and variations to this recipe
- Use other toppings ideas. You may use other toppings such as chocolate or vanilla glaze, powdered sugar, coconut flake, a drizzle of honey, pumpkin, cardamom, or nutmeg sugar.
- Make a glaze. To make a glaze, mix powdered sugar with milk and cocoa powder or vanilla.
- Make it vegan. Replace honey with other sweeteners.
- Make it gluten-free. Use gluten-free sourdough starter and gluten-free flour to feed it.
- Make apple cider flavor. You can make these bread bites into apple cider bites by feeding the sourdough starter with flour + apple cider instead of flour+ water.
- Make them savory. Skip the sweeteners completely and make them savory. Add into the batter spices and herbs you like.
- Skillet-fried it. You may use a cast-iron skillet and pan-fried it flat instead. Sprinkle on top of sourdough starter any finely chopped caramelized veggies (onion, mushroom, olives) before flipping it over. Or you can saute the veggies and add sourdough discard over the sauteed veggies. Cut it into pieces and serve.
Storage and reheat
Store the leftover in an air-tight container for 3 days in the fridge. Heat them in a microwave for a few seconds and serve them.
What to serve with it
Serve them as a sweet treat or snack after breakfast, lunch, or dinner with tea, coffee, hot cocoa, or milk.
These homemade fried sourdough starter bread balls are deliciously comforting and so easy, quick, and fun to make from scratch! This is how to use a sourdough discard to make delicious fried sourdough discard bread. It is extremely satisfying to see the sourdough starter batter puff ups in the hot oil.
Please let me know how you did it and what version you made. I love to hear from you!
Please rate, comment, and share this recipe on Pinterest. Thank you!
FAQ
It is ok to eat fried sourdough starter. If you use high-quality frying oil such as avocado oil and do not burn the oil, you certainly can make a healthy fried sourdough starter that can be enjoyed from time to time. Use high quality less sweeteners to make it healthy.
The leftover sourdough starter is called sourdough discard which is flat and not active/bubbly.
You can eat cooked sourdough starter/discard in the form of baked goods or this simple fried sourdough starter. I would not recommend eating sourdough starter raw as it will cause stomach aches and bloating.
Parings
These are my favorite dishes to serve them with:
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Find more delicious sourdough starter recipes
- Sourdough bread pizza
- Sourdough breakfast recipe
- Easy sourdough discard naans
- Easy old fashioned salmon patties
- Sourdough starter hamburger patty
- Sourdough starter fried chicken
- Sourdough discard flatbread
- Apple dessert with tortillas
Fried sourdough starter (Discard)
This fried sourdough starter (discard) recipe is so easy and quick to make. Deep-fried in avocado oil and coated in cinnamon coconut sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of active sourdough starter. You may use sourdough discard too. If you are using sourdough discard, add ¼ tsp. baking soda per cup of sourdough discard and mix it in.
- 1 tsp. of honey
- A pinch of salt
- 1 cup of avocado oil
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tsp. Cinnamon
Instructions
- Prepare the dry and wet ingredients. Mix the coconut sugar and cinnamon and put them aside. Place active sourdough starter, honey, and salt in a bowl and mix.
- Heat up the oil. Pour avocado oil into a saucepan and heat it on medium-low heat.
- Deep pan-fry them. When the oil looks heated and shiny, take one spoonful of sourdough starter mix and drop it inside the saucepan. I drop two at a time. Do not overcrowd the saucepan. Be patient and let them fry on each side until golden brown.
- Coat them. Then take the fried ones out and coat them with the coconut sugar and cinnamon mixture while they are hot. And continue with the rest.
- Serve and enjoy! Served them hot and fresh as a sweet treat. I served them with tea or coffee for adults and with milk for kids.
Notes
Tips and tricks
- Use high smoke point oil. High-smoking point oils such as avocado oil is perfect for frying, so it does not leave any burning flavor or taste.
- Heat up the oil well. Ensure the oil is hot and shiny before adding the batter; otherwise, it will stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Sprinkle with some sugar. Do not skip coating for extra sweetness. Or use any other glaze you like the best.
- Get creative with coatings. You may add other herbs, spices, or seeds to the sugar coating.
- Make them fluffier. If you are using sourdough discard, add ¼ tsp. baking soda per cup of sourdough discard and mix them.
- Make the balls small. This way the interior of the sourdough balls cooks evenly.
- Use medium-low heat. Fry them on medium-low heat, so the inside cooks through and the oil does not get burned.
- Make popcorn. I used leftover oil and made popcorn.
- Adjust the sweetness. I made this recipe as healthy as possible. So it is sweet enough to call it a delicious dessert. But feel free to adjust the sweetness to your taste.
Substitutions and variations to this recipe
- Use other toppings ideas. You may use other toppings such as chocolate or vanilla glaze, powdered sugar, coconut flake, a drizzle of honey, pumpkin, cardamom, or nutmeg sugar.
- Make a glaze. To make a glaze, mix powdered sugar with milk and cocoa powder or vanilla.
- Make it vegan. Replace honey with other sweeteners.
- Make it gluten-free. Use gluten-free sourdough starter and gluten-free flour to feed it.
- Make apple cider flavor. You can make these bread bites into apple cider bites by feeding the sourdough starter with flour + apple cider instead of flour+ water.
- Make them savory. Skip the sweeteners completely and make them savory. Add into the batter spices and herbs you like.
- Skillet-fried it. You may use a cast-iron skillet and pan-fried it flat instead. Sprinkle on top of sourdough starter any finely chopped veggies (onion, mushroom, olives) before flipping it over. Or you can saute the veggies and add sourdough discard over the sauteed veggies. Cut it into pieces and serve.
Storage and reheat
Store the leftover in an air-tight container for 3 days in the fridge. Heat them in a microwave for a few seconds and serve them.
What to serve with it
Serve them as a sweet treat or snack after breakfast, lunch, or dinner with tea, coffee, hot cocoa, or milk.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 11 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 146Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 13mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 1gSugar: 5gProtein: 1g
Selena
I tried it. It was perfect, soft and full of flavor! Thanks for sharing this amazing simple recipe!
Deliciousnutritiousfood
I am glad you liked it!
Sam
Oh wow! Just made these and they are amazing!! Soooo easy and delicious. My first couple of batches were too big, and my oil wasn't hot enough so they weren't a good round shape, but still tasty. Got the hang of it and will definitely be making these again, great way to use discard. Would sprinkle cinnamon sugar over next time as mine clumped a bit after a couple of batches. Thanks for your amazing recipe, love it!
Deliciousnutritiousfood
Hi Sam, I am so glad you enjoying the recipe!