Made with only four ingredients, these thin and crispy sourdough discard crackers are so easy to make and are so, so tasty: buttery and flaky with a perfect tang. The seasonings can be adapted to your tastes and preferences, and the dough freezes well, too šŸŽ‰

A cheese board with homemade sourdough crackers on it.

If you are looking for a simple way to put your sourdough discard to good use, look no further. These crackers, made with three basic ingredients ā€” flour, salt, and butter ā€” plus a hefty amount of sourdough discard, will make you never want to discard your discard again.

The recipe and method produce a thin and crispy cracker, buttery and flaky, with the perfect tang. Theyā€™re delicious on their own, but even better topped with a slice of sharp cheddar cheese.

Whatā€™s more, while the recipe is simple, it can be gussied up in countless ways by using various flours, adding herbs or spices to the dough itself, or topping them with various seeds or seed mixes: sesame, everything bagel, dukkah.

Find step-by-step instructions below, and find notes in the recipe box on how to make the dough ahead of time or freeze it for future use.

PS: How to Build A Sourdough Starter From Scratch

How to Make Sourdough Discard Crackers, Step by Step

Place 200 grams of sourdough discard in a large bowl.

A bowl with 200 grams of sourdough starter in it.

Add 1/2 cup of rye flour, 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour, butter, and salt. (You can use any mix of flours you like.)

Ingredients to make sourdough crackers in a bowl.

Mix until you have a cohesive dough ball.

Just-mixed sourdough cracker dough in a bowl.

Cut the dough in half and pat it into two rectangles.

Two portions of sourdough cracker dough.

Wrap each in plastic wrap (or place in an airtight vessel) and chill for 30 minutes or longer.

Two portions of sourdough cracker dough wrapped in parchment paper.

Unwrap and roll the portion out as thinly as possible on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Use the plastic wrap, too, to prevent sticking.

Sourdough cracker dough on a sheet of parchment paper.

Itā€™s OK if the finished shape is amoeba-shaped.

Rolled out sourdough cracker dough on a sheet of parchment paper.

The key is to roll the dough thin.

Rolled out sourdough cracker dough on a sheet of parchment paper.

Cut into cracker shapes ā€” squares, rectangles, whatever you like. Brush with olive oil.

Unbaked sourdough crackers on a sheet pan.

Season as you wish: everything bagel seasoning, sesame seeds, or simply flaky sea salt.

Unbaked sourdough cracker dough.

Unbaked sourdough crackers on a sheet pan.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until evenly golden ā€” you do not want to underbake these.

Just baked sourdough crackers on a sheet pan.
Just-baked sourdough crackers on a sheet pan.

Update! A Solution to overcooked edges? Bake the crackers on an upside-down sheet pan:

Unbaked sourdough discard crackers on an upside-down sheet pan.
An up-close shot of the edge of just-baked sourdough discard crackers.
Just baked sourdough crackers on a sheet pan.

Store them in an airtight vessel at room temperature for 1 week or freeze for longer storage.

A container filled with homemade sourdough crackers.

Such a treat to have on hand! And so simple!

A cheese board with homemade sourdough crackers on it.
A cheese board with homemade sourdough crackers on it.
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A container filled with homemade sourdough crackers.

Easy Sourdough Discard Crackers (Thin & Crispy)

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Description

Made with only four ingredients, these thin and crispy sourdough discard crackers are so easy to make and are so, so tasty: buttery and flaky with a perfect tang. The seasonings can be adapted to your tastes and preferences, and the dough freezes well, too šŸŽ‰

This recipe has been adapted from A Year at Catbird Cottage and King Arthur Flour. Melinaā€™s recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of finely chopped rosemary, and King Arthur Flourā€™s recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of dried herbs, so feel free to add those if you have them.

Having made these several times now, I think there are two places where things can go wrong:

  • Not rolling them out thinly enough.
  • Not baking them long enough.

Once I made both mistakes, and the crackers were too thick and not crisp. That said, looking at the photos both on the KAF website and in Melinaā€™s book, I think if you want to make them slightly thicker, though no thicker than 1/16-inch thick, you can as long as you bake them long enough ā€” an even golden brown color is the visual cue you are looking for.Ā 

Notes:Ā 

  • If you donā€™t have rye flour, you can simply use all all-purpose flour or you can use any other flour you have on hand, such as spelt, or any variety of freshly milled flour, etc.Ā 
  • If you donā€™t have a starter but want to make these, stir together 100 grams water with 100 grams flour in a small bowl the night before you want to bake these. Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rest at room temperature. Use the entire mix as your starter the following day.Ā 
  • If you want help getting started with sourdough bread baking, I have a free email course: Sourdough Demystified.Ā 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (200 g) sourdough discard (unfed sourdough starter)
  • 1/2 cup (56 g) rye flour, see notes
  • 1/2 cup (56 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon (3 g) kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon if you are sensitive to salt)
  • 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • olive oil, for brushing
  • flaky sea salt for sprinkling or sesame seeds or everything bagel seasoning

Instructions

  1. Mix together the sourdough starter, flours, salt, and butter until you have a cohesive dough. Itā€™s OK if itā€™s a little sticky. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, divide into two portions, pat each into a rectangle, wrap in plastic wrap (or place in an airtight vessel), and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or longer ā€” Iā€™ve done this 24 hours in advance ā€” until the dough is firm.
  2. Preheat the oven to 325Ā°F.
  3. Working with one piece of dough at a time, unwrap the plastic wrap and reserve it. Very lightly flour a piece of parchment, a rolling pin, and the top of the dough.
  4. Place the dough onto the floured parchment paper, and place the sheet of plastic wrap on top of the dough. Roll the dough as thinly as possible (see notes above), using your rolling pin to disperse it as evenly as possible over the parchment paper. Itā€™s OK if the edges are ragged, but do try to make the dough as thin as possible ā€” if itā€™s too thick, the crackers wonā€™t be crisp.
  5. Transfer the dough-topped parchment sheet onto a baking sheet. UPDATE: Transfer the dough-topped parchment sheet to an upside-down baking sheet. This prevents over-baked edges. Lightly brush with oil and then sprinkle the salt (and/or other toppings) over the top of the dough. UPDATE: To help keep the seasonings in place, lay a sheet of parchment paper over the crackers, and run your rolling pin across the surface to embed the seasonings into the dough.
  6. Cut the dough as you wish. I like to do long strips, about 1.25 to 1.5 inches wide. I use my bench scraper, but a pizza wheel works well here, too.
  7. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake the crackers for 20 to 25 minutes, until the crackers are evenly light brown. Depending on how thinly youā€™ve rolled them, they may be done closer to 25 minutes, but do check at the 20-minute mark.Ā 
  8. When fully browned, remove the crackers from the oven and place the pan on a rack to cool. I like to let the crackers cool completely on the sheet pan, which ensures they will be crisp ultimately.
  9. Repeat with the remaining portion of dough or keep it in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to use it.
  10. Store crackers in an airtight vessel at room temperature for up to a week. Freeze for longer storage.
  • Prep Time: 40 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25
  • Category: Sourdough
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American