Looking for Sourdough? 
These easy sourdough english muffins cook up light and fluffy, with a delicious sourdough flavor!
Mix everything the night before and wake up to a beautiful dough that's ready to be cut out and cooked to "nook and cranny" perfection!
You know what I love about this sourdough english muffin recipe? Everything!
The taste. The texture. The ease!
Enjoy them slathered with homemade butter and a little cinnamon sugar for a quick breakfast or an afternoon snack.
They are very filling when turned into little breakfast sandwiches with eggs, ham and cheese.
We even serve them as a side at dinner instead of rolls.
Cook a batch to eat right away or freeze for later!
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Step by step instructions
These sourdough english muffins are simple to make, so let's dive straight into the details!
1. Feed your sourdough starter 12 hours prior to mixing dough so that it's active and bubbly.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, mix all of the ingredients together with your hands until they are fully combined. Cover the bowl and let rest 30-60 minutes.
3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes with your hands. (This step can also be done in a stand mixer, using a dough hook, on low speed for 5 minutes.)
4. Place the dough back into the bowl, cover and let rise at room temperature for 10-14 hours at 65-70 degrees. (It will double in size.)
5. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, flour the top of the dough and press it out to a 1" thickness, using your fingertips.
6. Cut out 3" rounds and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet that's been sprinkled with corn meal.
7. Sprinkle the tops with corn meal. Cover with a tea towel and let rise at room temperature for 1 hour.
8. Preheat a non-stick skillet over LOW heat. Place 4 muffins into the skillet, making sure there is space in between. Cover and cook 4 minutes per side. (No need to add oil to the pan before cooking.)
9. Place the muffins back onto the parchment paper to cool before slicing in half.
Tips for success
The sourdough english muffins should be cooked over a very low heat, covered, for best results. This will allow the inside to cook evenly while the outside does not burn.
A good quality all-purpose flour works best in this recipe. I always test my recipes with King Arthur brand for consistent results.
Don't have a kitchen scale to measure flour?
Use the scoop and level technique to measure your flour if you do not have a kitchen scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour in the bag. Use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup until it is heaped on top. Take a butterknife and level off the top. This should give you the most accurate measurement for flour.
Because flour is measured by weight in these recipes, if the flour is scooped straight out of the bag with the measuring cup, there will be more flour than called for in the recipe.
If you do not want to knead the dough by hand, use a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Mix on the lowest speed for 5 minutes.
If you live in a very warm or humid environment, you may need to make adjustments in the recipe. I recommend reducing the milk by 30g and using granulated sugar instead of honey to help the dough from being too sticky to work with. Add more liquid if the dough is too stiff.
How to store and freeze
- These sourdough english muffins can be frozen after they have been cooked for up to 3 months.
- Store them in a container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Make sure you try these sourdough english muffins toasted with a slab of honey butter melted on top!
Other recipes you may like:
- sourdough berry sweet rolls
- sourdough coffee cake
- sourdough biscuits
- sourdough bagels
- sourdough cinnamon rolls
Did you make this recipe? I'd love to know how it turned out!
Leave us a message in the comment section below. And don't forget to rate the recipe!
Sourdough English Muffins Recipe
EQUIPMENT
- Mixing Bowl
- Stand Mixer (optional)
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Tea towel
- Non-stick skillet with cover
INGREDIENTS
Ingredients to make ½ cup (100 g) of Active Sourdough Starter
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) sourdough starter
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon (50 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 ½ tablespoons (50) water
Dough Ingredients
- ½ cup (100 g) active sourdough starter
- 1 tablespoon (20 g) honey (sugar or maple syrup)
- 1 cup (240 g) milk
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) fine sea salt
- ¼ cup (40 g) cornmeal (for sprinkling)
INSTRUCTIONS
Feed Your Sourdough Starter
- 12 hours before you plan to mix the dough, add the ingredients to make ½ cup (100 g) of active sourdough starter to a clean jar. Stir until combined, loosely cover the jar and let the starter rise at room temperature. (The ingredients will create a total of 115 g active starter but, because some of it will stick to the sides of the jar during the transfer, we are making a little more than needed.) The sourdough starter is ready to use when it has doubled in size and there are plenty of bubbles on the surface and sides of the jar.
Make the Dough
- Add 100g of the active starter and the rest of the ingredients (except corn meal) to a large bowl and use your hands to mix until well combined. Cover and let rest 30-60 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead the dough by hand for 5 minutes. (A stand mixer with a dough hook attachment can be used on the lowest speed.)
- Place the dough back into the bowl, cover and let ferment on the counter at room temperature 8-12 hours. (Room temperature is 65-70°F)
Cut and Cook
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, flour the top of the dough and press it out using your fingertips until it is 1" in thickness.
- Use a 3" biscuit cutter to cut rounds and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet that's been sprinkled with cornmeal. Sprinkle the tops with cornmeal, cover with a tea towel and allow to rise for 1 hour at room temperature.
- Preheat your non-stick skillet over LOW heat. Place 4 muffins into the skillet spaced 2" apart, cover and cook the first side for 4 minutes. Turn the muffins over and cook for an additional 4 minutes. (When done, the center of a muffin should register about 200°F on an instant-read thermometer.)
NOTES
- Use the scoop and level technique to measure your flour if you do not have a kitchen scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour in the bag. Use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup until it is heaped on top. Take a butterknife and level off the top. This should give you the most accurate measurement for flour.
- If you live in a very warm or humid environment, you may need to make adjustments in the recipe. I recommend reducing the milk by 30g and using granulated sugar instead of honey to help the dough from being too sticky to work with. Add more liquid if the dough is too stiff.
- Store at room temperature for up to 5 days in a container or freeze for up to 3 months.
PREVIOUS
Kaitlyn says
I started my dough too late and was wondering if you could cold retard the dough during the bulk ferment?
Amy says
You can but you'll need to allow time after you take it out to rise properly.
Savannah says
So does this mean you could cold retard after the 8 to 12 hours? Thanks!
Amy says
Yes! 🙂
Amy says
I am looking forward to trying these, but I don't have a non stick skillet. If I'm using cast iron or stainless steel, would I just liberally oil the pan so they don't stick or would that make them too greasy? I also thought of lining the skillet with parchment paper if you think that's a better idea?
Thanks for all your wonderful recipes!
Amy says
I would spray with cooking oil, it shouldn't make them too greasy!
Melanie says
Hi Amy! These are amazing. I'm hoping that i can keep them in rotation vs buying Thomas' English Muffins (my husband's fav). Curious what your recommendation is for storing these? Thanks so much.
Amy says
Hi Melanie! My absolute favorite way to store my baked sourdough products is in the freezer. I place sheets of parchment or wax paper between each one and then insert them into a freezer-safe bag. They thaw really well and have a fresh taste for up to a month.
Melanie says
Awesome, thanks so much for the tip!
Rya says
These turned out wonderfully. Thank you for sharing.
Kelli Driscoll says
Crazy easy, and Crazy good! This will be in our regular rotation. My first time making English Muffins, and we were not disappointed with this recipe. Next time, I will double the batch and make sure that some actually make it to the freezer 😉
Kelli Driscoll says
Oh, and definitely 5 star!
Amy says
Thak you Kelli! 🙂
Leigh Harrison Eintoft says
I baked these recently and they turned out brilliantly. However, I found the cooking time to be more like 40 minutes and not 4. Don’t be tempted to flip them over too soon otherwise the air can get knocked out of them. Keep the lid on while they cook in the pan as the steam helped mine rise. The second batch I cooked turned out better than the first as I was a bit too impatient first time around!
Chandra says
yours took 40 minutes to cook???
Debi Kunes says
These are delicious! I made my dough at night and let it bulk proof overnight. In the morning I shaped them and let them proof about an hour. They turned out very nicely! I just have a question about the initial mixing, rest and kneading. Is this supposed to be a very sticky dough after the 5 minutes? I had repeated that and got a smoother dough. I’m just wondering if a stickier dough yields a lighter muffin. Mine weren’t dense, but I didn’t have the nooks and crannies. They were soft and chewy and toasted up really nicely though. Great recipe!
Amy says
Hi Debi, it shouldn't be too sticky, but yes a stickier dough yield a lighter muffin.
Debi Kunes says
Thank you for that insight!
Jenn says
Making these for the first time tomorrow and I am wondering what LOW heat really means. My induction stove has settings from 1 to 10… would low be like 3 ?
Thanks
Amy says
I would start on 2 and see if it needs increasing. Try cooking one or two on that level to determine if it needs adjustment for the remaining muffins.
Wes says
I cook mine on a griddle which does a great job. I use 275f. At this temp, I cook them for about 5 minutes per side
Ellen says
I am new to sourdough but not new to bread making. I used to make regular english muffins all the time and my family loved them. I got my hands on some mature starter and gave this recipe a try. Incredible! and easy! I will never go back to non-sourdough english muffins again. I have a questions, Could I add some cinnamon and raisons to this recipe without ruining it? I'd like to try making cinnamon raison sourdough english muffins.
Amy says
Hi Ellen, yes you can. Add 1/2 cup of soaked raisins and up to 2 teaspoons of cinnamon depending on your taste.
Victoria Mager says
How many is this recipe supposed to make?
Amy says
It should make 10 but it depends on how big your cutter is.
Deborah Tweedy says
First real Sour Dough Starter Experiment”, since I have only been doing discard recipes for the past few weeks. Wow! They turned out amazing!! Better than store bought and pretty proud I was successful!! Thank you!