Quick and Easy Sourdough Discard Cornbread

Pass it along!

Whenever our sourdough starter is bubbling on the kitchen counter, shouts of joy resound. We are big fans of all things made with sourdough in our house and this sourdough discard cornbread is no exception. The beauty of this recipe is that you can use either fresh or discarded starter. As a result, this sourdough discard cornbread requires no wait time making it quick and easy.

Once a Month Sourdough

Several years ago, inspired by Sandor Katz’s book The Art of Fermentation, we tried our hand at making our own sourdough starter. We had recently purchased a Wondermill Junior Deluxe to hand grind wheat berries to fresh flour and were so excited to get going. Our sourdough starter turned out bubbly and beautiful and we were ready to get started. 

However, between having a baby and the time involved with hand grinding our own flour, I didn’t think having our sourdough starter on the counter and constantly feeding it was going to work for us. To solve that problem, we developed our once-a-month sourdough routine. For the most part, we’ve stuck to it every month since for the last seven years.

Each month, we typically make and freeze 4 deep dish sourdough pizza crusts, 2 loaves of bread, and a few other miscellaneous things. Sourdough scones, discard pancakes, and this sourdough discard cornbread are a few of our favorites. For us, this monthly sourdough routine has been the perfect fit to enjoy the deliciousness that is sourdough while not having it be overwhelming or make up too significant of a portion of our diet.

What Is Sourdough and What are the Benefits?

Sourdough is a traditional form of bread made from naturally occurring lactic acid bacteria to cause the bread to rise on its own, as opposed to yeast. This fermentation process causes a lot of the carbohydrates in sourdough to be broken down and turned into acidic compounds giving sourdough its telltale sour taste.

The fermentation process that occurs when making sourdough transforms the usually hard-to-digest grains to be much more digestible. Often people who have a hard time digesting regular wheat-based bread feel completely different (and better) when eating sourdough.

Also, because sourdough is easier to digest, the nutrients present are more bioavailable. For example, the magnesium, zinc, and iron are much more easily absorbed in sourdough bread as compared to standard yeast bread.

Which Flour to Use in Sourdough Making?

Honestly, one of the beauties of sourdough making is that it is extremely flexible. You can use whatever kind of flour you prefer. If you like to use standard all-purpose white flour or a more heritage wheat, both will work! In fact, sourdough typically even does very well switching between different flours.

Our routine is to use a rye flour when feeding our sourdough starter. Then we typically use a blend of an ancient Einkorn Wheat and a Glenn Wheat from our favorite local mill—Janie’s Mill.

How to Get Started with Sourdough?

If you are new to making sourdough, the first thing you will need is a sourdough starter. There are multiple ways to do this. 

1. Make your own sourdough starter. This is the route we went several years ago and our homemade sourdough starter has been going strong ever since. Here is a great tutorial on how to make your own sourdough starter.
2. Purchase a dehydrated sourdough starter. There are many reputable places to simply buy and rehydrate an already made sourdough starter. Cultures for health is our favorite source for this.
3. Take some sourdough starter from a friend. The beauty of sourdough is that every time you want to use it, you need to feed it and it just continues to grow and grow. Therefore, people often have an abundance of sourdough starter and are happy to share. So, if you have any sourdough making friends, reach out and see if they can’t give you some starter to get going.

Fed vs. Unfed Sourdough

One of the great things about this sourdough discard cornbread is that it can be made with either fed or unfed sourdough starter. So what’s the difference?

Fed starter means that the sourdough starter has been fed (usually at least 2-3 times) with equal parts of flour and water. This makes the starter very bubbly and active. Fed sourdough starter has a buildup of natural bacteria and yeast which is what causes sourdough bread and other baked goods to naturally rise when given sufficient rise time and a warm environment.

Unfed sourdough starter means that it has gone more than 12 hours without being fed. This could mean simply pulling it out of the fridge and using it. In order for this starter to get bubbly again and cause a rise to occur, it will need to be fed a few times with flour and water. 

Sourdough Discard Cornbread Ingredients and Equipment Required

We are all about simple in our kitchen. So, this cornbread fits the bill as an easy, one-bowl recipe. If you have a mixing bowl, standard sized measuring cups and spoons, and an 8×8 or similar sized pan, then you are ready to go!

There are only a handful of basic ingredients in this sourdough discard cornbread. It does require you to first whip up a quick countertop buttermilk by stirring in lemon juice or vinegar with a cup of milk to make your own buttermilk. You could also substitute actual buttermilk, yogurt, or kefir if you prefer. 

Besides this, the ingredients are pretty flexible. Other than cornmeal, you can choose whatever type of flour you prefer (we like einkorn), honey or maple syrup, and whatever melted or liquid fat you prefer or have on hand.

Let’s get cooking!

Sourdough Discard Cornbread Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup sourdough starter (fed or discard)
1 cup whole milk
1 tbsp lemon juice, ACV, or white vinegar
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour (we love einkorn)
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
1/2 cup melted butter, coconut oil, or leaf lard
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Add 1 tbsp of lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup milk and let sit for 10 min (this forms buttermilk)

2. Combine sourdough starter, milk/lemon juice, cornmeal, and flour. At this point you could either let it sit for an hour or so, or go ahead and add the rest of the ingredients and cook right away.

3. Add eggs, maple syrup or honey, salt, butter or oil to the sourdough mixture.

4. Next stir in baking powder and baking soda.

5. Pour into a greased 8×8 pan and cook at 350°F for 35 – 40 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

We love this sourdough discard cornbread alongside a bowl of butternut squash chili!

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Looking for a gluten free alternative? Check out this gluten free cornbread recipe!

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