Sourdough Discard Crackers Recipe for Beginners

Olive oil sourdough discard crackers with herbs on a sheet pan.

Sourdough Discard Crackers Recipe for Beginners

[advance prep required] - you'll need an inactive Sourdough Bread Starter (discard) to make this recipe.

Make crisp and tasty homemade sourdough crackers using your sourdough discard. This simple recipe utilizes olive oil, sourdough discard, all purpose flour, and seasonings to create flavorful, and tender sourdough crackers delicious for scooping up dips, enjoying with cheese, soups, or as a snack. This recipe is vegetarian and vegan.

*see recipe notes below for flavor variations

Course Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine American

Diet Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword Sourdough Discard Crackers

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 28

Servings cups (300 grams)

Calories 261kcal

Author Traci York

Ingredients

1 cup (135 grams) Unbleached All Purpose Flour I use Bob's Red Mill Organic
2 teaspoons Corn Starch
1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt plus more for finishing
1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons Herbs de Provence adjust to taste (I use 2 tbs)* see note
3 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons (45 grams) Extra Virgin Olive Oil plus more for brushing the dough
3/4 cup (240 grams) Sourdough Discard 100% hydration, room temp or refrigerated

Instructions

You'll need two large sheets of parchment paper and two large sheet pans. Set aside.
Arrange an oven rack in the center of the oven. If baking two pans at one time, arrange one rack in the middle and the other in the bottom third. Preheat the oven to 325 Fahrenheit (163 Celsius).
Mix: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, corn starch, sea salt and herbs. Drizzle in the olive oil. Use a silicone spatula to toss and press the ingredients together. The mixture will become crumbly but not shaggy. Stop mixing when a clump of dough forms when you squeeze it in your fist.
To the flour mixture, pour in the sourdough discard. Use a silicone spatula to mix the dough, switching to knead with your hand - it will be sticky at first. Gently knead the dough, folding it over and on top of itself just until a dough forms. It will become supple and tacky.
Divide in half and form each into a ball. Cover one dough ball with a damp tea towel and set aside.
There's no need to chill the dough - You can go right into rolling and cutting.
Roll out the Dough: roll one dough ball out on a sheet of parchment paper into a rough rectangle, thin to 1/16 inch (1.5 mm) thick. It's okay if the shape is not a perfect rectangle or is more circleish. Use a little bit of flour on your rolling pin and/or the surface of the dough to prevent sticking. Let the dough rest for about a minute, then roll again, ensuring the dough is very thin.
Cut the Dough: using a pizza or pastry wheel, and ruler as a guide, cut the dough first into long 1 1/4 inch (3.18 cm) wide strips, then finish cross ways creating 1 1/4" (3.18 cm) squares.
Dock the Dough: dock individual squares in the center with a fork or use a chopstick tip. Use a pastry brush to lightly brush olive oil over the surface of the dough then finish with a light sprinkle of sea salt.
Bake**: transfer the cut dough on the parchment paper to a sheet pan and bake for 28-32 minutes. The crackers are done baking when the outer edges are lightly brown, and most of the crackers are lightly golden. They'll be slightly puffed up. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the sheet pan where they'll continue to crisp up as they cool.
Repeat with the remaining dough ball.
**note my oven bakes more evenly with one sheet pan in the oven at a time. If baking two sheet pans at one time, rotate the pans front to back, and top to bottom halfway through baking to promote even baking.
To Store: transfer the crackers to a tightly sealed lidded container. Store at room temperature for up to four days.

Notes

*Flavor Variations:

Simply Sea Salt - omit the herbs and follow the recipe as written.
Fresh Rosemary and Black Pepper - omit the dry herbs. Add 1-2 tablespoons of finely chopped rosemary and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper into the dry ingredients. Continue with the recipe as written.
Garlic - add 1/4 teaspoon of garlic granules along with the sea salt. It adds a hint of background flavor that's not overpowering.
Everything Bagel Seasoning - just before going into the oven, lightly brush the rolled out dough with olive oil, then sprinkle everything bagel seasoning evenly in a thin layer over the top.
Sesame Seeds - a tasty addition with garlic granules sprinkled into the dough; lightly brush the surface of the rolled-out dough with olive oil, then sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Recipe inspired by Peter Reinhart's Bread Baker's Apprentice and King Arthur Baking's December 2016 Sift Issue.

Nutrition