Homemade Sourdough English Muffins
on Oct 14, 2024
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There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of making your own sourdough English muffins at home. These muffins have the perfect chewy texture, with that classic tang from sourdough that makes them extra delicious.
This English muffin recipe is made with simple ingredients and requires minimal hands-on time. They cook up beautifully on a cast iron skillet, giving you those signature nooks and crannies we all love in an English muffin!
With just a handful of pantry staples – flour, water, sourdough starter, honey, and salt – you can create chewy, tangy muffins that far surpass their store-bought counterparts. The overnight fermentation process not only develops a deep, complex flavor but also allows for an easy morning bake, fitting seamlessly into your schedule.
Whether you enjoy them simply split and toasted with butter, loaded with jam or peanut butter, or smeared with cream cheese, these sourdough English muffins are perfect for breakfast or a snack. They also are a great foundation for a gourmet breakfast sandwich. Plus, with the option to freeze extras, you can ensure a delicious, homemade breakfast is always within reach.
🍞🥖 New to sourdough? Find out how to make your own sourdough starter here, find my most popular and basic bread recipe here, and search the sourdough archive here.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Minimal Ingredients: With just a handful of basic pantry items, you can create tender and delicious sourdough English muffins.
- Overnight Fermentation: This easy recipe uses a slow fermentation process develops a deep flavor, and you can leave the dough to rest overnight for an easy homemade sourdough bread the next morning.
- Cast Iron Cooking: Cooking the muffins in a cast iron pan gives them that wonderful crispy exterior and keeps the inside soft and chewy.
- Perfect for Breakfast or Snacks: Slice them open and enjoy them with butter, jam, or as the base for breakfast sandwiches like an easy eggs Florentine.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Water
- Sourdough starter – Making an active sourdough starter is easy!
- Honey
- Fine sea salt
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Sourdough English Muffins
Step 1: Feed your sourdough starter 4-12 hours before making the dough.
Step 2: Combine the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Let dough rest for 12-24 hours.
Step 4: Divide into 12 equal pieces. Let the muffins rise for about 1 hour, or until they’re slightly puffed. Preheat a cast iron skillet on high heat, then reduce to low after a few minutes.
Step 5: Place a few muffins into the skillet at a time, cover the skillet with a lid or large baking sheet. Let them cook on low for about 10 minutes and then flip to do the other side. Finish in the oven on low for 10 minutes if needed.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can substitute part or all of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. The muffins will be a bit denser but still delicious.
Once cooked and cooled, you can store the muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, freeze them and reheat in the toaster or oven as needed.
If the outside of the muffins browns before the inside is fully cooked, simply finish them in the oven at 250-300°F for about 10 minutes. You can also cover the skillet with a lid to help them cook through more evenly.
Expert Tips
- Room Temperature Affects Fermentation: If your kitchen is warm, the fermentation process will happen more quickly, so adjust the timing based on your environment. In colder months, a longer fermentation is perfectly fine.
- Flipping the Muffins: Be patient when cooking the muffins in the skillet. They’ll release easily from the pan when they’re ready to flip—don’t rush this step!
- Finishing in the Oven: If your muffins are browning too quickly on the outside but are still undercooked in the center, pop them in the oven for a few minutes to finish cooking.
- Shaping the Muffins: You can use official English muffin rings or a biscuit cutter to shape the muffins. Or just do it with your hands like I do!
More Sourdough Recipes to Consider
Sourdough Recipes
Sourdough Tortillas
Sourdough Recipes
Sourdough Bagels
Sourdough Recipes
Fluffy Sourdough Rolls
Sourdough Recipes
Easy Sourdough Recipes
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Homemade Sourdough English Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, (337 g)
- 1 cup water, (240 g)
- 1/2 cup fed sourdough starter, (100 g)
- 1 tablespoon honey, (21 g)
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, (7 g)
Instructions
- Feed your starter: 4-12 hours before making your dough, feed your sourdough starter.
- Mix the dough: The night before you want to make sourdough English muffins, stir together the flour, water, sourdough starter, honey, and salt in a glass bowl. Mix well to combine.
- First rise: Cover the bowl with a damp towel, beeswax wrap, or plastic wrap and let the dough sit at room temperature for 12-24 hours depending on your schedule.
- Shape the muffins: The next day, divide the dough into 12 equal parts. Shape each piece into a circle about 3.5 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick. Place the dough rounds onto a baking mat-lined cookie sheet that has been dusted with cornmeal or whole wheat flour.
- Second rise: Let the muffins rise for about 1 hour, or until they’re slightly puffed.
- Preheat the skillet: Preheat a cast-iron skillet on high heat, then reduce to low after a few minutes.
- Cook the muffins: Place a few muffins into the skillet at a time, cover the skillet with a lid or large baking sheet. Let them cook on low for about 10 minutes so the dough can rise slightly and the bottoms get golden brown.
- Flip and finish cooking: Flip the muffins, place the lid or cookie sheet back on the pan and cook until the other side is browned, an additional 10 minutes. The heat needs to be truly low so that they don’t cook too fast on the outside.
- Optional oven finish: If the muffins are browned on the outside but still doughy inside, place them in a 250°F oven for 10 minutes to finish cooking.
- Serve and enjoy: Once fully cooked, slice open your muffins and enjoy them warm with butter or your favorite toppings!
Notes
- If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, you can use a non-stick pan, but the texture may be slightly different.
- Be patient when cooking; the goal is to flip the muffins only once for the best results.
- If your kitchen is warm, the fermentation process will happen more quickly, so adjust the timing based on your environment. In colder months, a longer fermentation is perfectly fine.
- If your muffins are browning too quickly on the outside but are still undercooked in the center, pop them in the oven for a few minutes to finish cooking.
