Thyme

Sourdough Starter Crackers With Thyme & Black Pepper

by:
September 22, 2020
4.6
8 Ratings
Sourdough Starter Crackers With Thyme & Black Pepper
Photo by Ty Mecham. Food Stylist: Lauren LaPenna. Prop Stylist: Veronica Olson.
  • Prep time 10 minutes
  • Cook time 30 minutes
  • Makes About 30 crackers
Author Notes

These crackers are not only an ingenious use for sourdough discard, but they’re also incredibly delicious, especially paired with cheese. The thyme and black pepper are a particularly perfect foil for goat cheese, but you can also substitute the thyme with any dried herb or spice of your choice. Plus, they come together in under an hour, unlike that sourdough bread that might take you all day! —Irene Yoo

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe is shared in partnership with Cypress Grove. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup (57 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup (113 grams) sourdough starter discard
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more (melted) for brushing
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
  • Freshly cracked black pepper
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Combine the flour, starter discard, butter, thyme, and salt in a large bowl. Once the dough comes together, use your hands to knead until smooth and elastic.
  2. You can let the dough rise for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator or go straight to rolling out the dough. Lightly flour a piece of parchment paper and roll out the dough to about 1/16 inch thick. Use a large kitchen knife or pasta roller to cut into 1 1/2 x 3-inch strips.
  3. Transfer the cut dough with the parchment to a baking sheet. Brush the tops lightly with melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  4. Bake crackers for 25 to 30 minutes, or until evenly browned, turning the baking sheet halfway through so they cook evenly. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to a week.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Eileen Murphy Liedeker
    Eileen Murphy Liedeker
  • Margo Smith
    Margo Smith
  • M Bel Gasca
    M Bel Gasca
  • Irene Yoo
    Irene Yoo
Irene Yoo
Irene Yoo is chef and creator of Yooeating, a Korean American food channel that explores Korean home cooking, street food, and culinary history. She has developed recipes and penned essays for Food52, Food Network, and Bon Appetit, and previously presented about Korean culinary history at The Korea Society and The Museum of Food and Drink.

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13 Reviews

Gina G.
Gina G. February 5, 2023
These came out great! I added rosemary and thyme for a little extra flavor and they came out delicious!
 
Eileen M.
Eileen M. December 30, 2021
I had no idea crackers would be so easy to make. And these were delicious! I did substitute two sprigs of chopped fresh rosemary for the thyme.
 
awesomesauce
awesomesauce December 22, 2021
I was attracted to this recipe because it uses up sourdough starter discard. Made this recipe today exactly as stated. The result? The crackers were much, much too hard on the teeth and very bitter. I think that there is too much thyme (1 TBSP) in this recipe which likely created the bitterness. Also, my yield was 20 crackers, not 30, and I rolled them out to 1/16th of an inch thickness. I will make this recipe again, but tweak it by adding 1/2 tsp baking powder and reducing the baking time to ease up the texture. Will also reduce the thyme to 1/2 tsp and omit the fresh black pepper to see if that clears up the bitterness.
 
awesomesauce
awesomesauce December 23, 2021
Per my review above, I made this recipe a second time. I followed the recipe exactly as state the first time and did not like it. The second time, I put only 1/2 tsp thyme hoping to minimize the bitterness, and added 3/4 tsp baking powder hoping to make it less hard on the teeth. Neither change made a difference. The cracker is still bitter and exceedingly hard on the teeth, to the point where I think a person could crack a tooth. The only other change that might help would be to add a fat to the dough like shortening or oil. But why do that? It wouldn't be the same recipe. Time to move on to a completely new recipe. :-(
 
Eileen M.
Eileen M. December 30, 2021
Did you add the butter? I subbed olive oil to make them vegan, and subbed rosemary for the thyme, which I didn't measure, but they came out delicious!
 
Margo S.
Margo S. November 6, 2021
These are seriously good! The tang of the sourdough starter gives the crackers a Parmesan cheese-like flavor. I need to double this recipe next time!
 
annettetomasello@yahoo.com
[email protected] January 2, 2021
Should the 1/4 teaspoon of salt be mixed in the dough?
 
Irene Y.
Irene Y. January 4, 2021
Yes, good catch!
 
M B.
M B. December 27, 2020
These have been great and easy to make! I also managed to spruce up the recipe to get my favorite flavors. I replaced the thyme with 20g of mozzarella cheese and the salt and pepper with cumin seeds. Both were an absolute delight! Thank you for putting this recipe out there!
 
awesomesauce
awesomesauce December 22, 2021
@M B. : are you reviewing the recipe as provided on 52, or YOUR version?
 
illberich
illberich November 2, 2020
Great way to have another excuse to eat more goat cheese! Simple, but delish! I also use my discard as pancakes topped with green onions. Heat a case iron skillet, or non-stick with a pat of butter or bacon grease, pour in discard, making pancake-size. Top with thinly sliced green onion, sometime hot, spicy, or mild peppers. Fry untill edge bubbles, flip and fry a minute or two longer. Can crumble goat cheese on top when flipped. Delish! Never discard discard 😊!
 
Peggy
Peggy November 9, 2020
Great idea! And you do not add any extra flour to the discard?
 
illberich
illberich November 11, 2020
No, not normally. If it appears too thin, I'll add just enough to thicken. Pancake consistency is what my sourdough starter looks like. Makes it more simpler to use the discard, but still make bread without being on "its/his/her"schedule😊!