Sourdough English Muffins Recipe (Homemade & No-Knead)

If you’ve got an active sourdough starter sitting on your counter, these homemade Sourdough English Muffins need to be your next recipe. They’re light, fluffy, and cooked on the stovetop in a cast iron skillet — no oven required. And those nooks and crannies? Way better than anything you’ll find at the grocery store.

Look at these light, fluffy, beautiful homemade sourdough English muffins and tell me you don’t wish you could grab one and chomp away. Okay, maybe a little butter first. They’re so good to eat and make using your very own sourdough starter; you will be hooked.

Step-by-step instructions to prepare, mix, roll out, cut, and cook these English muffins will have you enjoying breakfast in no time at all. We’ve included a lot of tips that may make you think they’re difficult to make but it’s a fairly easy recipe.

Why You’ll Love Sourdough English Muffins

• Another great way to use your sourdough starter. This recipe uses an active, bubbly starter. I recommend feeding it the night before or about four hours before you want to make this great recipe so that it’s good and bubbly and ready to work. 
• A fresh, delicious bread. Perfect for your breakfast sandwiches. Make a big batch on the weekend to have them ready for the week.
• Homemade bread is so much better. You do know how the book is always better than the movie? The same is true about homemade sourdough bread vs. store-bought. Rare is the supermarket bakery that can compete with homemade.

Ingredients for Sourdough English Muffins Recipe

• Warm Water – 95 °F to 105 °F.
• Instant Dry Yeast – By using both an active and bubbly sourdough starter *and* yeast, you get the best possible texture and height for these English muffins.
• Sourdough Starter – This Sourdough English Muffin recipe uses an active sourdough starter which is not the same as a sourdough discard recipe which uses the portion of inactive starter that’s usually discarded before it’s fed again.
• Sugar – We use white granulated sugar in this recipe.
• All-Purpose Flour – You can use bleached or unbleached flour. One doesn’t act or taste any differently from the other. Unbleached flour is just less processed since it doesn’t go through the step of bleaching it.
• Salt – You can use any salt. Our preferences are Kosher salt or Fine sea salt which we feel dissolves better with a less likely chance of salt pockets in our baked goods.
• Butter – Since we use such a small amount, it doesn’t make a difference whether you use salted or unsalted butter.
• Cornmeal. This is optional but highly recommended.

How To Make Sourdough English Muffins

We don’t use an electric mixer for our sourdough recipes because we can get a better feel of the dough. This isn’t an overly wet dough so using our hands works well.

Step One: Proof the yeast.

Melt the butter so that it has a chance to cool before you need it. In a large bowl, mix the warm water, yeast, active starter, and sugar. Let it sit to allow the yeast and starter to activate.

Step Two: Mix the dry ingredients.

Add the flour and salt and mix well. Once the flour is almost all incorporated, add the melted butter.

Step Three: Mix the Batter.

Mix using a Danish whisk or a wooden spoon to incorporate the flour. When the dough gets too thick, you can use your hands. Shape the dough into a ball.

Step Four: Let the Sourdough English Muffins dough rise.

Leave the dough ball in the mixing bowl and cover it with a plastic wrap. For the first rise, let the dough rest for 90 minutes in a draft-free, warm place. If you have a proof setting on your oven, use it.

Step Five: Prepare your plans.

While the dough is rising, put some cornmeal on a cookie sheet or large plate. Set aside.

Step Six: Roll out your sourdough.

Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. I usually use my baking mat and approximately 2 tablespoons of flour. Roll the dough ½ inch thick. Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter or English muffin rings, cut out your English muffins. You will need to cut a few, re-roll the remaining dough, and cut more until you have used all the dough.

Step Seven: Let it rise again.

Place the cut dough on the prepared baking sheet pan and cover with a towel for the second rise. Allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place for 45 minutes.

Step Eight: Cook your Sourdough English Muffins.

Use a non-stick pan or a well-seasoned cast iron skillet with a cover and heat it on medium. Place three or four muffins in it, and cook on the first side for about 5 minutes. Flip carefully to the second side for 4-5 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting with a serrated knife or separating the halves with a fork.

Sourdough English Muffin Variations & Flavor Ideas

• A larger size. If you want to use a larger cutter to make sure they are big enough for sandwiches, go for it! Our English muffins are 3-inches round. You could go up to 4-5-inches. Just make sure they’re 1/2 inch thick.
• Make it spicy: We add some spicy cheese like pepper jack or a sprinkle of red pepper flakes to the dough mix to spice things up. You can even add pieces of cooked bacon
• Freshness. Add some herbs, such as rosemary or dill, to the dough for a more savory taste.
• Seasonal. Add some cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice to the dough for a warm, fall-like option.

How To Reheat & Store Sourdough English Muffins

Store at room temperature, in a freezer-quality ziplock bag.

Can I Freeze English Muffins

Yes, they freeze great. Freeze them individually on a tray, then combine them in one airtight container and thaw as needed.

How To Reheat Sourdough English Muffins

English muffins are amazing toasted. You can also reheat them in the air fryer for a few minutes.

Tips for Perfect Sourdough English Muffins

Get the water right. Make sure the warm water is 95 to 105º F. Use an instant-read thermometer or think of warm bathwater. If the water is cold, it will delay the yeast reaction, and if it is too hot, it will kill the yeast. Both lead to the yeast not working properly.

Adjust for moisture in the air. Depending on your location and environment, you may need to add a little extra flour or more water. You don’t want a sticky dough. It should feel like playdough and be evenly mixed with no dry parts.

Use Cornmeal. This is, in my opinion, very important. Cornmeal acts like little beads that will not modify the composition of the English muffin, but will help keep the dough from sticking to the cookie sheet.

I used a lightly floured silicone mat, and just with the movement of lifting the dough from the silicone mat, the muffins lost some of their air bubbles and were flatter. So every time I put the cut dough on the cookie sheet pan I make sure there is enough cornmeal under it so it moves easily. When you pick them up from the pan to cook, don’t worry about brushing off the cornmeal. 

Be gentle when moving the English muffins after the second rise. They are full of air bubbles, and you don’t want to break them out. I either use my hands, a bench scraper, or a fish spatula to carefully lift them from the cookie sheet and place them in the hot pan.

Because my cast-iron is well seasoned, I did not need to oil the pan. However, I did test it, and if you add a thin layer of oil before putting the muffins in, it won’t change the outcome. I found using a fish spatula worked well for turning them over to cook the second side.

Always cover the pan. This is important. Covering the skillet while cooking creates steam that helps the muffins cook evenly all the way through. Without the lid, the outsides brown faster than the insides can cook.

Troubleshooting Your Sourdough English Muffins

My muffins came out flat. The most common reason is a starter that wasn’t active enough. Make sure your starter is bubbly and doubled before using it — feed it 4–8 hours before you start. Also, be extra gentle moving the muffins after the second rise. Those air bubbles are what give you height!

The inside is doughy or undercooked. Make sure you’re covering the pan when cooking. The steam from the lid is what cooks the inside while the outside browns. An instant-read thermometer is your best friend here — pull them at 190°F.

My muffins don’t have many nooks and crannies. This usually comes down to the dough being overmixed or the muffins losing air before they hit the pan. Handle them gently after the second rise and use a fish spatula or your hands to lift — no flopping or squeezing.

Can I use sourdough discard instead of active starter? This recipe is written for active, bubbly starter and also includes dry yeast for a reliable rise. Discard won’t give you the same lift, but if you love discard recipes, check out our Sourdough Discard Biscuits or Sourdough Discard Pancakes for great uses!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best way to know when your Sourdough English Muffins are done?

Using the internal temperature of the muffins removes all of the guesswork. As soon as they reach an internal temperature of 190°F, remove them from the pan. Continue checking frequently to avoid overcooking your muffins and drying them out.

Can I make sourdough English muffins without a cast iron skillet? Absolutely! A non-stick skillet works great. Just make sure it has a lid — that’s what creates the steam that cooks the muffins all the way through. A stainless skillet works too if it’s well-oiled.

Can I make the dough the night before? Yes! After mixing, cover the dough and refrigerate it overnight for the first rise. Pull it out in the morning, let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes, then roll, cut, and do the second rise as usual.

Why do sourdough English muffins use both starter and yeast? Using both gives you the best of both worlds — the tangy flavor from the sourdough starter and a predictable, reliable rise from the yeast. It’s a great combo, especially if your starter is on the younger side.

How do you get the nooks and crannies in sourdough English muffins? The key is in the rise! Don’t over-handle the dough, and always split your muffins with a fork (not a knife) to preserve those gorgeous air pockets. Those nooks are what hold all the butter and jam!

What to Serve with Sourdough English Muffins

Serve them warm or lightly toasted. Add a pad of butter or your favorite jam. They were excellent as well when making an egg sandwich or a BLT. Drizzle the English muffins with syrup for your sausage and egg sandwich and mimic a popular sandwich at McDs. Cut the English Muffin in half, and top it with a poached egg, or let your kids make mini pizzas.

Looking for more ways to use up your sourdough starter? Try our fluffy Sourdough Discard Pancakes for a lazy weekend breakfast, our buttery Sourdough Discard Biscuits for a quick weeknight side, or browse all of our sourdough discard recipes for even more ideas.

I hope you enjoyed this delicious recipe as much as we do. Drop me a comment below, and don’t forget to give it a star rating. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your comments and ratings help others decide if this recipe is for them too.

Related Recipes

If you enjoyed our sourdough English Muffins recipe, take a look at our regular homemade English Muffin recipe, our Homemade Bagel recipe (with yeast), and our English Muffin Bread recipe. Give them a try and let me know what you think.

Did you enjoy this recipe? Don’t forget to pin it for later and follow me on Pinterest for more delicious recipes like this one!

Originally published: June 4, 2024. Recently updated on March 26, 2026– Enhanced with more detailed instructions, tips, and serving suggestions. No changes were made to the recipe.