Sourdough English Muffins Made with Fresh Milled Flour
Sourdough English muffins are so much easier than you would expect! Hearty nooks and crannies catch all the melted butter, sweet jam, or whatever your favorite topping is.
These are perfect for breakfast sandwiches or on-the-go snacks. Plus, they’re more nutritious than store bought, with fresh whole wheat and a little fermentation. The outside turns a golden brown while the inside stays soft and chewy.
Let’s dive into this recipe for easy sourdough English muffins with fresh-milled flour. Once you try these, your starter will wonder why you’ve never made them before.
Want some whole wheat sourdough recipes? Try Sourdough Challah, Sourdough Sandwich Bread, Cheesy Sourdough Focaccia, Sourdough Apple Pie Cobbler, or Sourdough Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins.
Try more fresh milled breads like Zucchini Muffins, Milk & Honey Cornbread, Pumpkin Pecan & Raisin Muffins, Texas Roadhouse Rolls, Dinner Rolls, Ciabatta Rolls, Maple Pecan Banana Bread, Yeast English Muffins, or Super Soft Milk Bread.
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Why You’ll Love Sourdough English Muffins
- Same-Day Made: These same-day sourdough English muffins are going to be a staple in your baking routine with no waiting for days.
- Clean Eating: This English muffin dough has no weird preservatives or ingredients, and you get real, whole grain bread. Using fresh milled whole grains means the germ and bran are still included, so you get deep, nutty tones that store-bought just can’t replicate. This means more fiber, more nutrients, and more goodness from wheat berries.
- Tasty & Easy: Those classic nooks and crannies are perfect for butter and homemade jam, over-easy egg breakfast sandwiches. Plus, the smell while they bake on the griddle? Chef’s kiss.
- Freezer-Friendly: These buns are perfect for meal prep. You can make a batch, freeze the extras, and pull them out when you want a breakfast that feels fancy without all the work.
New to Fresh Milled Flour? Read more about it in our Beginner’s Guide or more about the Best Grains to Use.
English Muffins Recipe Sourdough
Tools
- Grain Mill
- Stand Mixer with Dough Hook Attachment (I love my KitchenAid or Zacme)
- Large Cast Iron Skillet or Electric Griddle
- Biscuit cutter or round cutter (about 3 in)
- Cooling Wire Rack
- Plastic Wrap
- Kitchen Scale
- Cornmeal or Rice Flour for dusting
- Parchment Paper
- Baking Sheet
- Kitchen Thermometer
Ingredients
- 375 grams Warm Milk
- 100 grams Sourdough Starter
- 25 grams Honey
- 1 Egg, room temperature
- 225 grams Hard White Wheat
- 225 grams Kamut
- 6 grams Salt
- 43 grams Unsalted Butter, softened
Notes
- Makes about 14 medium English muffins depending on size
- You can make these without a mixer, you’ll just need a large bowl + wooden spoon/dough whisk, and some muscle to knead
- You can use all Hard White Wheat if you don’t have Kamut
- I prefer to cook my muffins on an electric griddle because I can cook 8 at a time rather than 3 at a time in a cast-iron pan.
- Cook time may vary between stovetops, pans, and griddles, so just watch your muffins carefully to prevent burning and don’t use high heat!
Step-by-Step Sourdough Whole Wheat English Muffins
Making Dough
Mix Dough: Whisk together warm milk, sourdough starter, honey and egg. Mill flour into wet ingredients and mix until you have a shaggy dough.
Autolyse Dough: Cover shaggy dough and autolyse (rest) for 30 minutes. Since fresh-milled flour has the bran & germ, this rest helps hydrate the flour, so the dough isn’t grainy. After the autolyse, add in butter and salt.
Knead and Bulk Rise: Knead dough for about 5-10 minutes, or until it is smooth and stretchy. It may remain a bit sticky. Cover and let rise until almost doubled (I am for 50-70%). This will take between 4-8 hours, depending on your house temperature.
Roll Dough: Dump dough onto a lightly floured surface (I like to use rice flour), fold it in half, then gently roll out with a rolling pin to about 3/4 – 1 inch thick. Try not to push too much air out of the dough; we want to keep those beautiful nooks intact.
Cut Dough: Cut muffins with a floured 3″ cutter. Reshape any leftover dough, reroll, and cut.
Second Rise: Place cut muffins on a tray dusted with cornmeal or rice flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1-3 hours (again depending on house temperature), or until puffed. When done rising, sprinkle with cornmeal or rice flour.
Cooking Sourdough English Muffins
Cook: When the dough is almost done with the second rise, heat a cast-iron pan on medium-low, or an electric griddle on 325 degrees. Dust the cooking surface lightly with cornmeal or rice flour right before cooking.
Place muffins on preheated surface and cook on one side for 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown, then flip and cook the other side for another 5-7 minutes. Internal temperature should be at least 200 degrees. I prefer to get mine between 205-210 degrees.
Cool: Place cooked muffins on a cooling rack. Let cool at least 30 minutes before opening, so they don’t get gummy.
Slice & Serve: Split with a fork to keep the air pockets from flattening, then load with butter, eggs, jam, etc.
Variations
This healthy sourdough English muffin recipe gives you perfect muffins on their own, but you may want to try using different blends of whole grains or ancient grains. You can try mixing hard red wheat, spelt, or even einkorn with hard wheat for a different flavor profile.
I hope you enjoy these soft, chewy sourdough English muffins made with fresh-milled flour!
Sourdough English Muffins Made with Fresh Milled Flour
Learn to make sourdough English muffins from scratch using fresh milled flour. Whole wheat and fermentation bring this recipe to a new level!
Ingredients
- 375 grams Warm Milk
- 100 grams Sourdough Starter
- 25 grams Honey
- 1 Egg, room temperature
- 225 grams Hard White Wheat
- 225 grams Kamut
- 6 grams Salt
- 43 grams Unsalted Butter, softened
Instructions
- Mix Dough: Whisk together warm milk, sourdough starter, honey and egg. Mill flour into wet ingredients and mix until you have a shaggy dough.
- Autolyse Dough: Cover shaggy dough and autolyse (rest) for 30 minutes. Since fresh-milled flour has the bran & germ, this rest helps hydrate the flour, so the dough isn’t grainy. After the autolyse, add in butter and salt.
- Knead and Bulk Rise: Knead dough for about 5-10 minutes, or until it is smooth and stretchy. It may remain a bit sticky. Cover and let rise until almost doubled (I am for 50-70%). This will take between 4-8 hours, depending on your house temperature.
- Roll Dough: Dump dough onto a lightly floured surface (I like to use rice flour), fold it in half, then gently roll out with a rolling pin to about 3/4 - 1 inch thick. Try not to push too much air out of the dough; we want to keep those beautiful nooks intact.
- Cut Dough: Cut muffins with a floured 3" cutter. Reshape any leftover dough, reroll, and cut.
- Second Rise: Place cut muffins on a tray dusted with cornmeal or rice flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1-3 hours (again depending on house temperature), or until puffed. When done rising, sprinkle with cornmeal or rice flour.
- Prep Griddle: When the dough is almost done with the second rise, heat a cast-iron pan on medium-low, or an electric griddle on 325 degrees. Dust the cooking surface lightly with cornmeal or rice flour right before cooking.
- Cook: Place muffins on a preheated surface and cook on one side for 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown, then flip and cook the other side for another 5-7 minutes. Internal temperature should be at least 200 degrees. I prefer to get mine between 205-210 degrees.
- Cool: Place cooked muffins on a cooling rack. Let cool at least 30 minutes before opening, so they don't get gummy.
- Slice & Serve: Split with a fork to keep the air pockets from flattening, then load with butter, eggs, jam, etc.
Notes
- Makes about 15 medium English muffins depending on size
- You can make these without a mixer, you'll just need a large bowl + wooden spoon/dough whisk, and some muscle to knead
- You can use all Hard White Wheat if you don't have Kamut
- I prefer to cook my muffins on an electric griddle because I can cook 8 at a time rather than 3 at a time in a cast-iron pan.
- Cook time may vary between stovetops, pans, and griddles, so just watch your muffins carefully to prevent burning and don't use high heat!
Nutrition Information
Yield 15 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 132Total Fat 4gSaturated Fat 2gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 20mgSodium 213mgCarbohydrates 21gFiber 3gSugar 2gProtein 5g
*This has not been evaluated by the FDA. Nutrition Label may not be accurate. This label has been automatically pulled, and ingredients may not be categorized correctly.
FAQs
For this particular recipe, yes, or you can try using store-bought milled whole wheat flour. Fresh milling gives you more flavor, and more nutrients.
Make sure to dust hands/surface lightly with a little flour. A little bit of stickiness is okay. Also, be sure you allow proper rest so the flour hydrates fully.
Cook muffins slowly over lower heat so the interior has time to rise and set before the outside get too brown. Don’t twist your cutter as that can seal edges and prevent a good rise, and don’t smash the muffins when splitting—use a fork to open gently.
Yes! Cool completely, then freeze in an airtight bag. Thaw or reheat from frozen, then enjoy a toasted English muffin.
Use a thermometer if you have one; they should be at least 200 degrees. Otherwise, you can open one to test. It should be set, not doughy, with a little springiness and good browning on both sides.
These look delicious! Would be so yummy for a fresh milled breakfast sandwich… I don’t have any Kamut at the moment. What’s your preference on substitution?
These are not only the best English muffins, but absolutely the best fmf item I’ve ever made. So delicious, they rose perfectly and cooked up amazingly. I used hard red wheat and einkhorn. Will be adding these to my regular rotation. Thank you!!
I am so glad you loved this recipe!! Einkorn sounds amazing, I will have to give that a try. Happy baking 🙂