Easy Sourdough Popovers
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.Popovers, a delightful and airy baked good and this version uses up sourdough discard! Easy sourdough popovers are hollow, light, and crispy with a golden-brown crust and tender interior. This version of popovers makes use of a blender for a quick and easy preparation and incorporates sourdough discard, giving them a little extra flavor versus a traditional popover. Eat them for breakfast, as a yummy snack or serve them with dinner – whenever you serve them, they are guaranteed to be a hit!
Ingredients in Easy Sourdough Popovers
- Sourdough Discard: For a more pronounced sourdough flavor, use older discard. For less sourdough flavor, use young discard or fresh, bubbly sourdough starter. I always use 100% hydration sourdough discard.
- Milk: I prefer 2% or whole milk in this recipe.
- Salt: Salt adds balance and enhances the flavors of the popovers. Don’t leave it out.
- All purpose flour: I use an all purpose flour with about 11.5% protein content.
- Eggs: This recipe is egg heavy. The egg gives it a unique texture similar to a puff oven pancake.
- Unsalted Butter: I always bake with unsalted butter. This recipe calls for a lot of butter. Unsalted butter allows me to control the flavor in my baked goods — there is no standard for the amount of salt in salted butter, which makes using salted butter a little unpredictable.
What is a Popover?
The origins of popovers can be traced back to England in the 17th century. The term “popover” is believed to have emerged from the way the batter “popped” over the sides of the baking dish during the cooking process. As the popularity of popovers grew, they found their way across the Atlantic to the United States, where they became a beloved addition to traditional American cuisine. This easy sourdough popover recipe is made with sourdough discard, which doesn’t give the popover quite the height as a traditional version, but they are delicious in their own way.
Popover Pan or Muffin Tin?
This recipe is made in a muffin tin, not a traditional popover pan. If you love popovers and make them all the time, investing in a popover pan (or two) may be the way to go! For me and my family, we love them but make them just as well in our favorite muffin tin. If you do use a popover pan, it will have higher edges and this recipe will make about 6-8 popovers instead of the 12 in a muffin tin.
Blend the Easy Sourdough Popover Batter
I love how simple these easy sourdough popovers are. Just whip together the ingredients in a blender and that’s about it! I whip together the eggs, milk, salt and melted butter before adding the discard and flour. It couldn’t be easier to make these as a side dish with dinner or for a quick breakfast.
Preparing Muffin Tin and Oven for Baking Easy Sourdough Popovers
The baking method of popovers is especially important. The steam in the oven is what creates the “pop” and large rise of these easy sourdough popovers. Preheat the muffin tin in the oven as the oven preheats. Once the oven is preheated and the batter is ready, take the hot pan out of the oven and add 1/4 teaspoon of butter to each well of the muffin tin. It will melt immediately. Quickly pour the popover batter into each well and place back in the hot oven.
Baking Easy Sourdough Popovers
Bake the popovers for 20 minutes at 450 degrees F. Do NOT open the oven door. If you do, the steam will escape and cause the popovers to fall instead of rise. After 20 minutes, decrease the temperature to 350 degrees F and bake for another 10-15 minutes. The popovers will be brown and crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. Serve immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Popovers are best eaten right away. If you have leftovers, let them sit at room temperature until cooled completely and then freeze in an airtight container or ziplock bag. Thaw and reheat before serving.
Serve them hot, fresh from the pan. We love dunking them in melted butter with a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar on top, or serving them with butter and jam.
Popovers rise because of a combination of their thin batter and high heat in the oven. The steam produced makes them rise and the gluten in the flour and protein in the eggs keep them risen. Sourdough discard keeps them from rising quite as much as a traditional popover, but I find the texture and flavor a good tradeoff.
Make sure you follow the directions to pre-heat the pan and don’t open the oven before they have baked for at least 30 minutes. If you want taller popovers you can fill 8-10 wells instead of 12. This will give a larger rise because there’s more batter in the wells.
Looking for More Delicious Sourdough Discard Recipes?
Easy Sourdough Popovers
Ingredients
- 280 grams milk 2% or whole preferred
- 4 large eggs about 200 grams
- 110 grams sourdough discard about 1/2 cup
- 3 grams salt about a teaspoon
- 180 grams all purpose flour
- 42 grams unsalted butter melted
- 1-2 Tablespoons butter reserve for the hot pan
Instructions
- Place a muffin tin or popover pan on the middle rack of an oven. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
- To a blender, mix together the milk, eggs, salt and melted butter. Blend for about a minute until frothy. Add the sourdough discard and all purpose flour. Blend until incorporated.
- Cut up 1-2 Tablespoons of butter into 12 small pieces (or one piece for however many popovers you are making). Carefully remove the hot muffin tin from the oven and place a small piece of butter in each well. The butter will melt quickly. Pour popover batter in each well, filling them about 2/3 of the way full for 12 popovers.
- Work quickly and place the pan into the oven to bake for about 20 minutes. Do NOT open the oven. This will let the steam out of the oven, causing the popovers to fall. After 20 minutes, reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake another 10-15 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and serve the popovers immediately. We love topping them with a combination of melted butter, cinnamon and sugar. Enjoy!
I enjoy a good popover! Thanks for sharing! 😍😋