Sourdough Flatbread

There’s nothing better than a summer evening where you fire up the grill, toss on some sourdough flatbread dough and watch it get all bubbly and puffy. Then top that flatbread with seasonal fruit (grilled peaches incredible) and some melty cheese. Oh goodness…my mouth is watering just thinking about it!

This easy sourdough flatbread is going to become your new favorite sourdough dinner. It requires almost no hands-on time, and everyone loves it. Bring on SUMMER with this delicious grilled sourdough flatbread.

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Why You’ll Love Sourdough Flatbread

• Easy Sourdough Recipe: This sourdough flatbread doesn’t even require a mixer, like my super simple sourdough fry bread if you prefer a deep-fried version. Just follow a few basic steps, and you’ll love the results!
• Versatile: Use whatever toppings you have on hand. This sourdough flatbread can be made savory or sweet, similar to my sourdough discard pide (German döner kebap bread).
• Grill Recipe: This is the perfect flatbread recipe for summertime, and with modifications for cooking on a grill or in a pan, you can enjoy delicious flatbread without heating up the house.

Sourdough Baker’s Timeline

A sample baking schedule helps me when baking with sourdough. Sourdough takes much longer to rise than commercial yeast bread. This schedule helps me plan my bake.

A note: This schedule assumes the dough temperature is 78-80°F throughout the process. If your dough is colder, this timeline will take longer. If it’s warmer, the timeline will go faster.

Important Ingredients

• Sourdough Starter: Use an active/ripe sourdough starter (doubled in size/bubbly/mild sour aroma) to mix the levain. Ripe, bubbly and active sourdough starter can also be substituted for levain in this recipe.
• Milk: I prefer using 2% or whole milk in this recipe. You can sub a dairy free milk if desired.
• Sugar: Sugar enhances the flavors of the dough. It does not make this flatbread taste sweet.
• Salt: Salt enhances the flavor of the bread and tempers the fermentation of the yeast dough.
• Olive Oil: Substitute any neutral-flavored oil if desired.
• All-Purpose Flour: This recipe can be made with all-purpose or bread flour.
• Toppings: In the summer I love grilling up some fresh peaches, prosciutto, fresh burrata, a little arugula, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic glaze.

How to Make Sourdough Flatbread

Mix the Levain

1:10:10 Levain (ready in 10-12 hours): This recipe calls for a levain mixed the night before you want to make your sourdough flatbread. If your levain is kept at 78ºF, it will be ready in about 10-12 hours. Read more about sourdough starter ratios here.

• 5 grams of ripe/mature sourdough starter
• 55 grams white bread flour
• 55 grams water

1:1:1 Levain (ready in 3-4 hours/same day): Alternatively, you can mix your levain the same day you mix the dough. If using the 1:1:1 ratio, it should take 3-4 hours until it’s ready to be mixed with the dough (if kept at 78ºF). Levain is ready when it has doubled in size, has lots of bubbles, a slightly sour aroma and is just about to start going down from its peak height. Mix together:

• 35 grams of ripe/mature starter
• 35 grams of warm water
• 35 grams of bread flour

Note: Ripe, bubbly, active sourdough starter can be substituted for the same amount of levain in this recipe if you want to skip this step.

Bulk Fermentation: Mix the Dough and Rise

When the levain has doubled in size and is bubbly, add 100 grams of levain to a medium-sized bowl. Mix with the warm milk, sugar, salt, olive oil and all-purpose flour. Use a dough whisk or mix by hand until a dough forms.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a bowl cover. Let rise at 78-80ºF for about 5-6 hours. By that time the dough will not quite double in size, but will feel aerated and have risen some.

Separate, Shape and Rise

After the dough has risen, use a bench scraper to separate the dough into four equal pieces. For each piece, pull/pinch the sides until it forms a ball. Then roll the ball on the counter, holding your hand in a cupping shape to seal the ball. You can see how I shape dough here.

Place all four balls of dough on a baking sheet or clean countertop surface and cover with a kitchen towel. Continue to keep warm around 80ºF and let the dough rest and rise for another 2-3 hours. At this point the dough will puff up, rise and double in size.

Roll Out and Grill

Let your grill or skillet preheat while rolling out your dough. For a grill, preheat to 450ºF OR pre-heat a skillet on the stove to medium heat.

Roll Out: Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a long oval shape, about 12 by 6 inches. Brush with olive oil on both sides and place dough on a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough balls until you have 4 rolled flatbreads on the baking sheet. This makes transferring the flatbread to a grill or oven easier, but you can also roll and bake them one at a time.

Grill Directions: Place flatbread directly on the hot grill. Close the grill lid and let bake for about 1 minute. It is time to flip when the flatbread has formed a crust on the bottom and is bubbly on top. Use tongs to flip the flatbread to the other side and bake for another 30 second to 1 minute. Remove from the grill when baked through.

Skillet Directions: Place a flatbread on the preheated skillet. Cook for about 1-2 minutes until flatbread is puffed up and bubbly. Then flip and continue cooking for another minute or two until baked all the way through.

Top and Enjoy!

Add toppings of your choice to your freshly cooked flatbread. If you are adding cheese, you can put your topped flatbread back on the grill to warm up or get the cheese melty.

Get creative and have fun mixing and matching your favorite toppings. Some of my favorites are:

• Pizza-style: Add tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and basil (or your favorite pizza toppings!)
• Veggie: Prepare some grilled or roasted vegetables. Spread pesto or your favorite sauce and top with vegetables of your choice
• Summer Favorite: Peach, burrata, prosciutto, arugula, drizzle of balsamic glaze – yum!

Frequently Asked Questions