Sourdough Discard Chocolate Chip Cookies

Name: Sourdough Discard Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 22 min
Cook time: 22 min
Total time: 44 min
Yield: 24 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: ¾ cup (12 tablespoons) (170 g) unsalted butter, softened to cool room temperature; ¾ cup, packed (150 g) light brown sugar, packed, any lumps broken up; ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar; 1 large (50 g) large egg, at room temperature; 2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract; ½ cup (120 g) unfed sourdough discard (100% hydration), stirred smooth, cold or room temperature; 2¼ cups (270 g) all-purpose flour, spooned into cup and leveled, or weighed; 1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda; 1 teaspoon (6 g) fine sea salt; 1½ cups (255 g) semisweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, reserve a small handful for pressing on top, if you like; flaky sea salt, for sprinkling, to taste (optional)

From the MyKitchenBank Kitchen

Chewy, brown-butter-free bakery-style cookies with crisp edges, soft centers and a subtle tang from unfed sourdough discard that deepens the caramel and chocolate flavors.

Prep: 22 min
Cook: 22 min
Wait: 1 hr 15 min
Total: 1 hr 59 min
Makes: 24 cookies (about 3 inches / 7.5 cm wide)

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Ingredients

24 servings

¾ cup (12 tablespoons) (170 g) unsalted butter, softened to cool room temperature
¾ cup, packed (150 g) light brown sugar, packed, any lumps broken up
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1 large (50 g) large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
½ cup (120 g) unfed sourdough discard (100% hydration), stirred smooth, cold or room temperature
2¼ cups (270 g) all-purpose flour, spooned into cup and leveled, or weighed
1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda
1 teaspoon (6 g) fine sea salt
1½ cups (255 g) semisweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, reserve a small handful for pressing on top, if you like
flaky sea salt, for sprinkling, to taste (optional)

Equipment (8)

2 rimmed baking sheets (half-sheet, 18×13-inch / 46×33 cm)
Parchment paper or silicone baking mats
Large mixing bowl and medium bowl
Electric hand mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment
Rubber spatula
Medium cookie scoop (about 3 tablespoons / 45 ml) or large spoon
Kitchen scale
Wire cooling rack

Steps

Before you start

Soften the butter about 1 hour ahead: it should dent easily under your finger but still feel cool, around 65°F (18°C).
Use unfed discard straight from the fridge or at room temperature, stirred smooth. Discard up to 2 weeks old works; it should smell pleasantly tangy, not sharp like nail polish remover.
Plan for a 1-hour chill. The dough is soft because discard adds moisture, and chilling keeps the cookies thick.
Position two oven racks in the upper and lower thirds and preheat to 350°F (175°C) during the last 15 minutes of chilling.

1
Prepare pans
- Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Measure all ingredients, using a scale if possible.
- Stir the discard until smooth and pourable.
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Ready when: Discard looks smooth with no liquid layer on top.
Tip: Stir in any gray liquid (hooch) from the top of the discard rather than pouring it off.
2
Whisk dry ingredients
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and fine sea salt for about 30 seconds until evenly combined.
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Ready when: No streaks or clumps of baking soda remain.
3
Cream butter and sugars
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Scrape down the bowl halfway through.
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Ready when: Mixture is pale tan, fluffy and looks like wet sand that holds together, with no visible butter streaks.
Tip: Don't over-cream. Too much air makes cookies puff, then collapse and spread.
4
Mix in wet ingredients
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 1 minute until fully blended.
- Add the sourdough discard and beat on low for 30 seconds, scraping the bowl.
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Ready when: Batter is smooth and glossy. It may look slightly curdled, which is fine and will smooth out once the flour goes in.
5
Add the flour
- Add the dry ingredients all at once.
- Mix on the lowest speed, or fold with a spatula, for 20–30 seconds until just a few flour streaks remain.
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Ready when: Dough is soft, thick and sticky, with only a few small flour streaks.
Tip: Stop as soon as the flour disappears. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the cookies tough.
6
Fold in chocolate
- Fold in the chocolate chips with a rubber spatula, turning the dough 8–10 times until the chocolate is evenly distributed.
- Set aside a small handful of chips if you'd like to press some onto the tops later.
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Ready when: Chocolate is evenly distributed with no bare patches of dough.
7
Chill the doughOven 350°F / 175°C
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 60 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) with racks in the upper and lower thirds during the last 15 minutes.
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Ready when: Dough is firm enough to scoop and hold its shape, and no longer sticky to the touch.
Tip: You can chill the dough up to 48 hours for deeper, more caramel flavor; let it sit 10 minutes at room temperature before scooping.
8
Scoop the cookies
- Scoop the dough into 24 mounds of about 3 tablespoons (45 g) each.
- Place 6 per baking sheet, spaced about 3 inches (7.5 cm) apart, keeping the remaining 12 portions in the fridge for the second batch.
- Press a few reserved chips onto the tops and sprinkle with flaky salt, if using.
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Ready when: Mounds are tall and rounded, not flattened.
Tip: Never place dough on a hot baking sheet. Let sheets cool completely, or use a second set, before the next batch.
9
Bake in two batchesOven 350°F / 175°C
- Bake the first two sheets at 350°F (175°C) for 11 minutes, swapping rack positions and rotating the sheets front to back at the 6-minute mark.
- Repeat with the second batch of 12 cookies.
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Ready when: Edges are deep golden brown and set; centers look puffy, soft and slightly underdone with no wet shine.
Tip: Pull them when the centers still look a little soft. They continue to set on the hot pan and stay chewy.
10
Cool on the pan
- Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack with a thin spatula.
- Cool at least 10 more minutes before eating, so the chocolate sets slightly.
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Ready when: Cookies lift without bending or breaking and feel firm at the edges, soft in the middle.

Good to know

Tips

Weigh the flour. Packing it into a cup can add 30 g or more and make dry, cakey cookies.
For wrinkled, bakery-style edges, lift the sheet 3 inches and drop it flat onto the counter once when you pull it from the oven.
If cookies spread too thin, chill the scooped dough on the tray for 15 minutes before baking.
Use cold discard for a milder tang, or room temperature discard from a recently fed jar for slightly more sourness.

Make ahead

Dough can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 48 hours. Scooped dough balls can be frozen on a tray, transferred to a freezer bag, and kept up to 3 months; bake from frozen at 350°F (175°C) for 13–14 minutes.

Storage & reheating

Room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Refrigerate for up to 1 week (bring to room temperature before eating). Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months; thaw at room temperature or warm at 300°F (150°C) for 4–5 minutes to refresh.

Substitutions

unsalted butter → salted butter, omitting the fine sea salt down to ½ teaspoon (3 g). Salted butter varies; reducing the salt keeps the cookies from tasting too salty.
semisweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate → chopped dark or milk chocolate bar (255 g). Chopped bars give melty pools and shards; use 60–70% dark for a less sweet cookie.
all-purpose flour → bread flour (same weight). Makes the cookies slightly chewier and a bit taller.
unfed sourdough discard (100% hydration) → whole-wheat or rye discard (same weight). Adds a nuttier flavor; the dough may be slightly stiffer, so chill 45 minutes.