Sourdough French Toast: Recipe and 6 Cooking Tips

Sourdough French toast is a sweet breakfast dish consisting of thick slices of sourdough bread soaked in custard and fried until golden brown. Challah and brioche are popular choices for French toast, but swapping in homemade sourdough bread is a great way to use up stale bread and give the dish a delicious tangy kick.

Since French toast is a popular brunch dish, you can lean into sourdough French toast’s dessert-for-breakfast appeal with toppings like chocolate hazelnut butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar, fresh berries, peanut butter, and whipped cream. Alternatively, use chocolate sourdough bread to make chocolate sourdough French toast.

Stale sourdough bread is best for French toast because it soaks up the liquid while maintaining the shape and not collapsing. Here’s what else to know about making the best sourdough French toast at home:

1. 1. Dry out the bread. If your sourdough bread is fresh, dry it out before making French toast. There are a few ways to do this: The easiest is to leave the slices out overnight to air-dry. If you’re short on time, try slicing the bread, laying it out on a baking sheet, and drying it out in the oven under low heat. Alternatively, lightly toast sourdough slices in the toaster before adding them to your egg mixture. Exercise caution, however: You don’t want the crust to reach the hard and crunchy stage, as that texture makes it hard for the bread to soak up the liquid.
2. 2. Use your milk of choice. While full-fat dairy, like heavy whipping cream, aids in creating a rich, custardy sourdough French toast, whole milk, half-and-half, and even nondairy milks, like oat and almond milk, will work in a pinch when mixed with eggs for the custard base.
3. 3. Mix the batter in advance. You can mix your sourdough French toast batter the night before you plan on making French toast. Store the custard mixture in an airtight container in the fridge overnight.
4. 4. Give the bread plenty of time to soak. To ensure the sourdough slices get thoroughly soaked with custard, apply gentle pressure and let each side soak for at least two full minutes. Giving the bread ample soaking time will yield a rich, custardy interior with no dry spots.
5. 5. Try baking instead of frying. For a more hands-off approach, arrange your bread slices in a baking dish and pour the custard over them before baking the dish in the oven. Oven-baked sourdough French toast won’t have the same crispy exterior as the pan-fried version, but it’s still a tasty, custardy brunch option.
6. 6. Reheat leftovers in the oven. You can reheat French toast on a baking sheet in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit, flipping halfway through, until they’re warm and crispy, about four to five minutes per side.