The Best Sourdough Pizza Rolls - these sourdough pizza rolls are a fun twist on your everyday pizza recipe! Not only is the crust super flavorful because of the sourdough starter, but they’re made so that every roll is like a mini personalized portion of ooey gooey cheesy pepperoni pizza.
These portable little sourdough pizza rolls, like sourdough discard pancakes, are made with a fresh homemade dough with sourdough starter or discard which makes it extra flavorful and super soft and fluffy.
Then we stuff them with sauce, cheese and pepperoni and then roll them into logs and cut them into pieces small enough to bake in muffin tins until they puff up. These pizza rolls are one of my family’s favorite afternoon snacks, but in the same way my cheese stuffed pizza rolls work, they are just as delicious for movie night and game day appetizers, and finger food fun for every occasion!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Customizable - Of course sourdough pepperoni pizza rolls are just one variation because you can really add in whatever toppings you want!
- Best flavor - Sourdough starter is not only used in sourdough bread! I love any excuse to use sourdough starter or to avoid waste and use the discard!
- Made with simple ingredients - The dough is made without any active dry yeast because that’s what the sourdough starter is used for. Then all you need is sauce, cheese, and pepperoni. It couldn’t be any easier!
Recipe Tips
- Keep the dough away from any draft. The colder the environment, the slower the dough will rise.
- I highly recommend freshly grated mozzarella. It tastes the best and melts so nicely. Of course, if you want to speed things up, you can certainly use pre shredded cheese.
- Use your favorite jar of store-bought pizza sauce for this recipe. If you have a homemade marinara or tomato sauce you want to use, go for it.
- Be sure to spray your muffin pan to make it a nonstick surface. The last thing you want is to have the pizza rolls stick to the bottom when you’re trying to get them out!
- Serve with a dipping sauce if you’d like! Something like ranch, garlic aioli, or extra marinara sauce.
- Have fun with the filling. Swap the pepperoni with ham, crumbled sausage, or shredded chicken or add in some diced veggies like mushrooms or bell peppers. Whatever you like on your pizza, add it to your rolls.
Ingredients Needed
- Active sourdough starter - You can also use the sourdough starter discard if you are wanting to use the active starter for other things. Either way this recipe will turn out.
- Water - Helps to make a dough when combined with the flour.
- All purpose flour - To ensure your crust doesn’t turn out too heavy or doughy, use a kitchen scale to measure the flour accurately.
- Salt - Enhances the flavor of the dough. Add as directed or to taste.
- For the filling - Pizza sauce, grated mozzarella cheese, pepperoni
How to Make Sourdough Pizza Dough
Step 1: Mix the dough ingredients (starter, flour, water, salt) in a large bowl. The dough will be shaggy, meaning it won’t be completely smooth or cohesive. It’ll still be quite soft.
Step 2: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it sit on the counter at room temperature for 2 hours. At this point it should look a bit more cohesive and smooth.
Step 3: Once it’s had a chance to sit for a couple of hours, wet your hands with water and pull and fold the dough right in the bowl. No need to transfer it anywhere yet. It will be sticky and stretchy.
Step 4: Cover the bowl again and let it sit for 1 hour. Then, do another pull and fold followed by another rest. And one more again later on. Make sure to cover the bowl after each set of pulls and folds.
Step 5: Once you’ve completed your final one, the ball of dough will be a firm ball while still being nice and stretchy.
Step 6: Leave the dough ball in the bowl, cover it, and let it sit on the counter overnight. This should be about 8-10 hours. The temperature of the environment should be between 64 to 68°F (18 to 20°C).
Step 7: In the morning, refrigerate the bowl of dough for at least an hour or until you’re ready to use it. This is to help the dough firm up, making it much easier to work with later on.
Sample Schedule
Here is a sample schedule you can use as a guideline to get your dough going. There are a few steps and waiting periods, but the results are worth it!
4:00 pm - Combine the ingredients and mix a “shaggy” dough. Cover and let sit.
6:00 pm - First pull and fold. It will be stretchy and sticky. Cover and let sit.
7:00 pm - Second pull and fold. Cover and let sit.
8:00 pm - Third and final pull and fold. Cover and let it sit overnight.
6:00 am - Refrigerate the bowl for at least 1 hour or until you’re ready to use it.
How to Make Pizza Rolls
You can bake these sourdough pizza rolls starting with a preheated oven or a cold oven. The choice is yours but you do have to decide right away.
Step 1: If you are preheating your oven, set it to 400°F (200 C) convection or 425°F (220°C) conventional.
Step 2: Remove the bowl with the dough from the fridge and transfer the dough onto a clean work surface that has been lightly oiled.
Step 3: Gently stretch and shape the dough to a 18 x 12 inch rectangle with an even thickness.
Step 4: Spoon the pizza sauce in an even layer across the dough to the edges. Sprinkle cheese on top and add salami.
Step 5: Take the longer edge of the rectangle and roll the dough up tightly into a log. Use a sharp knife to slice the pizza log into 12 equal pieces. About 1 or 1.5” thickness. Place each one into the cup of a greased muffin pan.
Step 6: Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 25-35 minutes or in a cold oven for 30-40 minutes.
Step 7: When the rolls are baked, and golden, with the cheese nice and melted, remove the rolls from the pan and allow them to cool on a rack before serving. These are best enjoyed the day they’re made.
Make Ahead and Bake Later
If you aren’t ready to bake them yet, but want to get ahead with the preparation, this pizza rolls recipe is perfect for that!
Follow instructions up until you place the muffin rolls into the muffin tin. Cover the tin with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and place the pan in the fridge.
When you're ready to bake, you can bake them directly from the fridge using the same instructions as above.
Recipe FAQs
I doubt you’ll have to worry about this because everyone is going to devour them, but just in case, you can cover them and keep them refrigerated for up to 2 days. They are best eaten the day they’re made, but just like pizza, leftovers are almost as good!
Yes, these freeze very well. To ensure they don’t freeze stuck together, it’s a good idea to flash freeze them first for a couple of hours.
Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze until solid. Then, transfer them to a freezer bag. This way you can thaw and reheat only what you want to use.
More Pizza Recipes
- Pizza Casserole
- Best No Knead Pizza Dough
- 20-Min Cheesy Hash Browns Breakfast Pizza
- Cheese Stuffed Pizza Rolls
- Cast Iron 3 Cheese Pizza
When YOU make these sourdough pepperoni pizza rolls tag us @munchkintimeblog on Instagram, we would LOVE to see your creation!
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Sourdough Pizza Rolls
Ingredients
For the Pizza Dough
- 50 g sourdough starter active or discard
- 325 g water filtered
- 500 g all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon sea salt
Filling
- 1 cup pizza sauce
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese grated
- 1 cup pepperoni or to taste, we like to use beef sausages from Costco and thinly slice them
Instructions
- Early in the evening, mix all the ingredients filling ingredients in a large bowl, the dough will be shaggy. Cover the bowl and leave it on the counter for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, perform the first set of pulls and folds on the dough with wet hands, by pulling one side of the dough and folding it in halve and pressing it into the center of the dough, repeat on all 4 sides. It will be sticky but stretchy. Cover the bowl and leave it on the counter for 1 hour.
- After the dough has rested for at least an hour, complete two more sets of pulls and folds on the dough throughout the evening. Cover the bowl after each set. The dough will become nicely stretchy and come together into a firm ball each time. Complete the final set before going to bed.
- Leave the covered bowl on the counter overnight, typically 8 to 10 hours, at 64 to 68°F (18 to 20°C).
- The next morning, place the dough (still covered) in the fridge for at least an hour until you are ready to use it. This could be for lunch, dinner, or a meal the next day. The dough will firm up, making it easier to work with later.
- Prior to baking, make a choice between using a preheated oven or starting from a cold oven. For preheating, set the oven to 400°F (200 C) convection or 425°F (220°C) conventional.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a slightly oiled kitchen counter. Gently stretch and shape the dough into a 18 x 12 inches (45 x 30 cm) rectangle with an even thickness.
- Spread the pizza sauce and cheese evenly over the dough and roll it up tightly. Cut the dough into twelve equal pieces and place them in the greased muffin pan.
- If the oven was preheated, bake the rolls uncovered for 30-35 minutes, or until golden color. If starting from a cold oven, place the filled pan in the cold oven, set to the specified temperature, and set a timer for 40-45 minutes.
- Once baked, remove the pan from the oven, take out the rolls, and let them cool on a rack before serving.
Notes
- Baking tip! If you want to bake the rolls later, simply follow step 8 to fill, roll, and cut the dough into pieces.
- Then, place the rolls into the muffin tin, cover the tin with a plastic wrap or a damp tea towel, and refrigerate.
- When you're ready to bake, you can bake them directly from the fridge using the same instructions as above.
We never have leftovers when I make these!