Biscuits
intro
Flaky, buttery golden Southern buttermilk biscuits with soft, pillowy layers, perfect for pairing with jam, gravy, or hearty family dinner mains.
Ingredients
Steps
Preheat and chill pan
Adjust oven rack to the middle position, preheat oven to 230°C (450°F). Line a 20cm (8-inch) square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving 5cm (2-inch) overhang on two sides for easy lifting, then place the pan in the freezer to chill while preparing the dough.
Whisk dry ingredients
In a large glass mixing bowl, whisk together 315g (2 ½ cups) all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, ¼ tsp baking soda, and 1 tsp fine sea salt for 30 seconds until fully combined, with no visible clumps of leavening left in the mixture.
Cut in cold butter
Add the 113g (½ cup) of ice-cold, ½-inch cubed unsalted butter to the dry mixture. Use your fingertips to press and smash each butter cube into thin, flat flakes, tossing to coat all butter in flour, for about 2 minutes, until the mix resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized and dime-sized butter pieces remaining. Do not overmix into a uniform paste.
Fold in cold buttermilk
Pour 240ml (1 cup) of ice-cold full-fat buttermilk into the flour-butter mixture. Use a silicone spatula to gently fold and stir for 15 to 20 seconds, just until a shaggy, slightly sticky dough forms. Stop mixing as soon as no dry flour patches remain at the bottom of the bowl, as overmixing creates tough, dense biscuits.
Laminate dough for layers
Turn the shaggy dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat the dough into a 2cm (¾-inch) thick rectangle, fold it into thirds like a business letter, rotate 90 degrees, pat back to 2cm thickness, and repeat the fold two more times for 3 total folds. Finish by patting the dough into a uniform 2cm (¾-inch) thick square.
Cut and arrange biscuits
Dip a 6cm (2.5-inch) round metal biscuit cutter in flour, then press straight down through the dough (do not twist the cutter, as this seals edges and prevents tall rise) to cut 8 total biscuits. Gather scraps once, pat to 2cm thickness, and cut remaining biscuits. Arrange biscuits snuggly touching each other in the chilled prepared pan.
Bake and finish biscuits
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes at 230°C (450°F), until biscuit tops are deep golden brown and edges are crisp. Remove the pan from the oven, then immediately brush the hot biscuit tops with 28g (2 tbsp) of melted unsalted butter. Lift biscuits from the pan using the parchment overhang and serve warm.
Tips
2.Never twist the biscuit cutter when cutting dough: twisting pinches the dough edges shut, which prevents biscuits from rising to their full tall, fluffy height.
3.If you don’t have buttermilk, make a quick substitute by stirring 1 tbsp of white vinegar or lemon juice into 240ml (1 cup) of cold whole milk, and let it rest 5 minutes to curdle before use.
OMG these biscuits are LIFE-CHANGING! I’ve been trying to nail flaky southern biscuits for 3 years and every other recipe came out flat or dense. Followed the instructions exactly—frozen butter grated straight into the flour, didn’t overwork the dough, and they rose 2 whole inches in the oven! My kids ate 3 each with honey butter at dinner last night, even my picky 7 year old asked for seconds. Game changer for Sunday dinners from now on!
Made these for our neighborhood cookout this weekend to go with brisket and pulled pork, and people were asking for the recipe before they even finished their first biscuit! So flaky, perfectly buttery, not too crumbly to hold a pile of pulled pork and slaw. Cook time was so quick too, I knocked these out in 30 minutes while the brisket was resting. 10/10, will be making these for every tailgate and potluck from now on.
SO good! I needed a quick side for weeknight dinner last night and these came together so easily, even with all three kids hanging on me while I baked. I didn’t have regular buttermilk so I did the milk + vinegar trick (1 tbsp white vinegar in a measuring cup, filled to 1 cup with whole milk, left 5 mins) and it worked perfectly! The layers were insane, we split them and ate them with sausage gravy for breakfast this morning too with the leftovers.
I was nervous these wouldn’t work with a 1:1 gluten free flour swap but I gave it a shot, and they were actually really good! They didn’t rise quite as high as the photos show, and they’re a tiny bit denser than regular wheat biscuits, but the flavor was spot on, super buttery and that classic tang from the buttermilk. 4 stars just because the texture was a little off for GF, but that’s probably on me, not the recipe! Will definitely be tweaking to make these work for my GF household.
I’ve literally never baked anything from scratch before in my life, I can barely make boxed mac and cheese without burning it. I decided to try these because the difficulty said easy and cook time was only 30 mins, and HOLY COW they turned out perfect? I followed the directions exactly, didn’t overmix, used cold butter, and they came out golden and flaky just like the pictures! My roommate thought I bought them from a fancy bakery down the street. 100% making these every week now.
Made these for my son’s soccer team potluck after practice last night, and they were a total hit! I made a double batch, brought a little jar of honey butter and some jam on the side, and every single biscuit was gone by the end of the night. Even the coach asked for the recipe! Super easy to throw together after work, no fancy ingredients, which is a win for my chaotic schedule. Will be adding these to our regular meal prep rotation for quick breakfasts on the way to early practices.
I bring these to every single church potluck and work event now, and I always get people begging for the recipe. The flaky layers are unbeatable, and they taste just like the biscuits my grandma used to make when I was a kid in Alabama. Pro tip: brush the tops with melted salted butter right when you pull them out of the oven, it takes them to the next level!
Made these for our backcountry camping trip last weekend! I pre-mixed the dry ingredients at home, packed a stick of frozen butter and a small carton of buttermilk, and baked them in our cast iron dutch oven over the campfire. They turned out perfect! Flaky, warm, buttery, absolute perfection after a 6 mile hike. Way better than the trail bars we usually bring.
I’ve been making southern biscuits for over 50 years, and I have to say, this recipe is right up there with the one I learned from my own mother. The trick of folding the dough over itself 3 times to get those extra layers? That’s exactly how I learned to do it, so I was thrilled to see that step in here! My grandkids go crazy for these when they come visit on Sundays.
Made these for my husband for our first married anniversary brunch, and he said they were better than the biscuits we had at our wedding catering! I served them with fried chicken, hot honey, and collard greens for a full southern spread, and it felt like we were back at our reception. So easy to make even for someone who’s still learning to cook for two.
These are the star of our weekly Sunday brunch rotation now! I make a big batch, set out jams, honey butter, country ham, and sausage gravy, and everyone builds their own biscuit sandwich. I love that the recipe is so consistent—every time I make them they rise perfectly, no sad flat biscuits here! Worth every minute, even on lazy Sunday mornings.
Used fresh buttermilk from the dairy farm down the road from our house, and these biscuits were next level. The tang from the fresh buttermilk paired with the salty butter? Absolute perfection. I baked them in my old cast iron skillet like my mom taught me, and the bottoms got nice and crispy while the inside stayed soft and flaky. 10/10, no notes.
I’ve been testing biscuit recipes since I retired last year, and this one is the clear winner. I love that it doesn’t require any fancy equipment—just a box grater for the butter, a bowl, and a baking sheet. No food processor required, which is great because I don’t have space for a bunch of fancy gadgets in my small kitchen. The cook time is so fast too, I can whip these up whenever a neighbor stops by for coffee.
Made these in my tiny dorm kitchen with just a toaster oven, a cheap bowl, and a plastic spatula, and they turned out insane! I thought for sure I’d mess them up since I don’t have a full kitchen, but they were flaky, buttery, and tasted way better than the sad dining hall biscuits. Saved half the batch for breakfast all week, 10/10 for broke college students.
As someone born and raised in Mississippi, I’m super picky about my biscuits, and these pass the test! No weird sugar added (why do so many northern biscuit recipes add sugar??), perfect amount of tang, layers that pull apart beautifully. Tastes just like the ones I get at my favorite little diner back home. Will be my go-to biscuit recipe from now on.
These are perfect for meal prep! I bake a big batch on Sunday, let them cool completely, then freeze them in a zip top bag. When I need a quick breakfast, I pull one out, pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds, and it tastes just as fresh as the day I baked it. Saves me so much money on stopping for fast food breakfast on my way to work!
Made these for my band practice last night, and we ate the entire pan between the four of us while we were running through our set. We put sausage, egg, and cheese on them for little breakfast-for-dinner sandwiches, and they were the perfect practice snack. Super quick to throw together before everyone showed up, no stress.
Wait, who knew biscuits went this good with taco night? I made these instead of cornbread last Tuesday to go with our carnitas tacos, and my family lost their minds. We split them, put a little honey butter on them, and they cut the spice from the salsa perfectly. Might be a new Taco Tuesday staple from now on.
There’s nothing better than a warm biscuit with a cup of black coffee on a cold morning, and these hit every single note. Flaky on the outside, soft and tender inside, not too salty, not too bland. I’ve made them three times in the last two weeks, and I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon. SO good.