These perfect Buttermilk Biscuits are golden brown and fluffy. With soft, flaky insides, they are full of delicious buttery flavor and taste great with so many dishes.
For some ideas on how to enjoy these buttermilk biscuits, even more, try our AMAZING sausage gravy recipe for the perfect biscuits and gravy breakfast combination.
Table Of Contents
Recipe Details
I love these Buttermilk Biscuits because they have the best texture and taste amazing with breakfast, lunch, dinner. Forget the ones in the can, these biscuits are the way to go!
- TASTE: Buttery and a little sweet, these biscuits are so delicious. With a little tang from the buttermilk, they pair well with almost any dish.
- TEXTURE: These Buttermilk Biscuits are airy, fluffy, and oh so flaky. Their light texture makes them irresistible.
- TIME: This recipe will take you about 1 hour and 45 minutes to make,
- EASE: With easy to follow instructions and photos, you can’t go wrong. You’ll wow both family and guests with these amazing biscuits.
What You’ll Need
Ingredient Notes
- Cold butter- Cold butter pieces add moisture to the biscuits, but also steams while they cook to create pockets of air for an even flakier texture.
- Baking powder- This ingredient is a crucial leavening agent that makes for a fluffier biscuit.
- Buttermilk- This adds acidity for super airy buttermilk biscuits.
Add-ins and Substitutions
- Add honey- For a sweet biscuit, add some honey to the dough. You can also mix butter and honey together for a sweet and salty spread when the biscuits come out of the oven.
- Use gluten-free flour- You can substitute the flour for gluten-free all-purpose baking flour, 1:1 for a biscuit that is allergen friendly. Keep an eye on the texture and be careful not to overwork it.
- Substitute heavy cream- In a pinch, you can use heavy cream in place of the buttermilk. This adds moisture and richness, but they won’t be as flaky without the acidity.
- Make your own buttermilk- Alternatively, you can make buttermilk. Pour 1 1/3 Tbsp. of lemon juice/vinegar into a measuring cup and fill to the 1 1/3 cup line with milk. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
How to Make Buttermilk Biscuits
This is a quick rundown with step-by-step photos. Feel free to scroll down to the printable recipe card for full details.
- Sift dry ingredients. Sift together the sugar, baking powder, salt, and flour into a bowl.
- Slice and add the butter. Cut the cold butter into small cubes and add it into the flour, cutting it with a pastry cutter or by combining it with a food processor. Continue cutting until the butter is the size of a pea.
- Add buttermilk. Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture, whisking just enough to combine (don’t overmix).
Pro Tip: Make sure the butter is cold! The reason cold butter makes great biscuits is that as the chunks of butter melt in the oven, steam pockets are created. This is how you get them light, airy, and flaky.
- Stack and cut the dough. Transfer the dough onto your clean work surface and form the dough into a rectangle. Cut the rectangle in half and stack it on top of the other half. Then flatten it out into a rectangle again and cut it in half again. Repeat this a total of 3 times.
- Roll it out. Now place the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out to 3/4 inch thick. (note, if the butter softens and it becomes hard to work with, refrigerate the dough for about 20 minutes or until it firms up a little.)
- Cut the biscuits out. Using a biscuit cutter (3-inches in diameter), cut as many biscuits as you can. Gather the scraps together and roll it out to 3/4 inch thick again. Cut as many biscuits as possible once more.
- Freeze and bake. Place the biscuits onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for about 15 minutes. Then bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with salted butter, jam, or sausage gravy.
Recipe Tips
- Use cold butter– This is crucial for achieving those flakey layers. If your butter begins to soften, place the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to harden it up again.
- Don’t overmix– If the biscuit dough is mixed too much, it will become tough and dense.
- Avoid using your hands too much– Your hands are always going to be warm wich will melt the butter, and you definitely want to avoid that.
- Don’t twist the biscuit cutter– You want to gently press and pick up the ring mold in order to get the best shape out of the dough.
FAQs
The acidity of buttermilk reacts with the other leavening agents in the recipe to make the biscuit dough rise. Regular milk or other liquids won’t be able to do this, so buttermilk is a must for fluffy, flaky biscuits.
This could be caused by overworking the dough. You should only knead your biscuit dough a few times, and not roll it out too much. Otherwise it becomes dry and tough. Also, make sure that you are carefully measuring the flour, not scooping it into the measuring cup, which can pack too much in.
Serving Suggestions
These Buttermilk Biscuits are deliciously flaky and taste great with any meal. Here are some tasty ways to serve them.
- Gravy: Enjoy these biscuits smothered in Sausage gravy or Mushroom Gravy.
- Sandwiches: These Buttermilk Biscuits are great with Breakfast sandwich fixings. Try them in this Croissant Breakfast Sandwich recipe.
- Eggs: Serve them with Eggs benedict, Poached eggs, and Bacon Mushroom Omelettes.
- Butters and spreads: Spread honey, salted butter, Herbed Bread Dipping Oil, and Homemade Strawberry Jam on these flaky biscuits.
Make These Buttermilk Biscuits in Advance
Make ahead: This is a great recipe to make ahead of time. When you place the dough in the refrigerator, it can stay overnight. In fact, the longer it sits in the fridge, the better. So you can easily make the dough the night before and bake the buttermilk biscuits in the morning.
Storing: These Buttermilk Biscuits last for up to a week in the refrigerator in an airtight container. You can leave them out at room temperature for 1-2 days.
Freeze: Place the unbaked biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet, then freeze until solid. Transfer to a gallon-sized ziplock bag and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, no need to thaw. Just bake as instructed in the recipe straight from the freezer.
More Yummy Breads!
Watch Video Recipe Here
Full Recipe Instructions
Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter cold
- 1 cup buttermilk cold
Instructions
- Sift 2 1/3 cup flour, 5 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, and 2 tsp sugar into a bowl. Then set it aside.
- Cut 3/4 cup cold butter into small cubes and place it into the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until the butter is the size of a pea. If you have a large food processor this can be done in the food processor as well. 
- Now pour in 1 cup of cold buttermilk into the flour/butter mixture and work it together until it takes dhape. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Transfer the dough onto your clean work surface and form the dough into a rectangle. Cut the rectangle in half and stack it on top of the other half. Then flatten it out into a rectangle again and cut it in half again. Repeat this for a total of 3 times.
- Now place the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out to 3/4 inch thick. (note, if at any point the butter softens and it becomes hard to work with, refrigerate the dough for about 20 minutes or until it firms up a little.)
- Using a biscuit cutter (3-inches in diameter), cut as many biscuits as you can. Gather the scraps together and roll it out to 3/4 inch thick again. Cut as many biscuits as possible once more.
- Place the biscuits onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for about 15 minutes. Then bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with salted butter, jam, or sausage gravy.
Notes
- Make ahead of time. When you place the dough in the refrigerator, it can stay overnight. In fact, the longer it sits in the fridge, the better. So you can easily make the dough the night before and bake the buttermilk biscuits in the morning. They also freeze really well! 
- If you don’t have a biscuit cutter, you can use a food processor or 2 forks to cut the butter into the flour.
- Use cold butter– This is crucial for achieving those flakey layers. If your butter begins to soften, place the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to harden it up again.
- Don’t overmix– If the biscuit dough is mixed too much, it will become tough and dense.
- Avoid using your hands too much– Your hands are always going to be warm wich will melt the butter, and you definitely want to avoid that.
- Don’t twist the biscuit cutter– You want to gently press and pick up the ring mold in order to get the best shape out of the dough.
Nutrition
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Simon says
I didn’t realize I have been making my biscuits all wrong until now. The triple fold over method changed everything. My family loved these.
Dina says
Hi Simon 🙂 I am so pleased that you and your family loved these biscuits! Glad that my recipe was able to point you in the right direction! Thank you for your feedback and support! 🙂
Gisele says
Under what you’ll need, you list creams of tartar but that’s NOT in the recipe. Help please!
Dina says
Hi Gisele, thank you for bringing that to my attention! This is an old recipe that I recently updated with some improvements. There was cream of tartar in the old recipe. I must have missed that section and forget to delete it. I just fixed the error. So you don’t need cream of tartar. I hope you enjoy this recipe 🙂
Gail says
If you are going to make the dough ahead of time and put in the fridge do you cut the biscuits or wait until you are ready to bake them
Dina says
Hi Gail, I cut the biscuits first, then place them on a baking sheet, cover them with plastic wrap and keep them in the fridge until ready to bake. Bake them straight from the refrigerator. I hope you love them!
Ruth McLean says
This biscuit recipe is by far the very best! The biscuits are so buttery, flaky and light as air. There is a wonderful slightly crispy crust that provides a great contrast to the soft tender interior! They are super easy to make and this is now my new go to recipe. Your search will be over once you’ve tried this recipe, not even joking! Wow! 🤤
Dina says
Yay! That is so awesome to hear you loved this biscuit recipe so much! Always makes me so happy when people love my recipes and they become a family favorite in their home! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your awesome feedback! I hope you find many more delicious recipes on my food blog! 🙂