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Flaky, buttery, tender Buttermilk Biscuits! This easy homemade biscuit recipe is nearly as easy as opening a can of biscuits but the results are a million times better!
Nothing beats a buttery, flaky homemade biscuit! Whether slathered with homemade chia jam or Instant Pot apple butter, served with soup, or to soak up homemade sausage gravy, you can't go wrong with this easy buttermilk biscuit recipe.
Perfect Buttermilk Biscuits
Hold up, what's a girl from Ohio that grew up eating homemade whole wheat rolls, know about making biscuits?!
Well, I have lived in the south for over 20 years now, and have made it my mission to make perfect, buttery, flaky buttermilk biscuits. Not only because I fell in love with homemade biscuits myself, but biscuits are my little southern belle's favorite food ever!
My daughter and all my southern friends agree, I make perfect biscuits. Made with all butter (no shortening in this recipe), these biscuits have the perfect crumb and are light, tender, and full of flavor. And with my tips and easy biscuit recipe, you too, will master perfectly fluffy buttermilk biscuits.
Happy Cooking! xo Kristen
Recipe Highlights
How to Make the Best Biscuits
While homemade buttermilk biscuits are quite easy to make, there are a few tips I want to share with you to achieve perfect biscuits every single time. You will find the detailed instructions in the recipe card.
- Chill EVERYTHING! The key to really flaky biscuits, just like homemade pie crust, is to ensure all your ingredients are cold. I take it a step further and pop my food processor (or large mixing bowl) into the freezer for 10 minutes prior to making the biscuits. This really helps to ensure you get flaky layers in the biscuits.
- Prepare Buttermilk. If you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can make homemade buttermilk easily. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to a glass measuring cup and fill to the ¾ cup line with milk or cream. Place the mixture in the refrigerator until ready to use. This will give the acid time to turn the milk into buttermilk and ensure the buttermilk is nice and cold.
- Grate or Cube Butter. For perfect biscuits, COLD butter is essential. The butter will melt when baked forming air pockets in the dough, and keeping the biscuits light and fluffy. To get the best results, I prefer to grate the butter using a cheese grater or food processor fitted with a grater, and then freeze for 10-15 minutes before preparing the biscuits. Alternatively, you can cube the butter into ¼-inch cubes and pop in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
- Cut Butter Into Dry Ingredients. Once your ingredients are prepped and chilled, the biscuit dough comes together super quickly. Working in a large cold mixing bowl or food processor, combine the flour with the baking powder and salt.
- Add Buttermilk. Add the cold butter and pulse quickly just to distribute the butter throughout the flour. Add the cold buttermilk and pulse 2-3 times, or stir with a wooden spoon, just to bring the the dough together. Don't overmix or the biscuits will be tough.
- Form the Dough into a Flat Disk. Instead of using a rolling pin to roll out the biscuit dough, gently shape the dough into a thick rectangle or disk on a lightly floured surface, using lightly floured hands. This is another trick to fluffy, tender homemade biscuits.
- Cut Biscuits. You can use a biscuit cutter, or simply cut the dough into evenly sized squares or rectangles.
- Chill Before Baking. Pop the prepared biscuits onto a sheet pan and then pop the biscuits into the fridge while the oven preheats. I like to line with parchment paper, but you must ensure the brand is heat-safe up to 450 degrees F. Otherwise, just place biscuits onto a ungreased baking sheet.
- Bake. Once the oven has preheated, remove the biscuits from the refrigerator and brush them with additional buttermilk, milk, or even a bit of melted butter and bake until JUST golden. You don't want to overbake, as this can result in dry biscuits.
Serving Suggestions
Biscuits are best served warm, especially if you simply want to enjoy them slathered with jam or butter. However, there are endless ways to enjoy homemade biscuits. Below are a few of my favorite pairings.
- Serve biscuits with homemade breakfast sausage or baked bacon, an oven-poached egg, and a simple fruit salad for a delicious and hearty breakfast.
- Replace the English muffin with a homemade biscuit for a portable breakfast sandwich.
- Serve Homemade Sausage Gravy over warm biscuits for an unforgettable breakfast.
- Serve these buttermilk biscuits with a bowl of warm soup, such as Potato Corn Chowder, Instant Pot Vegetable Soup, or Vegetable Beef Soup.
- Instead of buns, serve Slow Cooker Pulled Pork or a Grilled BBQ Chicken Breast on a biscuit for an out-of-this-world BBQ sandwich.
- Skip the crackers and serve baked brie with freshly baked brie for a decadent appetizer that will make you swoon!
Storage/Make-Ahead Instructions
- Store Baked Biscuits: Allow the biscuits to cool to room temperature and then store them in an airtight container for up to 48 hours at room temperature.
- Freeze Biscuit Dough: Prepare the biscuits up to baking and place the unbaked, cut biscuits on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer and freeze the biscuits until frozen solid, about 2 hours. Place the frozen biscuits into a resealable freezer bag, and freeze them for up to 3 months.
- To Bake Frozen Biscuits: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Arrange the frozen biscuits on the sheet leaving at least 2 inches between each biscuit. Brush with buttermilk if desired and bake for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, lower the heat to 425°F and continue cooking for 10 minutes or until the biscuits are just slightly golden.
More Favorite Breakfast Recipes
- Whole Wheat Pancakes
- French Toast Casserole
- Whole Wheat Waffles
- Baked Oatmeal Cups
- Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
- Breakfast Tacos
Did you make this recipe?
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Buttermilk Biscuits
Flaky, buttery, tender easy Buttermilk Biscuits! This homemade biscuit recipe is made with buttermilk, butter, and nearly as easy as opening a can of biscuits!
Video
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¾ cup buttermilk , (see notes for homemade buttermilk)
Instructions
- Prepare Butter. Use a cheese grater or food processor to grate 6 tablespoons unsalted butter or cube the butter into ¼-inch cubes. Place the butter into the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
- For Dry Ingredients. Whisk together 2 cups all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ tablespoon granulated sugar, and 1 tablespoon baking powder in a medium sized bowl or pulse together in the base of a food processor that has been fitted with a plastic dough blade or metal s-blade.
- Cut Butter Into Dough. Remove the butter from the freezer and add to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or 2 forks, cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter is the size of peas and distributed throughout the flour. If using the food processor, simply pulse several times until the butter is the size of peas.
- Add Buttermilk. Add ¾ cup buttermilk to the dough and mix with a wooden spoon until the dough just combines or pulse in a food processor 3-5 times until buttermilk is evenly distributed into the flour mixture, being careful to not overwork the dough.
- Shape the Dough. Lightly flour a working surface, and turn out the dough onto the surface. Using your hands, gently fold the dough together and then fold the dough over itself 3-4 times. Lightly pat the dough into a 1-inch thick disk. Using a 2-¾" round biscuit cutter, cut out 4 biscuits, as close together as possible. Gently pat scraps back together to cut out another 2 biscuits, for 6 biscuits total. Alternatively, cut the dough into 6 or 8 square biscuits.
- Preheat Oven. Place biscuits onto a rimmed baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Place the biscuits in the refrigerator to fully chill while the oven preheats to 450℉/230℃.
- Bake. Once the oven is preheated, remove the biscuits from the refrigerator and brush each biscuit with additional milk or buttermilk. Bake for 12-14 minutes, keeping in mind biscuits will not brown as much as rolls, so do not overbake.
Equipment
- Parchment Paper optional
- 2¾ inch biscuit cutter optional
Notes
It is CRUCIAL for the ingredients to be chilled thoroughly before making the biscuits to keep them light and fluffy.
For Homemade Buttermilk, pour 1 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar in a glass measuring cup, pour milk into a measuring cup until it reaches ¾ cup total.
Parchment Paper not only helps to keep the biscuits from sticking to the sheet pan but also prevent the biscuits from overbrowning. If you do not have parchment paper, bake these biscuits on an ungreased, nonstick baking sheet. If you DO have parchment paper, be sure it is oven-safe up to 450 degrees F.
To Freeze Biscuits: Transfer the unbaked, cut biscuits to a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer. Once the biscuits are frozen solid, place in a resealable freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. To Bake the Frozen Biscuits: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Arrange the frozen biscuits on an ungreased baking sheet leaving at least 2 inches between each biscuit. Brush with buttermilk if desired and bake for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, lower the heat to 425°F and continue cooking for 10 minutes or until the biscuits are just slightly golden.
Nutrition
Calories: 276kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 5gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 229mgPotassium: 287mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 399IUCalcium: 131mgIron: 2mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I made these but mine were not flaky. I did everything except forgot to chill the bowl. Would that have made the difference? I am going to try again. Thanks.
Hi Kate! I just made these biscuits over the weekend for my daughter's birthday 🙂 The key to flaky biscuits is REALLY cold ingredients and not overworking the dough. So while a room temperature bowl shouldn't ruin the biscuits, they will turn out flakier if everything is chilled. That said, my gut is that you overworked the dough a tad bit. Use a gentle hand (or only pulse a few times) You want to see butter throughout the dough.