Bread / Homemade / Recipe

Easy One Bowl Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe

A quick and easy one-bowl southern buttermilk biscuits recipe. A great recipe and great tips for making perfect buttermilk biscuits.

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe | sophisticatedgourmet.com

At one point in my life, I spoke with a southern accent and made this buttermilk biscuits recipe everyday for two weeks. Why? Because I thought it was cool. I often try to convince myself that I was switched as a baby; and my real mother is from the South (I only do this because I have nothing better to do). Sadly, I burst my own bubble by staring in the mirror to always come to the same conclusion, “Eh, you couldn’t have been switched- you have a Siddiqi nose!”

Although I may not be from the south (Hi, My Imaginary Southern Mom!), my appetite screams for southern cookin’, y’all (okay, I’ll stop). To me, southern food is pure American comfort food without a lot of fuss and a sink full of dishes.

At the center of it all are my favorite anytime-of-the-day quick breads- buttermilk biscuits. Soft, tender, buttery, and purely delicious. I maybe a Yankee, but I think I know biscuits pretty darn well. I am a very picky biscuit eater and I only believe in soft-sided biscuits. Some southerners are either agreeing with me and some are probably saying, “What the heck? Crusties are where it’s at!” It’s your personal preference.

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe | sophisticatedgourmet.com

Here are some tips to making great buttermilk biscuits:

  • Make sure all of your ingredients are chilled (translation: chill the bowl and all of the ingredients you will be working with)
  • The flour used when making biscuits (including buttermilk biscuits) is crucial. You’d think that it really doesn’t matter, but it does. Many great southern biscuits makers swear by the oh-so-famous White Lily brand; I rarely find find White Lily anywhere, so I use a combination of bleached all-purpose (unbleached has too much gluten in it) flour and cake flour (I prefer the Softasilk brand). Yes, it’s not the same, but as they say, “Necessity is the mother of invention” and when I have a biscuit craving, I need quick and fast; looking for White Lily in New York and New Jersey is like looking for a needle in a haystack– not my idea of a good time.
  • Cold, Unsalted Butter is a necessity in my world. It’s delicious and adds a lot of flavor to the biscuits. I prefer using unsalted butter when making biscuits. Some might argue that salted butter is much better, but salted butter A) has less fat content than unsalted butter (which means that it has a lot more water content = less flavor [fat = flavor] and less tender biscuits). B) salted butter is not always fresh– the salt in it acts as a preservative; the last thing I want to eat is preserved butter. And finally- C) I prefer to control the salt content of anything I bake; most bakers do, but if salted butter is all you have on hand, use it, just keep in mind that you will have to cut back on the salt used in the recipe.
Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe | sophisticatedgourmet.com

Fat options

Unsalted Butter is not your only choice! There’s also shortening and lard (and dare I say duck fat?). Many people prefer using shortening or lard to make their biscuits because they make for very tender, flaky biscuits– it’s all a matter of preference. If you are one of those people that likes using shortening, lard, or duck fat- go for it!

Keep the fat cold

Make sure whatever fat you choose to use is cold (or frozen, if need be).

Baking Powder

Use aluminum-free baking powder. The other kind is made with sodium aluminum sulfate and it makes baked goods taste bitter

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe | sophisticatedgourmet.com

A light touch is essential.

The less you touch the dough and worry less about uniformity- the better your biscuits will come out. Touching and working your dough too much melts the butter, and develops the gluten in the dough, making for tough biscuits.

Biscuit cutters

Biscuit cutters or the rim of a glass make for uniform, beautiful southern biscuits, but please oh please- flour your biscuit cutter and DO NOT twist the biscuit cutter when cutting into the biscuit dough- cut straight down.

Twisting the biscuit cutter prevents your biscuits from puffing up to their full potential. If you are lazy like I am (and prefer more rustic-looking biscuits), simply cut your biscuits using a sharp knife. Remember: cut straight down, no sawing back and forth!

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe | sophisticatedgourmet.com

Docking

Pricking with a fork is entirely optional, it’s traditional, but it’s up to you. I am an occasional docker; it really depends on my mood.

For soft-sided biscuits

Crowd those babies on the pan, like it’s nobody’s business.

For biscuits with a bit more crust

Follow this biscuits recipe and space each of the biscuits evenly.

Once the biscuits come straight out of the oven

Serve them immediately- there is nothing as sad as a cold biscuit. Sure, you can keep them overnight in an air-tight container, or a re-sealable bag, and then re-heat them in the oven, but it really isn’t the same.

Yield: Makes 12 Buttermilk Biscuits

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe

Buttermilk Biscuits

Chilled ingredients, a light touch, and the proper ingredients are crucial to making buttermilk biscuits. I prefer a soft-sided biscuit, so I place the biscuits very close together on the cookie sheet. If you prefer more of a crust on your biscuits, simply place each of the biscuits farther apart from each other. If you are using a biscuit cutter to cut your dough, try to cut each biscuit as close to the other as possible. You can re-roll the dough to make additional biscuits, but it won’t have the same puff as the others have; I would avoid rolling the dough out more than once.

Ingredients

  • 1 ¾ cups / 224 g bleached all-purpose flour
  • Scant ⅓ cup / 32 g cake flour
  • 4 teaspoons / 18 g aluminum-free baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons / 10g granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon / 1.5 g fine-grain sea salt
  • 1 stick / ½ cup / 113 grams unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces, chilled
  • ⅔ cup / 150ml buttermilk

Instructions

  1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400ºF / 200ºC / Gas Mark 6.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, sugar, and se salt. Add in the cold butter (shortening, lard, or duck fat) and toss the butter in the flour. Using your finger tips or a pastry cutter, quickly cut and rub the butter into the flour mixture until the mixture resembles pea-size pieces (or oats); it’s okay if the pieces are not uniform, that is what you want.
  3. Pour in the buttermilk. Using a fork, mix everything until it just comes together (it’ll look like a shaggy mess). Lightly dust a work surface with cake flour or White Lily flour. Turn the dough out, lightly dust the top with flour, and gently knead the mass until it comes together.
  4. Using a rolling pin or your hands, quickly flatten the dough out into a rectangle. Fold the short ends over the middle (like a letter) to make three layers. This is the first turn. Give the dough a quarter turn and flatten into a rectangle once again repeating the folding process. Repeat the flattening and folding once more.
  5. Shape into a rectangle ½-inch thick. Using the tines of a fork, dock the dough. This is entirely optional. If you are in a docking mood, go for it- if you aren’t in a docking mood- simply proceed to the next step.
  6. Cut out the biscuits using a 2 to 2 ½-inch biscuit cutter (being careful not to twist the cutter as you are cutting the biscuits) or using a sharp knife, cut the biscuits into squares.
  7. Gently move each biscuit to a parchment (or silicone mat)-lined baking sheet and place about 1-inch apart for biscuits with a crust or place the biscuits close to one another about ½-inch apart. Lightly brush the tops of each biscuit with some milk or buttermilk.
  8. Bake for 10-15 minutes until they are tall, puffed and are blushing with a lightly golden brown color around the edges. If you intend on making smaller biscuits, check on them around 9 minutes of baking.
  9. Serve immediately.

Notes

Freezing the Buttermilk Biscuits Dough

Biscuit dough freezes exceptionally well, after cutting the dough, simply place the biscuits on a cookie sheet and freeze them. After they have frozen, place them in an air-tight re-sealable bag and bake them as needed. There is no need to defrost them, just take them from freezer to oven (add on a couple extra minutes onto your baking time)

About the Flour

If you do not have White Lily flour or cake flour on hand, you can use 2 cups of bleached all-purpose flour; it won’t make for a near-perfect biscuit, but the flavor and puff should still be there. If you plan on using White Lily flour, simply use 2 cups plus 4 tablespoons in place of the all-purpose flour and the cake flour.

Adapted from various sources including: Here, Here and Here

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 160Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 674mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 3g

47 Comments

  • Nicole Franzen
    February 25, 2011 at 2:07 pm

    Lovely photos, adore you blog.

    Reply
  • Donna
    February 25, 2011 at 2:57 pm

    Hi Kamran, Your biscuits, like the rest of the blog, are gorgeous. If you ever want to try ordering flour, I recommend Big Spring Mill (http://bsmill.com/Welcome.html), located here in southwest Virginia. They do ship flour, cornmeal, seasoned flour, etc. (yeah, in 25# increments, but I bet you could find a use for it all, eventually). Anyway, just wanted to say how much I’ve enjoyed following your recipes and photos. Thanks for sharing your talent!

    Reply
    • kamran
      February 25, 2011 at 9:18 pm

      Why thank you for your kind words! Also- I have never heard of Big Spring Mill, but I’l definitely order a 25lb bag when I have a chance! Thanks for sharing that with us!

      Reply
  • Eliana
    February 25, 2011 at 3:01 pm

    Hmmm – nothing is more comforting than a warm biscuit straight out of the oven. These look amazing.

    Reply
  • Brian @ A Thought For Food
    February 25, 2011 at 3:57 pm

    I don’t think people realize how wonderful and EASY fresh biscuits are. This may need to be my breakfast this Sunday.

    Reply
  • Jen @ My Kitchen Addiction
    February 25, 2011 at 4:09 pm

    These look great! I don’t make biscuits nearly enough.. Now I’m craving them. Yum :)

    Reply
  • heather
    February 25, 2011 at 5:32 pm

    It’s been too long since we’ve had fresh biscuits, and come to think of it, the only ones I’ve made for my fiancée are sweet potato biscuits. The buttermilk variety need to come out of our oven soon! We’re smoking a butterflied chicken this weekend; perhaps leftover pulled bits on a flaky biscuit are in order! Great tutorial and photos as well.

    Cheers,

    *Heather*

    Reply
  • Jessica @ How Sweet
    February 25, 2011 at 5:45 pm

    These are some beautiful biscuits!

    Reply
  • cindy
    February 25, 2011 at 8:00 pm

    i am always on the look out for the biscuit of my dreams…these look look fantastic Kamran!

    Reply
    • kamran
      February 25, 2011 at 9:05 pm

      these are totally the biscuits of my dreams. I can eat an entire dozen of these and still crave a couple dozen more!

      Reply
  • kickpleat
    February 25, 2011 at 8:52 pm

    Great photos and your biscuits look lovely! So glad I could help inspire.

    Reply
  • Sara
    February 26, 2011 at 12:44 am

    As a girl born and raised in the South, I love my biscuits. This is a great primer for the uninitiated! I love tall, fluffy biscuits with just a hint of sweetness, and these look like they fit the bill.

    Reply
  • Rachael @ Tokyo Terrace
    February 26, 2011 at 2:41 am

    Excellent post and fantastic photos! My mom’s family is from the South and I love the food culture. My Grandma Smith (yep) makes the best fried chicken and my Grandpa Smith made the best biscuits and gravy ever! Your post makes me miss them…and they’re creamy southern accents.

    Reply
  • Sarah
    February 26, 2011 at 7:52 am

    I love one bowl, minimum fuss cooking. great recipe and funny introduction

    Reply
  • Angela@spinachtiger
    February 26, 2011 at 8:58 am

    Honey child, I now live in the south, and I’ve yet to conquer the bisquit. Maybe this will help me. I’ve learned round these parts there is no flour other than white lily. It’s in every pantry.

    Reply
  • Angela@spinachtiger
    February 26, 2011 at 8:59 am

    Forgot to tell you how much I like your picture and probably would like your nose too. :)

    Reply
  • Jillian
    February 26, 2011 at 10:07 am

    as a Southerner, a good buttermilk biscuit is a treat! I’m not as worried about the sides, as I am the rise! :) I use an old Southern Living recipe that has fewer ingredients, but they are delicious!

    Reply
  • Paula
    February 26, 2011 at 11:58 am

    oh, how I love one-bowl recipes! thanks for sharing with this one, because I need a good recipe for a biscuits. I`m going to try this one soon :) by the way, I love reading during eating, so when I saw the first pic I smiled :)

    Reply
  • Ileen Cuccaro
    February 26, 2011 at 12:50 pm

    White lily flour is being sold at the smuckers online store. It costs $$ to ship. BUt I love this flour as well

    http://onlinestore.smucker.com/display_category.cfm?cat_id=63&aid=WWLW07010

    Reply
  • Julie
    February 26, 2011 at 1:54 pm

    Love it. Everyone should be able to make biscuits! they should teach it in school. Love square biscuits!

    Reply
  • Lisa { AuthenticSuburbanGourmet }
    February 26, 2011 at 2:25 pm

    Love, love, love these biscuits! They are on my list to make for tomorrow’s breakfast with some grapefruit marmalade I made over the holidays. My mouth is all ready watering!

    Reply
  • Susan
    February 26, 2011 at 5:43 pm

    Except for the combination flour, this is the same recipe and method I use. They are perfect!

    Your biscuit recipe is the base recipe for perfect scones, as well. Increase the sugar (or use vanilla sugar) to 3 or 4 Tbsps and mix a large egg into your buttermilk. Use your biscuit mixing and shaping method..and there you have it! To season them, add in your choice of liquid flavorings with the buttermilk and/or toss in citrus zest and dried fruits to the flour/butter mixture to flavor them. So similar, so simple!

    Reply
  • Becca@bakingmonster
    February 27, 2011 at 12:17 am

    Thanks for posting this recipe Kamran! I just made biscuits the other day but they were not to my liking, these look great. I have pretended before that I’m from somewhere else to except I’m bad at doing accents so it dosen’t really work for me.:p

    Reply
  • Anita Menon
    February 27, 2011 at 12:54 am

    What an elegant blog!

    It gives me a sense of calm by just going through it. Your biscuits look scrumptious and I may dare try to make them sometime.

    Well done on the blog though. simply beautiful.

    Reply
  • Mallory
    February 28, 2011 at 3:16 am

    I have yet to find the holy grail of biscuits, but these look and sound pretty close to perfection. Thanks for all the biscuit tips too (and beautiful pictures)! Looking forward to baking up a batch of these.

    Reply
  • Lori @ Girl Meets Oven
    February 28, 2011 at 7:55 pm

    These are all excellent biscuit-making tips. I was recently trying to tell my husband about the “not twisting the cutter” tip when I was making heart-shaped biscuits on my blog.

    He looked at me with an odd look on his face and inquired how you would twist a heart-shaped cookie cutter anyway. :)

    Reply
  • ashley smithson
    March 4, 2011 at 8:32 pm

    I made these using your tips tonight. These came out perfectly! Thanks for a great recipe.

    Reply
    • kamran
      March 7, 2011 at 11:11 am

      Yay! So glad they came out for you!

      Reply
  • Hannah | Oven Hoots
    March 7, 2011 at 3:35 am

    i never knew that chilling the bowl was essential! i do now! and thanks!

    Reply
    • kamran
      March 7, 2011 at 11:11 am

      I would say it’s not 100 percent essential if you have a cold kitchen and cold hands (like I do), but if you have either a warm kitchen and or warm hands- definitely make sure all of your ingredients are chilled.

      Reply
  • Jenni
    March 10, 2011 at 10:09 pm

    1)Your photos are lovely.
    2)Your Biscuit Tips are dead on.
    3)White Lily is available on the Hinternets: http://www.southernconnoisseur.com/whlifl5lb.html
    4)Square biscuits are definitely the way to go. Re-rolling=tough biscuits, and that is just not the point.

    Really enjoyed this post:)

    Reply
  • Adam
    June 1, 2011 at 10:43 pm

    I absolutely adore your blog; I’m not ashamed to admit that I check for updates multiple times a day. I have an odd question: what font did you use on the photo of the knife/rolling pin? Random, I know, but I’m a graphic designer, and I love the look of the italicized “k.”

    Reply
    • kamran
      June 4, 2011 at 3:48 pm

      Thanks, Adam! I believe the font is called “garamond” (it was italicized).

      Reply
  • caroline
    July 11, 2011 at 8:03 pm

    Hi I’m a new reader:) yes I do agree us southeners are awesome but there ain’t nothing wrong with a few yankees;)

    Reply
  • caroline
    July 11, 2011 at 8:11 pm

    Whats up with crusties?! just kidding but really that’s not a southern word. I’m glad you listed aluminum-free baking powder I use rumfords.

    Reply
  • jeri
    November 2, 2011 at 9:13 am

    Hi,I am a southerner and was taught how to make these biscuits when I was 9,that was 54 years ago.I was in 4-h and it was my project so my mom showed me how to make them.I was known all my life for my biscuits and gravy.This was the most requested meal from me.Well,I moved up to Illinois with my husband 8 years ago and when I tried to make biscuits and gravy for my husband’s family I was shocked at the results.What I came out with was a hard,knobby piece of dough.I have tried many tmes without success to make my biscuits.I have tried different flour’s and still horrible.Yeast breads come out great if you eat them the day you make them.Day after they are horrible.I don’t know what to do.My husband passed away 2 years after we moved here but I remained here,I only regret staying when I make my biscuits.lol Any tips would be welcomed.By the way,to have biscuits and gravy I have resorted to a biscuit mix.I hate that and is just not the same.

    Reply
    • kamran
      November 2, 2011 at 9:35 am

      Hi Jeri- I think your issue here is definitely the flour; I’m assuming you used White Lily when you lived in the south, which really makes the most amazing biscuits. It’s hard to find where I live, and I’m assuming it’s hard to find in Illinois, too; I use a combination of cake flour and bleached all-purpose flour (as seen in the recipe above). It makes great biscuits, and it comes close to those made with White Lily (which you can mail order from the Smucker’s website here). As for your yeast breads, it could just be the recipe, or once again- the brand of flour and it could be the way you’re measuring it…. For breads, I use King Arthur Bread Flour. It’s phenomenal. Now, back to the measuring- I prefer to use a scale when baking; it allows for consistent results all the time, and the best part is that there’s less dishes to wash up when you use one; they’re pretty cheap on Amazon; I use this

      I hope the information above helps you with your future biscuit and yeast bread making endeavors! :)

      Reply
  • jeri
    November 15, 2011 at 11:16 am

    Thank you for your answer.I used Pillsbury down south so tried it here,not the same.I have not seen white lily here.I do have a scale and will try that.My biscuits suck but I can make a mean pie crust up here.lol

    Reply
  • LW
    November 25, 2011 at 1:11 am

    I made these tonight for Thanksgiving and they were wonderful. I was in a hurry so I just made 1 batch and they were all eaten. Next time I’ll make 3 times as much!

    I had to substitute sea salt with kosher salt and I used powdered sugar. I also found I had to use about a cup of buttermilk instead of 2/3 cup to make it just wet enough to come together. Otherwise I did everything the way you recommend. I cut them into squares with a knife, I chilled my bowl, the knife to cut my cold butter, my flours, my measuring cup, didn’t overknead. They were my favorite part of tonight’s meal! Everyone loved them with gravy or butter and honey and said I should have made more. I will make them again soon. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
  • Lisa
    December 20, 2011 at 10:52 am

    Hey Kam!! I found ya via Frugal in WV and your bagels!!! Sooooo goooood!!!! You are amazing! This blog is amazing!! I’m busting these biscuits out later!! Again…love all of your recipes!!

    Reply
    • kamran
      December 23, 2011 at 8:39 pm

      Hi Lisa- Why thank you! You are very kind. And happy baking! I do hope the biscuits went down well! :)

      Reply
  • Heidi Shires
    January 29, 2013 at 11:28 pm

    I made these tonight with what I had on hand which meant whole wheat flour. They were DELICIOUS with homemade fresh venison stew. I am wondering if you have a rough guess on how long to bake as a rustic loaf. This was so simple and yummy, I would make this for dinner a couple nights a week.

    Reply
  • Amy
    March 1, 2013 at 9:07 pm

    Oh my oh my!!! My 11 year quest for the perfect biscuit is finally over!! At one point of trying everything under the midnight sun my husband finally asked me (& he is really supportive of my cooking) to stop trying to make biscuits and just by the canned ones……. After tonight he actually used the word “EPIC”! I used skim milk with lemon juice to make my “buttermilk”. And it was fabulous. I cannot thank you enough this was a holy grail for me :)

    Reply
  • Red Crewey
    August 11, 2013 at 5:16 pm

    Made these for dinner with sausage and gravy. Awsome! Thank you for you blog.

    Reply
  • sherry
    October 20, 2013 at 11:57 pm

    4 tsp of baking soda? They were very salty!

    Reply
    • Kamran
      November 7, 2013 at 11:37 pm

      Hi Sherry,

      I’m sorry your biscuits came out as such, however, the recipe calls for 4 teaspoons of baking powder– not soda. Additionally, there’s 1/4 teaspoon of fine grain sea salt called for in the recipe (which, actually, isn’t much); if you are using another salt (i.e. table salt), that could have been why your biscuits turned out as such.

      Reply

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