Buttery, soft, and made completely from scratch, this easy homemade biscuit recipe deserves a permanent place in your recipe repertoire. This recipe is made with all butter, no shortening!
With just 6 ingredients that I bet you already have on hand, these homemade biscuits are so simple to make and I’ve included plenty of tips (and a video!) to make sure you end up with perfect biscuits every single time.
Two reasons I’m super excited to share this homemade biscuit recipe with you today:
One: because homemade biscuits are delicious (obviously) and they’re so easy to make. So many people buy the canned version without realizing that they already have all of the ingredients to make them from scratch in their pantry.
The taste of a pre-made biscuit doesn’t hold a candle to a homemade biscuit. Not. even. close. Preservatives and artificial flavors, you aren’t welcome here.
Two: because ever since I started working on this biscuit recipe a few weeks ago, “Mind Your Own Biscuits” by Kacey Musgraves has been stuck in my head and I’ve been singing it off-key relentlessly.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Kacey Musgraves and her music, but every time I start singing my dog starts actually crying. It’s sad and hilarious, and if I wasn’t so embarrassed by my terrible singing voice I would have shared a video of it by now. Hopefully, by publishing this recipe I’ll release myself from the endless refrain and the animal abuse will finally stop.
But let’s talk more about the first reason.
Homemade biscuits call for just six ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, butter, and milk. And then more butter once they’re finished baking because of course we need more butter.
I mentioned that these biscuits are easy so do not be alarmed by all the tips that I have for you below. These biscuits are easy, but technique matters and I want to arm you with all the information that you need so that you can make these easily and have them come out perfectly the very first time.
The tips are simple but important, and while some more seasoned bakers already know them, I want to give everyone an even playing field.
Tips for Making Homemade Biscuits
- The butter and milk for this recipe need to be as cold as possible for fluffy and soft biscuits. I freeze my butter before using it and recommend keeping the milk in the refrigerator right up until it’s time to add it to the dry ingredients.
- Don’t overwork the dough! Keep in mind that you want your butter to stay as cold as possible when making these biscuits, and the more you have your hands on the dough the softer the butter will become. Definitely don’t use an electric mixer for this recipe.
- We’re going to do a little bit of laminating. This means folding the dough over itself multiple times (5-6 times here) to encourage flaky layers in our biscuits. You can watch the video below to see exactly how this is done.
- Don’t use a rolling pin, use your hands to gently work the dough into a flat rectangle before cutting out your biscuits.
- Don’t be afraid to add flour to the dough if it’s too sticky while you are handling it (and make sure to work on a lightly floured surface).
Visual clue: If you look at the pre-baked biscuit below, you’ll see that you can actually see the butter pieces in the dough. This is what you want, the ingredients won’t be well-combined like with a cookie dough and seeing bits of butter means you’ve actually done everything right here. Hooray!
A Few Notes on Butter in Homemade Biscuits
The butter is possibly the most important part of this recipe, and the way you handle it can make or break your homemade biscuits.
While you can certainly use a pastry cutter to cut your butter into the dry ingredients, I recommend freezing your butter for about 30 minutes before beginning. Then, use a box grater to grate the butter before combining this in with your dry ingredients.
I use this technique in my scone recipes and highly recommend it with these biscuits, too. Not only is it much easier than using a pastry cutter, but it does a great job of finely shredding and distributing the butter throughout the mixture without overworking the butter (remember, you want to manage the butter as little as possible so that it’s as cold as possible when going into the oven).
Alternatively you could also use a food processor (like I do with my pie crust recipe), but it’s just so easy to grate in the butter that I always use this method instead.
And yes, I do recommend using unsalted butter in this recipe and then adding salt. If you want to know more about why I write my recipes this way, you can read all about it (and an easy substitution if you only have salted butter on hand) in this post that I wrote about salted vs unsalted butter.
I know I’ve mentioned to you guys a few times that I’ve been working on a baking contest/challenge/I’m really not sure what to call it, but I’m planning a post where I encourage all of you to bake along with me. The goal is to get people baking recipes they may have not tried before, and I’m encouraging everyone to share their results for a chance to win a small prize.
Well, today’s homemade biscuit recipe is essentially the base for the baking challenge that I’ll be sharing in exactly one week, so take this as a hint that making today’s recipe is a great way to get a jump start for the challenge!
To make sure you’re among the first to be notified of all new recipes and baking challenges, make sure you’re subscribed to my e-mail list. It’s free, and you get a free e-book of 8 of my favorite cookie recipes.
Enjoy!
How to Make Homemade Biscuits
I know I talked a lot in this video, but I really feel that the tips are so important, and will help ensure your biscuits come out perfectly!
Homemade Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (250g)
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter very cold (85g), unsalted European butter is ideal, but not required
- ¾ cup whole milk¹ (177ml) buttermilk or 2% milk will also work
Recommended Equipment
- Biscuit cutter
Instructions
- For best results, chill your butter in the freezer for 10-20 minutes before beginning this recipe. It's ideal that the butter is very cold for light, flaky, buttery biscuits.
- Preheat oven to 425F and line a cookie sheet with nonstick parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Set aside.
- Remove your butter from the refrigerator and either cut it into your flour mixture using a pastry cutter or (preferred) use a box grater to shred the butter into small pieces and then add to the flour mixture and stir.
- Cut the butter or combine the grated butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add milk, use a wooden spoon or spatula to stir until combined (don't over-work the dough).
- Transfer your biscuit dough to a well-floured surface and use your hands to gently work the dough together. If the dough is too sticky, add flour until it is manageable.
- Once the dough is cohesive, fold in half over itself and use your hands to gently flatten layers together. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and fold in half again, repeating this step 5-6 times but taking care to not overwork the dough.
- Use your hands (do not use a rolling pin) to flatten the dough to 1" thick and lightly dust a 2 ¾" round biscuit cutter with flour.
- Making close cuts, press the biscuit cutter straight down into the dough and drop the biscuit onto your prepared baking sheet.
- Repeat until you have gotten as many biscuits as possible and place less than ½" apart on baking sheet.
- Once you have gotten as many biscuits as possible out of the dough, gently re-work the dough to get out another biscuit or two until you have at least 6 biscuits.
- Bake on 425F for 12 minutes or until tops are beginning to just turn lightly golden brown.
- If desired, brush with melted salted butter immediately after removing from oven. Serve warm and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Penny likes to supervise the photography process. Fortunately, this setup got her vote of approval.
Lorna
Can you pre-make the biscuits beforehand and keep in the fridge until ready to bake?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Lorna! Yes, that will be fine, as long as they are well wrapped/covered. 🙂
Chantel
Hi, I was just wondering if it’s possible to substitute milk with almond milk or another non dairy option?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Chantel! I have yet to try substituting milk for almond milk however, others have and reported success. The texture will be a little denser but should still taste delicious. Keep me posted on how it turns out for you. 🙂
Jennifer
I am not a baker and these turned out great! I love the simple ingredients and instructions.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so happy to hear that you found the recipe easy to follow and enjoyable, Jennifer. Thanks for commenting. Enjoy! 🙂
Sally
Do you mean 2 cups of flour or 250 grams of flour?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Sally! You want 2 cups of flour or 250g. 250g is the exact flour measurement when I made mine.
amanda
love the recipe
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it, Amanda! 🙂
Kenzie
I made these today and it was my first biscuit recipe and they turned out perfect. I’m not a baker and my husband said these were the best biscuits he’s ever had. I used 2% milk and I froze the milk while I froze the butter. The milk had ice crystals so I was a little nervous but they turned out great! They had so many flakey layers. I used a food processor to break up the butter but it didn’t work that great and I HATE cleaning the grater so I would probably cut my butter first next time. I did 12 minutes as suggested and they were perfect!!!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that they were a hit and everyone enjoyed them, Kenzie! Thank you for trying my recipe. 🙂
Gigi
I’ve tried other recipes before and my biscuits didnt come out right . I decided to try this and my biscuits came out nice and fluffy. I’ve finally found a good biscuit recipe that was simple and tasty ! The only complaint I had that they came out a little too pale for me so for now on I will brush some melted butter on them first then bake Definitely, will be keeping this with my recipe book. Try it you wont be disappointed
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the recipe and they turned out well for you, Gigi! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Ken
I’ve made this recipe several times and it comes out great. I added two tablespoons of really cold crisco to today’s batch and they were even flakier and softer texture.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed this recipe, Ken! Thanks for sharing your new discovery as well. Enjoy! 🙂
Lydia Meneses
I have made this recipe several times. Every time delicious!! I have used whole milk, non fat milk, almond milk and not a problem. Each time they have been wonderful.
Sugar Spun Run
That is wonderful to know, Lydia! Thank you so much for sharing. I am glad that they have turned out perfectly each time for you. 🙂
Maria Rosela
Absolutely the best biscuit recipe. I have tired 3 different recipes. Sin duda … esta es la mejor receta! Debe probarla.
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Maria! I am so glad that you have enjoyed it. 🙂
Deb
Last night, I followed the directions, using your hints, to make the biscuits. I plopped them on top of my hot homemade chicken pot pie filling and baked the whole casserole until the biscuits were golden brown. Delicious!
This morning, I made them for biscuits and gravy. My husband is a big fan. Girl, this is an awesome recipe! Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Deb! I am so glad that you have been able to use this recipe for multiple meals and your husband is now a fan! Thanks so much for commenting. Enjoy! 🙂
James
I’ve made these a few times, and my girlfriend now requests them on weekends! I’ve also added bacon, cheddar, and chives on occasion (with a little less butter), and they turned out great as well. Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed them, James! Thanks for trying my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
Amanda
What do you think about using water instead of milk? Craving biscuits and don’t feel like going to the store because of all craziness going on right now!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Amanda! Unfortunately, water would not be a good substitute for milk in the recipe. 🙁
Wanda Schneidef
My daughter was recently diagnosed celiac so I have been looking for recipes that can be adapted to her dietary needs.
I made these biscuits yesterday with an all-purpose gluten free flour (I used Red River) and they turned out great. I flattened the dough to much so they did not raise as well but GF flours tend not to anyways. I will leave it thicker next time.
This recipe will definitely be my go to for great taste and texture with simple easy to follow directions.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed them, Wendy! Thanks for trying my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
Brittany
I am not a baker…and when I say that, I mean REALLY not a baker. My daughter told me the last biscuits I tried to make were “gross” so she was hesitant to try these this morning after I followed your recipe. Can I say I TOTALLY redeemed myself??? My family loved this recipe and I will definitely use it again in the future!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that they turned out much better than the ones you have made in the past, Brittany, and I am happy to hear that everyone enjoyed them. Thank you for trying my recipe and commenting. 🙂