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
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.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon salt
- 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.6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 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).¾ cup whole milk¹
- 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.
denise fike
May I freeze the unbaked dough for later use?
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
Ed
I have made your recipe and it turned out very well. I would like to make these in advance. Could you make the dough, cut the biscuits and freeze them before baking, then thaw and bake when needed. Thank you!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ed! You can definitely freeze these, but there is no need to thaw before baking. Just add a minute or two extra to the bake time. Enjoy! 😊
Andrea
Do you have any recommendations for making these two days ahead of time? I want to make them for Sunday but the only time I’ll have for baking is Friday.
Sam
Hi Andrea! You can store them in an air tight container for 2 days. If you have the ability to bake them that day you can make the biscuits and store in the refrigerator until almost time to serve and then bake them. 🙂
Becca M
These have become my go to biscuits, everyone loves them and they are quick and easy. Thank you so much for this delicious addition!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Becca! We are glad you are enjoying the recipe 😊
Doreen Bandy
I’ve been using this recipe since 2018, when my doctor told me I couldn’t eat commercial baked goods anymore.
This has been a forgiving recipe as it is very adaptable based on the dairy we have at home – 2%, whole milk, heavy cream. I’ve used it as plain biscuits, a base for scones, and mini pot pies. It’s wonderful!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy to hear that our recipe is a staple in your kitchen, Doreen. Thanks for the review! ❤️
Brenda Wallace
Made this recipe last night and my son is still thanking me this morning😄😄
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sounds like they were a huge hit, Brenda! Thanks for using our recipe 😊
Linda Evelyn Mccoy
Excellent taste, however I tried cutting them 1 inch thick as suggested and their still doughy. I’ve split them in half to try to finish them off. In the future I think I’ll just make them thinner. Excellent flavor though!
Crystal M Wend
Hello! I made these buscits and they are amazing. I had no regular milk on hand so I used unsweetened almond milk, and they came out just the same. I will definitely be making these again. Thank you for the recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed them, Crystal! ❤️
Hope
In my experience, these need 15-18 minutes. Hope that helps in the future!
Amy
After picking strawberries yesterday, I decided to give these a try today. Flawless recipe, very easy for success.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! We are so happy you enjoyed them, Amy 😄
Leticia Martinez
I have made these a bunch of times now and this is my go to recipe for biscuits!! I love this recipe and I’ve made it dairy free with alternative butter and almond milk and it still comes out amazing!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Leticia! We are so happy you love the biscuits 🥰
CJ
This is my new go-to biscuit recipe. I’ve made biscuits loads of times, but was never 100% content with the results of various other recipes.
I did do a couple small tweaks. 1. I grated the butter and froze that while the oven was pre-heating. 2. I left the formed biscuits to rest in the freezer for about 10 min before baking. I had to add 2 min to the bake time since they were cold, but these ended up with a lovely crisp exterior and soft/flakey layers.
I will be using this recipe going forward!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you loved our recipe, CJ! ❤️
Kelli Carlson
I’ve been using this recipe for the last 2 years…. I love it!!! It surprises me every time how easy this recipe is and how DELICIOUS these are! 10/10. My twist: If you like a sweeter biscuit, after brushing with butter at the end, sprinkle with a little sugar!
Jeannie T
Excellent and quite easy. I’ve been cooking for a long time (born in the 40s) and never have mastered the art of biscuit making. Usually they are like hockey pucks, but not this time. They rose high and remained extremely tender. So good.
Austin
First time making homemade biscuits and these turned out great! Awesome tip with grating the cold butter as we dont have a cutter. Thank you for posting!
Judy Leboe
Absolutely love this recipe and the guided instructions with video! I have never produced such beautiful flakey layered biscuits. My new go to!! Thanks for sharing!!!😄
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Judy! We’re so happy your biscuits turned out so nicely ❤️
Julia
I absolutely LOVE this recipe! So easy to follow and so yummy!!! Thank you so much for this recipe!❤️
Adriana
Perfect recipe! Used these for biscuit and gravy with fried chicken. Tastes like TRUE Southern biscuits. : )
velden
First time I have been able to get big fluffy biscuits from scratch in YEARS of trying!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yay! We’re so happy you found our recipe, Velden! Thanks for commenting ❤️
Rebecca Holtmeyer
I enjoyed them very simple no drama!!! Lol