Southern buttermilk biscuits

Name: Southern buttermilk biscuits
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 300 g all-purpose flour; 12 g baking powder; ½ tsp baking soda; 1 tsp salt; 1 tsp sugar; 115 g unsalted butter, very cold, cubed or grated; 240 ml buttermilk, cold; 2 tbsp butter, melted

Vegetarian

Tall, flaky, tender quick breads with buttery layers, made by cutting cold butter into flour, folding the dough for layers and baking hot.

Southern buttermilk biscuits is a Southern US bread from United States, ready in about 45 minutes and made with all-purpose flour, unsalted butter and buttermilk. It serves 10 and is rated easy to cook.

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Prep: 20 min
Cook: 15 min
Rest: 10 min
Total: 45 min
Serves: 10
Level: Easy
Calories: 224

Ingredients

10 biscuits

300 g All-purpose flour (opens in a new tab)A soft, low-protein flour gives the most tender biscuit.Contains wheat, gluten
12 g Baking powder (opens in a new tab)
½ tsp (2.5 g) Baking soda (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (6 g) Salt (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (4 g) Sugar (opens in a new tab)
115 g Unsalted butter (opens in a new tab), very cold, cubed or gratedContains milk
240 ml Buttermilk (opens in a new tab), coldSwap: Milk (Add 1 tbsp lemon juice to the milk and rest 5 minutes.)Contains milk

To finish

2 tbsp (28 g) Butter (opens in a new tab), meltedContains milk

Equipment

Method

1
Step 1
Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 230 °C. Whisk the flour, baking powder (opens in a new tab), soda, salt and sugar (opens in a new tab). Grate or cut in the cold butter (opens in a new tab) until the pieces are pea-sized and coated in flour.
- 6 min
- 230°C
- Mixing bowl (opens in a new tab)
- Grater (opens in a new tab)
How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels
2
Step 2
Pour in the cold buttermilk (opens in a new tab) and stir with a fork just until a shaggy dough forms, with dry bits remaining.
- 2 min
3
Step 3
Tip onto a floured surface, pat into a 2 cm thick rectangle and fold in thirds like a letter. Repeat the pat-and-fold 3 times, then pat to 2.5 cm thick. If the butter (opens in a new tab) softens, chill 10 minutes.
- 6 min
4
Step 4
Cut 6 cm rounds with a floured cutter, pressing straight down without twisting so the layers rise. Place touching on a lined tray; gently press scraps together for a few more.
- 4 min
- Baking tray / sheet (opens in a new tab)
5
Step 5
Bake 12–15 minutes until tall and golden. Brush with melted butter (opens in a new tab) and serve warm.
- 15 min
- 230°C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
- Pastry brush (opens in a new tab)
How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

About this dish

Origin: American South, United States · Well documentedMore food from United States
Dish: Breakfast · Brunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads · Side dishes
Cooking method: Oven-baked
Taste: buttery, tangy, salty
Diet: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Everyday · Freezer-friendly
Cook more with: All-purpose flour · Unsalted butter · Buttermilk · Baking powder · Baking soda · Sugar
Techniques: Baking

Allergens

Contains: Milkfrom unsalted butter, buttermilk, butter
Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder
Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

224 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 62 g · recipe makes 10

Where the energy comes from

Protein 7%
Carbohydrate 44%
Fat 49%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g
Energy	224 kcal	362 kcal
Protein	4 g	6.5 g
Carbohydrate	24.8 g	40.1 g
Net carbohydrate	24 g	38.7 g
Sugars	1.8 g	3 g
Added sugars	0.4 g	0.7 g
Fibre	0.8 g	1.3 g
Fat	12.2 g	19.7 g
Saturated fat	7.5 g	12.1 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	32 mg	51 mg
Sodium	481 mg	776 mg
Salt equivalent	1.2 g	1.9 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 73 mg
Calcium: 107 mg
Iron: 1.5 mg
Magnesium: 10 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 102 µg
Vitamin C: 0 mg
Vitamin D: 0 µg
Vitamin B12: 0.1 µg
Folate (DFE): 89 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Placing biscuits so they touch makes them rise taller and stay softer at the sides.

Common mistakes

Twisting the cutter seals the edges and stops the rise.
Warm butter and overmixing give flat, tough biscuits.

Serve with

Serve with butter and honey, sausage gravy, fried chicken or as a breakfast sandwich.

Storage

Best warm. Freeze unbaked biscuits on a tray, then bag; bake from frozen adding 3–4 minutes.

Reheating

Warm at 180 °C for 5 minutes.

Variations

Cheddar-chive biscuits: Toss 80 g grated cheddar and 2 tbsp chives into the flour.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 29 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Compare with

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

All-purpose flour300 g
Unsalted butter, very cold, cubed or grated115 g
Buttermilk, cold240 ml · 247 g

Used in steps 1, 2

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

Mix and knead · about 20 min
Mix only until no dry flour remains — overmixing makes it tough and tunnelled.
Rest · about 10 min
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Bake · about 15 min at 230 °C
Risen and golden; a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs; the top springs back.
Start to finish: about 45 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
Ingredient	Role	Weight	Baker’s %
All-purpose flour	Flour	300 g	100%
Unsalted butter	Fat	115 g	38.3%
Baking powder	Raising agent	12 g	4%
Salt	Salt	6 g	2%
Sugar	Sugar	4 g	1.4%
Baking soda	Raising agent	2 g	0.8%

Total flour: 300 g
Hydration: —
With milk, eggs…: 0%
Wholegrain: 0%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

Salt 2% — normal for bread.
Fat 38.3% — a rich, tender dough.

If something goes wrong

Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Crust too hard or thick
Likely causes
- Baked too long at too low a temperature
- No steam at the start
What to do
- Bake hotter for a shorter time
- Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
- Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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