The BEST biscuit recipe! These homemade biscuits are buttery, soft and fluffy with lots of flaky layers and delicious crispy edges.
We just can’t get enough of these biscuits! I first shared this biscuit recipe years ago, and since then it has become a reader favorite. With this easy recipe and a few baking tips that I’ve included below, you’ll be making the best biscuits you’ve ever eaten.
These homemade biscuits are buttery, soft and flaky. The tops brown beautifully in the oven, and the bottoms become crisp and golden. They are delicious as is, and even better when you serve them with jam or honey. I’ve made these biscuits so many times that this is likely the recipe on Kristine’s Kitchen that I’ve made most often in my own kitchen!
We’ve been enjoying these biscuits as a side dish at dinner. They complement almost any meal. Try them with Baked Chicken Thighs, Slow Cooker Beef Stew or Butternut Squash Soup. They’re also great for breakfast, alongside some eggs and bacon.
This really is the best biscuit recipe! Just like Grandma used to make ‘em 🙂 I will be making these again very soon.
Lauren
Does Milk or Buttermilk Make the Best Homemade Biscuits?
You can make these biscuits with milk or buttermilk, or a combination of the two. I’ve tested the recipe all three ways, and the biscuits are delicious no matter which you choose.
When you make this recipe with buttermilk, the flavorful tang of the buttermilk comes through in the buttermilk biscuits. If you use milk, the biscuits turn out especially tender. My favorite is to use half buttermilk and half milk for the best balance of flavor and texture.
Whole milk is best in this biscuit recipe, but you can use 2% if that is what you have on hand. I don’t recommend using skim milk, since you need some fat to make the biscuits flavorful and tender. You can also use this homemade buttermilk substitute.
How to Make Biscuits
This biscuit recipe is so quick and easy and you’ll need only 6 simple ingredients that you probably have in your kitchen right now:
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Sugar
- Salt
- Butter
- Milk or Buttermilk
Here’s an overview of the recipe steps, including my tips for success. You’ll find the full printable recipe with ingredient amounts below.
Freeze the butter: At least 20 minutes before you plan to make the biscuits, put the stick of butter in the freezer. Freezing makes sure that the butter is really cold, which is important for flaky biscuits. Frozen butter is also easier to shred using a box grater (more on that below).
Combine dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Be sure to use baking powder (not baking soda), and use the full tablespoon (not teaspoon) called for in the recipe. You can adjust the amount of sugar to your taste preferences. We prefer less sweet biscuits, so I usually use just 1 or 2 teaspoons.
Grate the butter and stir it in: This is my favorite biscuit making trick! Once the butter has gotten really cold in the freezer, you’ll grate it on a box grater. This is really quick and easy to do. Then you can quickly mix the grated butter into the dry ingredients with a fork. If you’re like me and don’t enjoy the process of cutting butter into dry ingredients, you are going to love this trick! The grated butter also gives you perfectly sized pieces of butter throughout your biscuits, which makes them tender and flaky.
Mix in milk or buttermilk: Pour the milk or buttermilk into the bowl with the other ingredients. Use a fork to mix until a dough forms. It’s ok if a little bit of the dry ingredients aren’t incorporated at this point. If the dough seems very dry and you are having a hard time getting it to come together, you can add 1 to 2 tablespoons more milk or buttermilk.
Fold the dough: Turn the dough (and any flour bits) out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat the dough down into a rectangle that is about 1 1/2 inches thick. Fold the dough in half on top of itself and press it down into a 1 1/2-inch thick rectangle again. Repeat this step, folding and pressing the dough 4 to 6 times total. This is called laminating the dough and it creates those flaky layers that we all love in biscuits.
Cut the biscuits: After you fold the dough the last time, press it out until it is about 1-inch thick. Press a round biscuit cutter straight down into the dough to cut the biscuits. Do not twist the biscuit cutter as you cut. Place the biscuits on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Brush the tops and bake: Before baking the biscuits, brush the tops with milk, buttermilk, heavy cream or melted butter. This helps the tops of the biscuits to brown as they bake. Bake the biscuits until they are lightly golden on top, 13 to 16 minutes.
Biscuit Recipe Tips
- Use cold butter. When baking biscuits, it is important to keep the butter and milk or buttermilk as cold as possible. Keep the butter in the freezer and the milk in the refrigerator until you are ready to use them. Avoid letting the dough sit at room temperature before baking the biscuits.
- Freeze and grate the butter using a box grater. The small pieces of shredded butter will create little steam pockets in the biscuits as they bake, giving you great rise and flaky layers.
- Use fresh baking powder. According to the USDA, once opened baking powder should be used within 3 months for best results. If your biscuits don’t rise, old baking powder could be the problem.
- Fold the dough. Don’t skip the step of folding the biscuit dough in half and pressing it out 4 to 6 times before cutting your biscuits. The folds help to create flaky layers, much like when making croissants.
- Don’t twist the biscuit cutter. Press straight down with your biscuit cutter and do not twist or turn it. Twisting the cutter seals off the edges of the biscuits and keeps them from rising as much. If you do not have a biscuit cutter, you can use a small glass to cut the biscuits. Or, make my Drop Biscuits recipe, where you scoop the dough instead of cutting out the biscuits.
The BEST Biscuits Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup whole milk, or buttermilk (or ½ cup of each)
- milk, buttermilk, cream or melted butter, optional, for brushing on biscuit tops
Instructions
- Place butter in the freezer for at least 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425° F with a rack in the upper third of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Whisk together until well combined.
- Grate the frozen butter using a box grater. Add the butter to the bowl and use a fork to mix it into the dry ingredients.
- Pour the 1 cup milk or buttermilk into the bowl and use a fork to stir until the dough comes together. It is ok if there are a few bits of flour not yet incorporated, but if the dough seems very dry and is not coming together add 1 to 2 tablespoons more milk or buttermilk.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat the dough into a 1½-inch thick rectangle. Fold the dough in half on top of itself and pat it down into another 1½-inch thick rectangle. Repeat the folding process 4 to 6 times. Then press the dough down into a 1-inch thick rectangle.
- Use a biscuit cutter (mine measures 2 ¼-inches) to cut out the biscuits, pressing it straight down into the dough without twisting. Once you've cut out as many biscuits as you can, gather the scraps and pat the dough out to 1-inch thickness a second and third time to finish cutting out all of the biscuits. Place them on the prepared baking sheet.
- If desired, brush the biscuit tops with milk, buttermilk, cream or melted butter. Bake for 13 to 16 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden brown.
Notes
- Store biscuits at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Biscuits are best right after baking. Leftover biscuits can be reheated in a 350 degree oven for about 5 minutes.
- Recipe updated 4/25/23 to increase salt from 1/2 teaspoon to 3/4 teaspoon for even more flavor. If using salted butter, use only 1/2 teaspoon of added salt.
Can the dough be stored in the fridge over night before being pressed out and cut? I definitely won’t have time to do this in the morning and feed my family breaker at a decent time LOL
I don’t recommend storing the dough in the refrigerator because the baking powder may lose it’s effectiveness, so your biscuits wouldn’t rise as well. This recipe is VERY quick and easy, I’d suggest giving it a trial run to go with dinner one night so you can see how fast it is to make the dough. If you do want to get a head start, you can mix together the dry ingredients the night before.
Easy to make. So delicious! Tagged this recipe as a favorite!
This recipe is excellent and simple to put together.
I am so excited to try these!! Can you substitute self rising flour instead of all purpose flour?
Yes, you can, but you should omit the baking powder and salt in the recipe since self rising flour already has those ingredients added.
My husband says these are the closest biscuits to what his mom used to make and he’s from the south and she made them homemade ALL the time. I have never been able to get homemade biscuits even close to right but this step by step recipe is sooo easy and they come out perfect every time! Thanx so much for sharing and we both absolutely love them!!
I made these biscuits this morning and they are so good. I pair it up with some white gravy. I had to make twice the amount of biscuits because half of it was gone before biscuits n gravy’s were made.
Finally, I found the right biscuit recipe!!! Thanks so much 🙂
Love recipes
I was sick of my old biscuit recipe because they stopped coming out well so I figured I’d try a new one. I found this recipe today and it looked so simple I decided to give it a try. They came out so delicious! Nice and flaky. Pulled apart in the middle without needing to cut in half. Delicious plain or with jelly. This is my new go-to biscuit recipe. I followed the recipe exactly just used a stick of country crock plant butter and almond milk instead and didn’t use egg so they were technically vegan. Thank you so much for the great recipe <3
Hello Kristine! I love this recipe for the biscuits!!!! Sometimes I’ll use buttermilk and at other times I’ll use regular vitamin D milk. My family loves these biscuits!!! The best biscuit recipe that I’ve come across!!!! Thank you!!! ❤️
we love your simple recipe. Thank you for sharing!
I finally found the perfect recipe! The biscuits were light, fluffy and delicious! Thank you!,
Recipe calls for 1/2 cup of butter. I made this by grating into a a 1/2 measuring cup but after I put them in the oven I noticed the stick of butter says the whole thing is 1/2 cup. Did I do something wrong with this measurement?
You are supposed to use the whole stick of butter, since one stick of butter is 1/2 cup. I hope the biscuits still turn out ok for you!
These biscuits are great! My whole family loved them. Following the recipe exactly was easy to do.
Best recipe ever.i did it three times love it.
Uh-mazing! So good and I love the idea of grating the butter! So much easier than what I’ve been doing. I’m saving this recipe!
My friend made these this morning and we couldn’t stop eating them they’re so good
These were seriously the best biscuits! For some reason I always struggle to get a good biscuit but this recipe was so simple, the biscuits had a great rise, and those flaky layers were so good!
That crunch! It just the right airy-crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.The frozen & grated butter is such an amazing technique! 2″ cutter. Baked in toaster oven at 400°F for 13 minutes. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe!
Hello! Made these this morning and they were yummy! The bottoms cooked faster than the tops and I used parchment paper. Any tips for next time?
Hi Megan! I’m glad you enjoyed the biscuits! You could try cooking them on a rack in a higher position in the oven next time.
First time making homemade biscuits and gravy and these biscuits were wonderful! Thank you!
These are THE BEST biscuits. Not dry. Not crumbly. Absolutely perfect. She’s got all the right tips. Use the frozen butter and don’t turn your biscuit cutter (in my case, a glass jar). Made these for Father’s Day as my husband loves biscuits and gravy. I am keeping this recipe forever!!
Hi Norma,
I’m so happy to hear that you loved these biscuits! The frozen butter is a game-changer!
How long do you bake and at what temperature when baking dough from frozen?
To bake from frozen use the same baking temperature given in the recipe and add a few extra minutes to the bake time.
Can the biscuit dough be frozen for baking later and still tasre great?
Yes, you can freeze before baking. To freeze the unbaked biscuits, cut out the biscuits and freeze them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Once they are frozen, transfer the biscuits to a zip-top bag and store them in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the baking time.
Like everything else…I feel like biscuits are so expensive now! Especially when you are feeding 3 teenage boys! This was super quick, easy and I didn’t have to run out for any special ingredients. They turned out perfect!
If I made some to freeze, would the baking powder lose potency?
Hi Crystal, I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed these biscuits! You can freeze them before baking. To freeze the unbaked biscuits, cut them out and freeze them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Once they are frozen, transfer the biscuits to a zip-top bag and store them in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the baking time.
So easy and delicious. I made with 2% milk and they were great!
The biscuits are very bland for just eating them alone, but if you add jam or honey they taste fantastic. Overall they’re not bad biscuits they’re just missing something
Love this recipe. So quick and easy!
Curious to know if you can use bread flour instead of all purpose?
Since all-purpose flour works so well, I haven’t tried this recipe with bread flour.
Made these biscuts this morn8ng I doubled the recipe because my kids love biscuts and they said they were the best so far!! Definitely saving this!! Came out nice and fluffy and golden so delicious!
Easy, quick and delicious!
These were easy to make and tasty.
These are the best biscuits I’ve had. Easy to make. I didn’t have milk so I used 1/2 and 1/2 with a little water in it. Baking the biscuits on the middle shelf truly made a difference. They were perfect!
Okay… I’m the hero of my family! This was my first attempt at making homemade biscuits and they turned out great! I used buttermilk and doubled the recipe. My one “mistake” was making them too “tall”. They still cooked up beautifully (needed a couple more minutes) and my family sure didn’t mind but they were definitely double decker biscuits. That’s an easy fix for next time.
Ms. Kristine, thank you for making easy-to-follow recipes with typical ingredients!
EASY RECIPE! My family loves these biscuits! 💕 Thank you Kristine for sharing this recipe!
These turned out flaky and most delicious.
BEST BISCUIT RECIPE EVER!
Had trouble browning tops despite brushing with butter first; then tried milk; but they still tasted good!
I’m 74 and never made biscuits until today.
I used 100% whole wheat flour. They came out great.
The best biscuits I have ever made in my life and I am in my 60s! I think it’s the butter which makes the difference which I used to use lard or Crisco which I hate using now. Even my husband said these are the best ones I had ever made!
Super easy!
I’ll admit, I am not a good cook, but these biscuits were super easy to make and came out perfect!
Thank you!!
First time I have ever made biscuits, I substituted with whole wheat and honey and olive oil, and they were great. Thanks for putting the ingredients and amounts in. Jack
My new go-to biscuit recipe! It’s perfect. Thank you!!
Can you use these biscuits in a recipe like you would canned biscuits?
Yes, these should work in place of canned biscuits in most recipes.
Delicious! Flaky and so tasty. Pretty simple to put together. Thanks!
Great recipe! All ingredients are simple, nothing I need to make a special trip to the store to buy. The flaky layers are amazing! I feel like the judges on the Great British Baking Show would approve. 😊
Excellent! Light and fluffy. I didn’t roll them out. I used a scoop to place individually on creamed chicken in a casserole and baked it at same temperature and time. So delicious! It was a hit!
I’ve made these so many times.. never fail to be perfect! Fluffy and delicious!
Best biscuits I ever made according to my husband! Very flaky and flavorful. I did add a little more baking powder than recipe called for and they rose incredibly well. The frozen grated butter made it so easy to incorporate the butter and flour mixture . Excellent recipe!
These turned out amazing! I would recommend baking on a sheet with edges….I learned the hard way and butter dripped onto the bottom of my oven and filled my house with smoke! 😳
Looks great, can I double the recipe? Going to make them today.
Yes, you can double the recipe. Enjoy!
Wonderful recipe loved how mine turned r Ned out!! Thank you
These are perfection, I wouldn’t change a single thing. This will be my permanent biscuit recipe, thanks for sharing!
I used the exact amounts of ingredients listed and the mixture was incredibly soupy. I had to add another cup of flour to get it to hold together enough to cut the biscuits. Dry to wet ratio is very off.
Hi Erin,
It sounds like one of your measurements was off. I’ve made this recipe dozens of times, and so many others have made this recipe with great success as you can see by the positive reviews. If following the measurements listed in the recipe, it’s not possible for the mixture to turn out soupy.
Made these today for the first time. I missed the step where it says to shave the butter and I just folded in the little squares of butter instead. Fortunately, they’re still so delicious! Thank you for sharing this with all of us!
Delicious
This biscuit recipe is so easy and make the most delicious biscuits I have ever made. Kristine, thank you for sharing this fabulous recipe! I will use it exclusively, from here on out.
These turned out perfect. Grating the butter made it way easier than using a pastry cutter. I didn’t have a biscuit cutter so I used a regular size metal canninf jar ring. That ended up making 6 thick beautiful biscuits and 4 smaller hand folded biscuits from the scrap pieces.
I’m glad you enjoyed these so much! Another option if you don’t have a biscuit cutter is to just pat the dough out into a rectangle and cut into squares with a knife. 🙂
These biscuits were soft and flaky w a nice crisp outer layer. They rose beautifully. I added fresh rosemary to mine and they were delicious. Super easy to make. This recipe is a keeper.
Thank you!!!
Patty W.
Idaho
Absolutely love these biscuits. They’re so easy to make my whole family love them, and I made them again the next day.
Has anyone ever tried to have the biscuits cut and refrigerate them overnight to bake the next morning? Looking to use with students for a cooking class, but they don’t have enough time in one day to make, bake and eat.
I don’t recommend storing the dough in the refrigerator because the baking powder may lose its effectiveness, so your biscuits wouldn’t rise as well.
Good morning can I add green onion and cheese, and how much do you recommend thx
Yes, you can stir in chopped green onions and shredded cheddar right before you add the milk or buttermilk. I’d recommend using 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese and about 1/3 cup of chopped green onions. Enjoy!
I have tried many different recipes for biscuits but the flavor on these was really good! Will definitely be making these again.
I don’t know how the biscuit recipe has all these 5 star ratings, as they came out so very bland. They were not as fluffy as one would imagine, through I froze and shred the butter. But, I imagine they are good for certain recipes…I would imagine they would deal with gravy well.
I’m surprised you find them bland! Between the salt and butter I find that these have plenty of flavor.
First time making biscuits and they turned out great!! Recipe was super easy to follow. Kristine’s pictures help so much. Love this food blog and I’ve never uttered those words before.
I usually fail at baking, but I followed this recipe exactly and the biscuits came out beautiful and most importantly delicious. I know this is the best biscuit I have ever put in my mouth. Plan on letting my granddaughters help me make some next time they visit. Thank you for sharing it.
Great recipe! I’ve made it multiple times over the last couple of months, experimenting with different combinations of milk, different butter (salted vs. salted, fancy vs. cheap), different brands of flour (which makes a surprising difference), and it always turns out beautifully. Everyone I’ve served them to has raved about the layers and the sky-high goodness. This morning I added 1 cup of cheddar cheese, some green onions, and some garlic powder. They turned out just as perfectly, with a wonderful rich flavor. If I have any complaint, it’s that the dough is a bit hard to handle. It’s pretty crumbly and dry, and it takes a bit to wrangle it all into the square for cutting. But the end result is worth it!
They are good but after taste is a little chalky. What did I do wrong?
It could be the baking powder. I’d suggest using an aluminum-free baking powder.
I have made these biscuits twice now and they have come out the same both times. GREAT. I use the buttermilk because it is easy as well. One cup of milk to 1tbs of.vinegar.. 5 minutes and you have buttermilk. And you don’t have to waste a whole container of buttermilk. So cool. I’m not afraid of recipes the call for buttermilk now.
My husband really likes the biscuits, because they hold together.
I have not been able to make biscuits and they hold together.
Now I can.
They are also easy to warm up in the toaster.
Peanut butter and jam biscuit in the morning is breakfast for the on the go qperson or as my husband would say “I’ll have mine with BACON”
Thank you.
Recipe was so easy to follow and came out perfectly first time! It was recommended to me and will be my go to biscuit recipe for the future.
Very easy and delicious
Good! I’m going to make them again.
(we ate them plain, and they were still yummy)
I love this recipe. I have made it so many times. I will never go back to store bought biscuits. It’s so quick and easy.
Honestly they came out very dry and kind of salty. Other then salt they had no flavor…. I made sausage gravy for biscuits and gravy but even with my homemade gravy over top the biscuits still where not very appetizing.
Hi Heather,
I’m sorry to hear that you didn’t enjoy this recipe. I’ve made these dozens of times and I’ve never found them to be dry or salty. I’m wondering what caused them to be that way for you.
LOVE this biscuit recipe. It’s the only one I use now!
Can I use salted butter?
Yes. I would reduce the added salt to 1/2 teaspoon if using salted butter.
We absolutely love the rise these get!! But never and I mean NEVER have we gotten 12 biscuits out of one batch of dough. They always come out of so flaky and beautiful though!