Flaky Buttery Biscuits
Biscuits are super easy to make, and don’t take much time either. Please, if you’ve never made biscuits from scratch, you owe it to yourself to give this a try. I promise these are better than any biscuit out of a can.
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Ingredients:
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup milk
| Prep Time: 15 Minutes | Cook Time: 14 Minutes | Yield: 12 biscuits |
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
First, measure out the flour into a mixing bowl.
Then add the baking powder.
And the sugar.
And the salt.
Mix all the ingredients together, and then add the stick of butter. And I mean real butter- lovingly provided by happy dairy cows. (No margarine please – this is country cooking, and around here, margarine is just stiff vegetable oil in stick form.)
Using a pastry blender, cut up the butter into the dry ingredients. If you don’t have a pastry blender, you can use a fork, or 2 butter knives.
Keep cutting the butter until you don’t have any pieces bigger than a small pea.
Next, pour in all the milk.
Using a fork, stir the mixture until all of the dry ingredients are absorbed by the milk. Don’t overdue the stirring – when all the dry stuff is gone, you’re done.
Next, sprinkle some flour out on your table or counter. Put the dough on the floured surface.
Then knead the dough 5 or 6 times. To knead, fold it in half, press it down, and turn the dough a quarter turn. Then fold again, press down and turn. Do this 5 or 6 times.
Fold dough
..And press down
This is how the flaky layers are formed. When you’re done with the kneading, flatten the dough out with your hands into a uniform thickness of about ½ inch.
Now for the fun part: using a biscuit cutter, or a drinking glass, cut the biscuits out of the dough. If your cutter is sticking to the dough, dip it in some flour in between each cutting. Carefully place the biscuits on a metal cookie sheet.
Take the remaining dough, and form it into a ball, knead it a couple times, flatten it out, and cut more biscuits.
Here’s how the biscuits look in the pan.
OK, here’s a secret for getting biscuits to rise sky high, as opposed to flat hockey pucks. And here it is.
Underneath all those refrigerator magnets, is the secret: the fridge. Put the pan in the fridge for 10 minutes, before you put it in the oven. Don’t know the technicalities of why this works, but it does. After 10 minutes, take the pan out of the fridge and put it in the oven. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until a beautiful golden brown. Remove the pan from the oven, and immediately remove the biscuits from the pan.
Serve on a plate or serving bowl.
Remember the sky high flakyness I promised? Well here it is.
Cut them in half while still warm and slather with butter, jelly, apple butter, or anything that makes your taste buds happy. Once cooled, store remaining biscuits in a storage container to keep them from drying out. They can be re-warmed in your microwave in about 10 seconds.
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This was a great recipe. My husband has kidney disease so I had to make a change with the milk and used almond milk instead, but it turned out amazing!! My husband loved them so much and I was so glad to make them for him.
Thank you so much for the recipe!!!!
I just tried making these for breakfast. Everything was going great until the milk. When I added the milk it turned watery and mushy. Any ideas why?
It is a pretty soft dough, but if it was really so watery it couldn’t be worked, maybe one of the ingredients was mis-measured? I’ve done this myself several times. Best wishes next time.
Suzanne
I’m sad to report that I tried this recipe and followed it to a T.. my biscuits came out like hockey pucks. 🙁
I’m sorry to hear that. Wish I had advice for you but without being there, it’s hard to know what happened. How much did you work the dough once it came out of the bowl?
How old is your baking powder? Is your baking powder double acting? Are you sure you added the baking powder? 🙂 I use Suzanne’s recipe, but add 1 tsp of baking powder and use buttermilk. My 7 year old boy will no longer eat any other biscuit.
Sorry for the edit. I add 1 tsp baking soda and use buttermilk!
I too made these tonight but they were not fluffy , came out flat 🙁 look like cookies , what did I do wrong? I followed the recipe. Thanks
Could be any number of things: How old is your baking powder? Is your oven temp accurate, ie, do you have an oven thermometer to see if the temp is right? Sorry this didn’t work for you. 🙁
Just made these…delicious! Thank you for sharing =)
These are the best biscuits I ever had, which is amazing because I did absolutely everything wrong.
I was watching a cooking show where they made biscuits, and I was seized by an overwhelming urge to have some biscuits immediately. I googled for a recipe that didn’t call for shortening (I don’t have any) and found this one.
I had less than 2 cups flour, but figured “what the heck…I’ll just use a little less milk.” My baking powder expired 3 years ago, so I put in an extra teaspoon of that. I used a food processor to cut in the butter. I only had 1% milk, and I forgot to use less than indicated, so the dough was super-gooey. I needed something to keep it from sticking, and since I had no more flour, I used some cornstarch. And I was too impatient to put them in the fridge to chill before baking.
In spite of all that, they came out light and incredibly delicious. Not surprisingly, they weren’t flaky, but they were sooo good.
I’m looking forward to actually following the recipe next time. Thanks!
Holy cow…sounds like a recipe for disaster..you must have a golden touch to have done all this and they still came out. This kills me… 🙂
I bought flour and new baking powder and have made at least a half-dozen batches according to the recipe, other than using the food processor to cut in the butter. I never did have much of a knack for baking, but these biscuits are coming out perfectly every time.
I did experiment with making the dough one evening, refrigerating it, and baking it the next evening. They tasted good, but they didn’t rise high and get flaky. I don’t think I’ll do that again. 🙂
Tip: If you use the food processor to cut in the butter, you’ll need to knead it a little more than the recipe calls for. Not too much, of course, but a little more.
Now I need to go make some more biscuits.
I love this comment! That’s happened in my kitchen SO many times!!
These are the best biscuits I have ever made
I have been using this recipe to make my biscuits for my homemade biscuits and gravy for over a year now. My husband and 3 boys absolutely love them! They said it was the best biscuits and gravy they have ever had!! Love this recipe!
Is that a full 1 cup stick of butter or a 1/4 cup stick of butter. It looks like a small stick
1 stick = 1/2 cup butter
OMGosh!! I am in love with these biscuits!! I’ve tried several recipes before & they always came out like hockey pucks. Not this time!! They came out mile high & delicious!! I did use shortening instead of butter, since that’s all I had; & I skipped the fridge, but it didn’t make a difference. They turned out amazing & I can’t wait to try them with butter on Thanksgiving!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!
I have now made this recipe many times, using buttermilk and baking soda as substitutions for milk and baking powder. The amount of milk to add is not an absolute. I don’t even measure it, instead just adding enough to make the dough. I did notice a lot of variation in the rise of my biscuits. Some rose like champs while others rose a little, while others rose on one side but not the other. I think that I have found the answer to my variation. It is the amount of moisture in your dough when you are finished. If your dough is sticky, and sticks to your biscuit cutter when you cut them, the edge(s) get sealed and the biscuits do not rise, or rise only on a side where the edge did not get sealed. So, my remedy was to be very careful when adding the milk. Only add just enough milk to form the dough. It should not be sticky when you are done. My last batch was very dry by my standards, but the biscuits cut easily (always dipping the cutter in flour before cutting) and each one rose uniformly to a nice high finish.
gonna try em for x-mas ! sound great,i hope they’re as good as as touted !
I made this recipe for the first time this morning, this is now my favorite go to biscuit recipe!! They turned out perfect. I cant wait to give some more of your recipes a try. Thanks.
by the way i’m interested in learning to make fruit filled pies..do you recommend any flakey crust recipes?
Sure. Here’s my recipe for peach pie which includes a recipe for my homemade flaky piecrust.
And here’s my recipe for apple pie including my piecrust recipe.
I made them exactly how the directions said and they came out perfect!! Love it!!!
I seriously want to cry I tried to double the recipe for my family of eight. So I doubled all the ingredients except the salt and I didn’t use baking powder because I had self- rising flour but I did everything else like you said. My biscuits came out a little gummy in the inside and they did not rise. I’m so disappointed
Oh dear. Next time use all the ingredients and don’t use self rising flour. Should turn out fine then.
I’ve made my share of mistakes, so my guesses on your problem:
1. There is no reason for these biscuits not to rise, unless there was no leavening agent present. How old was your flour? I would throw out your self-rising flour, and try a known good brand. It will work. The only other possibility would be if you are sealing the edges when you cut the biscuits. Make sure you dip the cutter in flour before each cut. Make sure you do not add too much milk so your dough is sticky.
2. I have had gummy insides a couple of times. Each time was my fault. First, make sure you thoroughly preheat your oven. I usually turn the oven on when I start the recipe. Next, make sure your oven really is at 450F. If your oven is too cold, you will get gummy insides. Next, make sure you don’t cut the biscuits too thick. If you go above about 3/4 inch in thickness, you will get gummy insides. Finally, make sure that you bake them for full 14 minutes. My oven is dead on 450, and it takes 14 minutes.
Thanks Patrick, you’re right on with all your tips.
The correct oven temp is a problem for a lot of bakers. Oven thermometers are a Godsend. I’ve never used an oven who’s thermostat was right. My current oven beeps to tell me that it’s reached the right temp, but my oven thermometer tells me that it’s about 100 degrees too cool. Everyone should have an oven thermometer. Best few bucks you’ll ever spend.
Finally! A tall, flaky biscuit in the mile high city! They were delicious!!
I love biscuits….I would eat them every day, but I would end up gaining a tremendous amount of weight, but I am so glad I found your recipe for these biscuits. I have used an old drop biscuit recipe my Mom gave me years ago, and even when I rolled the out and cut them they never did rise and certainly were not flaky, so I was so tickled pink when I took them out of the oven and they looked so fabulous, then when my wife and I bit into them and they were warm buttery delights that reminded us both of shortbread cookies … yummmmy!!!!
Thanks
Biscuits never turn put for me… Sooo I’m too excited to try this one tonight 🙂 …
I haven’t tried these yet, but wanted to post a hint for using measuring cups. The kind you put in the drawer are for dry or solid ingredients, and the glass ones are for liquid ingredients. Using the right cup can make a big difference in the finished product.
Your biscuits are wonderful. Your steps were perfect.I had to share your site with my friends. Thank you so much!
Hi these biscuits came out great, however, the taste was bitter. Not sure what happened and followed the recipe
The only reason for a bitter taste is if one of your ingredients has a bitter taste. Flour can turn rancid. Milk can turn sour. Likewise for butter. Try again, and make sure you use fresh ingredients. Your biscuits will be great!
can I leave the biscuits in the fridge longer, want to make in the morning then cook them that night with dinner?
Yes, but I would cover them with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out.
I want to make these biscuits for dinner tonight to go with my homemade chicken noodle soup, but I don’t have any “real” butter. I only have blue bonnet margarine. Will they not turn out if I use that?
Margarine has a lot of water (about 20%) in it so I can’t guarantee the biscuits will turn out. They won’t have the same texture, and won’t have the buttery flavor either. Sorry, you may want to make a trip the store.
I just wanted to say that these turned out great and were super easy! My hubby loved and me too! Thanks
One more comment. I accidentally rolled out the first part of the dough…just habit. The left overs I flattened by hand as suggested and made sure where i placed them on the sheet. The hand flattened rose much better and turned out a little flakier. The whole batch was good though. I will definitely flatten all the dough by hand in the future.
Delish! My new biscuit recipe. Sorry Emeril!
We didn’t have any bread for Breakfast. I wanted to make some before everyone woke up. I got scared when I saw how much butter. They were delicious!! Thank you so much. This is a keeper.
amazing recipe, i use it all the time thank you!
The reason putting the biscuits back in the fridge for ten minutes works for flaky biscuits when kneading the dough, the butter melts. When you chill it, it hardens the butter again making small layers in the dough. Then when you bake them, steam from the butter melting quickly forces air in the layer separating the dough.
yummy
These worked really well. A few days ago I made some other recipe of biscuits that turned out like hockey pucks. This one worked really well. I think the difference was the refrigerator. I probably should have put the other recipe in the frig. It does make the difference, unless you work really fast and get them in the oven quickly. I put the whole baking sheet in the refrigerator, timed it for 10 minutes and then straight into the 450 degree oven. Delicious! Thanks!
Hello. My husband and I recently went on a road trip starting in Colorado all the way via the northern route to the edge of the country to Virginia, then down south, then through all of the southern states through Texas and back home. During my trip I was dying to have some real cooking which I so desperately miss from my grandma. She was born n raised in Arkansas and her food was some of the best I ever ate and while I was out there eating my way through the country lol I discovered something: I don’t know how to cook very well.
During our trip my *thing* was to try a biscuit from every state and hands down Kansas won! Embarrassed but not I even took pics of the best one 🙂
I have not yet tried your recipe yet but I am grateful to have found it. With a little trial and error I’m sure, I’ll work that recipe until mine come out exactly like yours. They look delicious! Thanks for posting this.
Can you freeze the rolled out biscuits for future use?
Sure. Freeze them on a baking sheet, then put them in a freezer bag. When ready to use, thaw them out at room temp and then bake as usual.
I made the biscuits just as described. My son eats them and says ya there pretty good just to flaky. LoL. Jackpot that’s what you want to hear when making biscuits. Great recipe is now my go to . Thank you
Just made these…turn out perfect! And so fluffy. Now my favorite biscuit recipe. Thanks for sharing.
I followed your exact directions for this recipe to make the biscuits. My biscuits did not rise. They are soft and taste good, but didn’t rise.
Might be your baking powder, might be oven temp is not quite accurate…could be lots of things, without me being there would be hard for me to diagnose the problem though. Sorry it didn’t work for you.
I used 1/4 parts of heavy cream, evaporated milk and whole milk. The biscuits were delicious! Best I’ve ever made but not sky high. I think I’ll stick with either milk or evaporated milk next time. What do you think?
I would stick with the whole milk. Thanks!
I used your recipe to make biscuits from scratch for the first time ever. They came out awesome! I actually used about 2/3 of a stick of butter, I couldn’t bring myself to use the whole stick, but they still came out delicious! I will never buy biscuits in the tube again! Thank you for sharing this great tutorial!
You’re very welcome. So glad this worked well for you!
So I made these yesterday, and I did everything but one step I forgot to do was folding the dough in half. Although I forgot that one part, they still came out great! They were flaky and buttery and delicious. I will definitely make these again and this time I will remember to fold the dough in half 🙂
Can u make these a few hours ahead of time and then bake them when ready
sure.
I tried making these and after five minutes in the oven I had a pool of butter in the bottom of the pan. I made sure there were only pea sized butter pieces and everything. What would’ve caused this?
Do you have an oven thermometer to check the accuracy of your oven temp? I’ve yet to come across an oven whose temp is accurate. http://www.centralrestaurant.com/Dial-Oven-Thermometer-100-degrees-F-to-600-degrees-F-Range-c177p1796.html?cid=WSCSGO830-008&utm_source=google&utm_medium=datafeed
Great Recipe. I use it all the time. Living out of America you can forget buying pre-made at the store. Like most things it took a little practice at first but now I can say I make a good biscuit. Thank again for your great help.
PS I do add one egg to my milk 🙂
These are AMAZING!!! SO flaky and good! I’ve been using the same biscuit recipe for 20 years, and decided to try something new. I will never go back!!
Yum! I added a dash each of garlic powder, onion powder, and parsley and they turned out delicious! I even tried freezing some of the dough to see how they cook up after frozen. If it works I’ll be making at least a double batch and stocking up for the month!
Greeting from Indonesia.in my country biscuits are similar with cookies,so I’ve never tried these “biscuits”.So,I decided to follow your recipe.Except I grated the frozen butter before I mixed with pastrY cutter.They looked exactly like your pictures and they tasted delicious.
I only use i can’t believe its not butter..do you think that’ll work as well?
“I can’t believe it’s not butter” has a high water content and has no butter, it’s margarine. I don’t recommend it.
I am a ministers wife and have guests in my home almost every Sunday. This is the recipe I use, ALWAYS and they are awesome! I use buttermilk in mine.
I make these biscuits all the time.Hubby loves them.The trick is handle dough as little as possible,fold 5 maybe 6 times flatten by hand then cut cool and bake. Hope this helps.
Wow! Best biscuits ever! They are soft, flaky, cripy and buttery! Thanks for sharing!
Love these biscuits! They almost remind me of Popeyes. I am making an oven-baked pot pie casserole tonight. Do you think this dough would be useful for it (instead of using store bought biscuits)? Just wondering if the dough needs to be thinner for a baked dish.