All you need are 6 ingredients, one bowl, and 30 minutes to make these soft and buttery buttermilk biscuits from scratch. This quick and easy biscuit recipe makes a small batch of just 6 delicious, homemade biscuits. They’re perfect with everything from a simple spread of butter to strawberry jam to sausage gravy, and they’re a must for weekend breakfast!
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I developed a whole new appreciation for buttermilk biscuits during our recent trip to the south. We ate so much incredible food during our time in Charleston and Savannah, and still one of the highlights was the biscuits that were served for breakfast at our B&B in Savannah. The biscuits were hot and flaky and dripping in honey. They practically melted in your mouth. They were just SO GOOD!
As soon as we returned home from our trip I found myself craving biscuits, so I immediately began experimenting with recipes. One bite of these biscuits and I knew that I had a winner! They’re rich and buttery with soft centers and a golden exterior. The best part? There’s no need to wake up early in order to make breakfast. This quick and easy recipe takes just 30 minutes from start to finish, so you can roll out of bed whenever you want and still be eating breakfast in no time! Plus, all you need are 6 ingredients and one bowl!
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
All-Purpose Flour - For the best results, use a high-protein all-purpose flour such as King Arthur Baking unbleached all-purpose flour. I’ve found that all-purpose flour with a higher protein content yields taller and perfectly golden biscuits.
Buttermilk - I like to use full fat buttermilk for baking and recommend it for this recipe. Using room temperature buttermilk is best for creating a cohesive dough (though I’ll admit that I’ve impatiently made this recipe without waiting for the buttermilk to come to room temperature and my biscuits turned out fine).
Unsalted Butter - Butter is key to this recipe and gives the biscuits so much flavor. Opt for unsalted butter so that you can control the amount of salt in the recipe. Most importantly, be sure to use cold butter straight from the fridge. Cutting cold butter into the flour using a pastry blender is crucial to the structure of these biscuits.
Baking Powder - Baking powder gives these biscuits their rise. Be sure your baking powder is fresh (ideally it should be replaced after 3 months - and no more than 6 months - once opened) for the best rise.
Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
PREP WORK
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
MAKE THE BISCUIT DOUGH
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
- Slice the cold butter into cubes (A) and cut the butter into the flour mixture using a pastry blender until the flour mixture is full of pea-sized chunks of butter (B).
- Add about a third of the buttermilk and gently stir until blended (A). Add another third of the buttermilk and gently stir until blended (B). Add the rest of the buttermilk and gently stir just until the buttermilk is fully incorporated and there is no dry flour (C). Be careful not to overwork the dough when mixing. When all of the buttermilk is added, the dough will be a bit wet and sticky.
KNEAD, ROLL, and CUT THE BISCUITS
- Place the dough onto a generously floured surface and knead the dough gently a few times. Sprinkle a bit of flour over the dough and knead the flour into the dough if the dough is too wet and sticky to work with.
- Using a rolling pin, gently roll the dough to ½ inch (about 1.25 cm) thickness.
- Dip the edges of a 2 ½ inch (about 6.5 cm) circle cutter in flour, then use it to cut the dough into circles. (Tip: Press the cutter straight down and lift it straight up to cut the dough, rather than twisting the cutter in the dough. Twisting the cutter can seal the edges of the dough and limit the biscuits' rise.) Re-roll the remaining dough to cut additional biscuits.
BAKE THE BISCUITS
- Place the biscuit dough circles onto the parchment-lined baking sheet (A). Bake until the edges are slightly golden, about 15 minutes (B).
- Place the baking sheet onto a wire rack, leaving the biscuits on the baking sheet to cool slightly. Serve the biscuits warm with the toppings of your choice.
Recipe Tips
Be careful not to overwork the dough, as this will lead to tough biscuits. Mix the dough just until the buttermilk is mixed in and work the dough as little as possible when rolling it out.
When cutting the biscuit dough into circles, press the cutter straight down and lift it straight up, rather than twisting the cutter in the dough. Twisting the cutter can seal the edges of the dough, limiting the biscuits' rise.
Serving Suggestions
The biscuits are delicious plain, and I love them with a drizzle of honey or a spread of jam. But they're great for so many things! You can top them with sausage gravy, use them in place of an English muffin to make eggs Benedict, or use them as the bread of a sandwich (this is especially great for a BLT). The options are endless!
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Recipe
Quick & Easy Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour*
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
- ½ cup full-fat buttermilk, room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
- Slice the cold butter into cubes and cut the butter into the flour mixture using a pastry blender until the flour mixture is full of pea-sized chunks of butter.
- Add about a third of the buttermilk buttermilk and gently stir until blended. Add another third of the buttermilk and gently stir until blended. Add the rest of the buttermilk and gently stir just until the buttermilk is fully incorporated and there is no dry flour. Be careful not to overwork the dough when mixing. When all of the buttermilk is added, the dough will be a bit wet and sticky.
- Place the dough onto a generously floured surface and knead the dough gently a few times. Sprinkle a bit of flour over the dough and knead the flour into the dough if the dough is too wet and sticky to work with.
- Using a rolling pin, gently roll the dough to ½ inch (about 1.25 cm) thickness.
- Dip the edges of a 2 ½ inch (about 6.5 cm) circle cutter in flour, then use it to cut the dough into circles. (Tip: Press the cutter straight down and lift it straight up to cut the dough, rather than twisting the cutter in the dough. Twisting the cutter can seal the edges of the dough and limit the biscuits' rise.) Re-roll the remaining dough to cut additional biscuits.
- Place the biscuit dough circles onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until the edges are slightly golden, about 15 minutes.
- Place the baking sheet onto a wire rack, leaving the biscuits on the baking sheet to cool slightly. Serve the biscuits warm with the toppings of your choice or allow them to cool completely before storing.
Gail
I just turned 84 so I’ve been making biscuits many years. I’m from the Deep South. We don’t put sugar in our biscuits. But I’ll tell you these are better than my biscuits. I did just put 1 t of sugar in though. Just the right number of biscuits for 2. Thank you. This is my new biscuit recipe!
Shelley
This is my go-to biscuit recipe!
I get perfect biscuits every time!
Renee
Thank you..! Amazing, and I am a new baker.
Vanessa
Best biscuits I’ve ever made. Not salty at all however I did use non salted butter. Thanks!!
Allison
I'm so glad that you love them! Thank you for your review, Vanessa!
- Allison
Delilah
For years I made biscuits every Saturday morning. A whole batch is just too much for us now and biscuits are best when eaten the some day. These little gems are delicious and just the right amount for us empty nesters. Normally I have self-rising and AP flour but this morning I only had self rising. I simply left out the baking powder and salt. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Allison
Hi Delilah! Thank you so much for your review! I'm so glad that you love this recipe, and I agree... a small batch recipe just makes sense when biscuits are best eaten the same day. Happy baking!
- Allison
Rhonda
These biscuits were delish but I did need a bit more flour
Virginia
Love these biscuits!!! This recipe is the absolute best and so easy! Thank you for sharing with us. This is my go to biscuit recipe!
TJ
Love this recipe!!!
Thanks for sharing it. Make it all the time and my wife and I can’t get enough. So easy and delicious!!👍😊
Allison
Thank you so much for your review, TJ! I'm so glad to hear that you and your wife love this recipe 🙂
- Allison
Elizabeth
Allison, I have not ever been able to make biscuits from scratch, but am hoping for success tonight! They went together easily, using all the correct ingredients. Needed a biscuit for dinner and am in quarantine, so could not go out and get any. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Debra
I attempted this recipe and they were awful!! Make good paperweights! Not flaky, didn’t rise. Looked like stones 🥺
Tori Gonzales
Mine didn’t rise even with fresh ingredients. I’m thinking it was because all I had was whole milk in hand and no lemon or vinegar to make buttermilk with. Flavor was good tho so I’ll try again
Allison
Hi Tori! This dough definitely relies on buttermilk, so I'm not surprised that whole milk didn't yield great results. I would recommend store bought buttermilk rather than substituting a DIY version made from milk and lemon/vinegar for optimal results. Happy baking!
- Allison
Tom
Love this recipe!!!
Allison
I’m so glad to hear it! Thank you for your review, Tom!
- Allison
Rose
What size of cast iron pan did you use? Did you put anything in the pan so they wouldn't stick?
Allison
Hi Rose! The cast iron skillet shown in the photos is just 6 inches and only fits 4 biscuits. For baking a full recipe (6 biscuits), a skillet that's 8 or 10 inches would be best. The biscuits shouldn't stick to a well seasoned cast iron skillet so I don't add anything to the skillet. Sometimes I'll bake the biscuits on a baking sheet, which I do line with parchment paper.
- Allison
Sharon
Made biscuits..was an easy recipe to make. I grated frozen butter, instead of cutting pieces into flour. It took longer than 15 mins to cook..maybe oven temp, size, or pan cooked in.
Great flavor, but did not rise like pictured (checked expiration date of all ingredients.) Will try again and follow exact recipe.
Allison
Hi Sharon! The size of the butter pieces in the dough contribute to the biscuits' rise and flakiness, so I definitely recommend following the recipe and cutting the butter into the flour rather than grating the butter.
- Allison
Susan
My biscuits never rise. Followed recipe exactly.
Allison
Hi Susan. My first suggestion would be to double check the freshness of your baking powder. Both baking soda and baking powder work best when replaced 3 months after opening to ensure that they're fresh and will give your baked goods the proper rise.
-Allison
Ruth
What starter are you talking about?
Allison
Hi Ruth! Are you referring to Gail's comment above? I believe that she was referring to a bit of homemade sourdough starter. I haven't tried adding sourdough starter to this recipe, so I can't personally vouch for it, but she seemed to like it 🙂
-Allison
Bernice Prince
I made the small batch which were very good, and decided I’d share them with my 80 year old aunt. Now she wants a whole batch by herself. She’s hooked. I’ll make a double batch next time and give half. Thanks for the recipe.
Raquel
Quick and easy indeed. These biscuits were light and fluffy as well. I added melted butter before and after baking (couldn't help myself). Good recipe 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
Allison
So glad you loved the recipe! Thanks so much for your review, Raquel!
-Allison
Amy
So... this recipe needs double the amount of flour. My dough was extremely wet with just one cup of flour.
Allison
Hi Amy! I'm sorry to hear that this recipe didn't meet your expectations. The dough for these biscuits does have more moisture than some other biscuit doughs, though the dough should not be extremely wet, as you mentioned. I've had lots of success making deliciously buttery biscuits with this recipe.
-Allison
Sherri Sullivan
Finally I've found the perfect biscuit. The small amount was exactly what I was looking for
Pressed dough out with fingers and folded dough 5 times. I was able to get 3 large biscuits. Nice tall and fluffy. Delicious
Allison
Thanks for sharing your review, Sherri! I’m so glad to hear you loved the biscuits!
Keith
Did you cook them in a 6 inch skillet are a cookie sheet! Thanks!
Allison Ferraro
Hi Keith! I can't speak to what Sherri used, but I just re-tested this recipe and updated the post and I recommend baking the biscuits on a baking sheet rather than using cast iron for more even browning.
- Allison
Gail
Allison, I absolutely Love this recipe and love the small batch! My biscuits were perfect and reheat incredibly well! I did add two tablespoons of natural starter and reduced the flour by a tablespoon and buttermilk by a tablespoon! I like adding my starter to just about everything. These were sooooo good!
Allison
Thank you so much for the glowing review, Gail! I love the idea of adding a bit of starter, and I'm so glad that you loved the biscuits!
xx Allison
Jill
Super good and super easy! Made my own "cheater" buttermilk and turned out great. Love the small batch.
Allison
Thanks, Jill! I'm so glad you loved this recipe!
xx Allison
Shelley
Finally the perfect small batch buttermilk biscuit recipe. These came out so soft and delicious and were a breeze to make. I only had White Lily self-raising flour so I did have to adapt a bit but the method is spot on. My new go-to.
Allison
Thank you so much for your kind words, Shelley! I'm so glad that you love this recipe! Happy baking 🙂
xx Allison
Kay L. Lee
Will try these tomorrow 😊❤️sounds Great! Thanks and God Bless!
Chuck
Perfection! Without a doubt the best I've ever made. I especially like the amount of biscuits it makes, exactly right for my 8" C.I. griddle that I pre-heat. Thank you so much...I will make these often
Allison
I’m so glad you love this recipe! Happy baking!
Phyllis H Manning
What if you don,t have buttermilk.
Allison
Hi Phyllis! If you don't have buttermilk on hand you can make your own. Combine 1/2 cup milk and 1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice or distilled vinegar. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes until the milk curdles, then whisk it together to combine. You can use this mixture in place of the 1/2 cup buttermilk in the recipe.
ColleenB.~Tx.
I always keep a can of the powdered buttermilk on hand so I can just mix up what I need.
You can find the powdered buttermilk in a can down the baking isle, close by the regular powdered milk.
I love this small biscuit recipe; just right for hubby & myself but I do bake mine in a cast iron skillet.
Right out of the oven; I brush the tops with a little homemade honey butter.