This biscuit recipe is easy to make with 6 simple ingredients. It yields the BEST homemade biscuits—they’re flaky, buttery, and delicious!
Did you know that homemade biscuits are easy to make? Well, they are!
If the thought of making flaky, buttery biscuits from scratch feels impossible or intimidating to you, I hope you’ll try this easy biscuit recipe. It calls for 6 basic ingredients and comes together in about 30 minutes—no special equipment required!
Jack and I both grew up eating canned biscuits (think Pillsbury). The first time we made homemade biscuits, we couldn’t believe what we’d been missing. They are simply so much better. With this biscuit recipe, they have crisp, golden brown edges and moist, tender middles.
Serve them alongside a pot of soup or stew, or load them up with butter or jam for breakfast. Either way, I think you’ll love them!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy biscuit recipe:
- All-purpose flour – Spoon and level it to avoid packing too much into your measuring cup.
- Baking powder – The key ingredient for helping the biscuits rise. It makes them tall and fluffy!
- Cane sugar – It adds a light sweetness to the dough.
- Unsalted butter – For a delicious buttery flavor and flaky texture. If you prefer to use salted butter, halve the salt in the recipe.
- Whole milk or buttermilk – For moisture.
- And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Homemade Biscuits
Start by combining the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
Then, add the butter. In this recipe, I borrow a technique from my scones recipe: using grated frozen butter.
- In a traditional biscuit recipe, you’d work cold, cubed butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter.
- In this recipe, I freeze a stick of butter for an hour, then grate it on the large holes of a box grater before working it into the dry ingredients.
I think the grated butter technique is more foolproof. It makes it easy to distribute small pieces of butter throughout the dough without overworking it, which is essential for flaky biscuits.
Use your hands to work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles a coarse meal.
Then, add the milk. Mix until a shaggy dough forms, then knead to incorporate any remaining dry flour.
Next, laminate the biscuit dough. This folding process is the secret to creating gorgeous flaky layers!
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat or roll it into a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle.
Fold one of the short edges of the rectangle into the center of the dough…
…then fold the other short edge on top.
Pat or roll out the folded dough into a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle again. Rotate it a quarter turn.
Repeat the folding and rolling process three more times, rotating the dough a quarter turn each time.
Then, cut the biscuits. Use a 3-inch cutter to cut round ones, or use a knife to make them rectangular or square. Transfer the biscuits to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake at 425°F until golden brown, 14 to 16 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Best Biscuit Recipe Tips
- Keep your ingredients cold. Cold butter is essential for success here. Just like in my scones or pie crust recipe, you want it to melt in the oven, not before, for a perfect flaky texture. I get great results using frozen grated butter. It’s important that you keep your other ingredients cold as well to prevent the butter from melting.
- Don’t overwork the dough. The more you handle it, the more likely the butter is to melt. Overworking the dough can also start to develop the gluten in the flour, making the biscuits tough.
- Leftovers freeze perfectly. Store them in an airtight container or bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature before re-warming them in the oven or toaster oven, if desired.
What to Serve with Homemade Biscuits
Like dinner rolls or popovers, these buttery homemade biscuits are a delicious dinner side dish. Pair them with broccoli cheddar soup or cabbage soup for a comforting meal!
They’re wonderful for breakfast too. Serve them with scrambled eggs or an omelette, or use them to make breakfast sandwiches!
You can also enjoy them on their own. Here are a few fun ways to jazz them up:
- Brush the freshly baked biscuits with melted butter.
- If you’re in the mood for something sweet, top them with honey butter or jam.
- If you want them to be savory, slather them with garlic butter.
How do you like to serve them? Let me know in the comments!
Homemade Biscuits
Serves 6
This easy biscuit recipe yields the BEST homemade biscuits! They’re soft, flaky, and buttery. We love them freshly baked with butter and/or jam. Find more serving suggestions in the blog post above! I like to use grated frozen butter in this recipe. If you prefer, you can cube the butter and use a pastry cutter to cut it into the dry ingredients.
Prevent your screen from going dark
-
Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
-
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
-
On the large holes of a box grater, grate the frozen butter. Add to the flour mixture and toss to coat. Use your hands to work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles a coarse meal.
-
Pour in the milk and mix with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms. Knead with your hands to incorporate any remaining dry flour.
-
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat or roll into a ½-inch-thick rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds and pat or roll again until ½-inch thick. Rotate a quarter turn and repeat the folding and rolling process, then repeat two more times, rotating the dough a quarter turn each time. Dust your work surface with additional flour as needed if the dough starts to stick.
-
After the fourth time you fold the dough, pat or roll it into a ½-inch-thick rectangle again. Use a 3-inch biscuit cutter to cut out 6 biscuits, re-rolling the scraps as necessary. Place the biscuits on the baking sheet.
-
Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.