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This Southern-style light and flaky biscuit recipe yields fluffy, buttery treats that rise a mile high, creating layers upon layers of old-fashioned goodness.
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Oh my these are the most fantastic biscuits! I usually fail making biscuits not with this recipe, I followed your directions to the letter & they were perfect. Flaky, tall, tender!
– Annette
How to Make this Flaky Biscuit Recipe | 2-Minute Video
Buttery flaky biscuits made a regular appearance on our weekend breakfast table when I was growing up. Both my mom and my dad perfected their recipe over the years, using a juice glass to pop out the round little gems on a floured countertop before church on Sundays. Today, I serve biscuits to my own family at least once a week — most often in the bread basket at dinner. No matter which entrée I’m offering, I know that the boys won’t go to bed hungry if these flaky biscuits are on the menu!
What to Know Before You Get Started
- I prefer an extra-fine soft winter wheat flour made by White Lily. This low-protein, low-gluten all-purpose flour gives Southern biscuits that perfectly crisp-on-the-outside, light-on-the-inside texture.
- Properly measure the flour. Always spoon and level the flour or weigh it on a kitchen scale — do not scoop it out of the package. Incorrectly measuring the flour packs it too tightly into the measuring cup and results in dense, dry biscuits.
- Very cold ingredients are essential. Biscuits get their light, fluffy texture when cold butter expands in a very hot oven, creating pockets of steam. That’s why this recipe calls for freezing the cut biscuits for about 15 minutes before baking.
- Buttermilk is essential here, since the acid in the buttermilk reacts with the leavening agents to help the biscuits rise. It also tenderizes the dough. I always use whole buttermilk. If you prefer to make your own buttermilk at home, see my notes below.
- Stacking the layers of dough multiple times builds visible layers that are hard to achieve with kneading alone.
- Cutting with a knife or bench scraper avoids the temptation to twist a round biscuit cutter, which is a big “no-no.” Twisting the biscuit cutter seals off the edges of the biscuits and they therefore will not rise as high.
Directions
I’ve included detailed directions for this flaky biscuit recipe in the printable card at the bottom of the post, but here’s the overview:
- Whisk together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Cut in the cold butter. You can do this with a pastry cutter, with two forks, or with the large holes on a box grater.
- Add buttermilk. The amount of buttermilk that you need will vary, depending on the day. Start with 1 ¼ cups, and then add more if the dough feels too dry and crumbly. If it’s humid or rainy, there’s already moisture in the air and in the flour, so you will likely need less liquid in your dough. On a cold, dry winter day, you may need a bit more buttermilk to bring the dough together.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface, and pat into a square.
- Cut the dough into 4 equal squares, stack the squares on top of each other, and repeat the cutting and stacking process a few more times. This process creates those flaky layers that we’re after!
- Cut the dough into 12-16 squares (depending on how large you like them), and arrange the squares on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Freeze the dough for 15 minutes.
- Brush the tops of the biscuits with melted butter.
- Bake in a 425°F oven for 15-18 minutes.
- Brush the tops of the biscuits with more melted butter, and serve warm.
Serving Suggestions
These buttery flaky biscuits are suitable for just about any meal, at any time of day. Serve them on their own for breakfast with honey butter, blueberry jam, strawberry freezer jam, this blackberry jam recipe, or apple butter. Add eggs on the side, use them to make an egg sandwich with sausage, bacon, or cheese, or stir up a skillet of sausage gravy. In Virginia, country ham biscuits are a classic snack. We also love biscuits as a side dish with suppers like this easy red beans and rice recipe, chili, ham and bean soup with canned beans, chicken pasta casserole, fried chicken, this pork roast recipe, Dutch oven pot roast, Mississippi Pot roast, smoked sausage pasta, crock pot meatballs, slow cooker meatball stroganoff, slow cooker cabbage soup, sheet pan salmon, oyster stew, Irish stew, beer cheese soup, and this beef burgundy recipe.
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Make Ahead: While they’re best served warm, straight-from-the-oven, you can bake homemade biscuits up to 3 days in advance and store them in an airtight container at room temperature. Reheat day-old biscuits by placing them on a baking sheet in a 300°F oven for about 10 minutes.
- How to Freeze: Allow leftovers to cool to room temperature, then wrap tightly in an airtight container or Ziploc freezer bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter overnight or in the microwave for a few seconds. Reheat in the oven as instructed above.
- How to Freeze Biscuit Dough: You can freeze the dough before baking the biscuits. After cutting out your biscuits, arrange them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pop the tray in the freezer for an hour or so. Once the biscuits are frozen, transfer them to a gallon-sized freezer bag or airtight container. Store the frozen biscuit dough for up to 3 months. Bake directly from frozen, adding about 5 extra minutes to the total baking time.
I can make anything, but my biscuits are always just ok. This recipe worked phenomenally and the whole dinner party was raving. Thank you for sharing! I’ll never use a different recipe again.
– Alden
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Flaky Biscuits
Ingredients
- 4 cups (500 g) all-purpose flour (I prefer White Lily brand)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup (2 sticks) very cold salted butter, cubed
- 1 ¼ cups very cold whole buttermilk, plus more as needed
- 2 tablespoons melted salted butter, divided
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Add cold butter, toss to coat in the flour. Use a pastry cutter or two forks to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter is the size of peas. Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork just until a shaggy dough comes together. Gradually add a little bit more buttermilk if the dough is too crumbly (it will be fairly dry – not wet and sticky – but it should hold together).
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently pat into an 8-inch square (about 1-inch thick). Use a bench scraper or large knife to cut the dough into 4 equal squares. Stack the squares on top of each other. Pat or roll into an 8-inch square again. Repeat the procedure two more times, cutting into 4 squares and stacking them on top of each other before rolling into another 8-inch square. Use a large knife or bench scraper coated with flour to cut the dough into 12-16 squares. Arrange about ½-inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Freeze for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven.
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Brush the tops of the biscuits with half of the melted butter. Bake until golden brown, about 15-18 minutes. Brush the hot biscuits with the remaining melted butter. Serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Flaky Biscuit Recipe Variations
- Add cheese. About 1 cup of grated cheddar, Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack would be delicious.
- Stir in diced pimentos and shredded cheese for “pimento cheese” biscuits.
- Add seasonings or herbs. Try a bit of garlic powder, thyme, rosemary, or chives.
- Use a biscuit cutter or round cookie cutter to cut dough into traditional rounds instead of squares.
More Biscuit Recipes to Try
Aunt Bee’s 3-Ingredient Biscuit Recipe
35 minutes mins
Angel Biscuits
2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Sweet Potato Biscuits
33 minutes mins
This recipe was originally published in August, 2021. It was updated in October, 2024.
I’ve never been able to master biscuits, always been my Achilles heel of baking.These were the best biscuits I’ve ever had! Thank you so much ☺️
This makes me so happy to hear, Tanya. Thanks for letting me know!
How do you keep the dough cutter so clean? I am constantly having to stop and unclog mine. Waiting for biscuits to come out of oven. I’m sure they’ll be great
It definitely gets clogged, Rob! In fact, in order to avoid that nuisance, I often use the large holes on a box cheese grater to grate the very cold butter into the flour mixture. That works equally well (as long as the butter is really cold)!
Very good but slightly burned on bottom. This happens every time I make biscuits, no matter the recipe, no matter the baking time. I use parchment paper and a thickish pan. I use two pans and rotate them bottom to top
I’m cursed! It’s not you, it’s me.
Sorry for over-reviewing, but pleasebnote that I used powdered buttermilk (with water) for my liquid. Also I only made a half batch by halving all ingredients, and I still have more than my wife and I can eat. We’ll finish them next week. KIDDING !!! Really great. I did neglect to stack them more than once. But they’re fine. I expected them to be raw on the inside because that usually happens to me. Not this time. Blair for President!!
That’s frustrating, I know. Do you have the same issue when baking cakes, bread, etc? I used to have that problem — my baked goods would get too dark on the bottom before they were done on top or in the middle. I was constantly annoyed and blaming myself. Guess what? I got a nicer, newer oven a few years ago and I’ve never had that problem again. So maybe it’s not you! It might just be that the heat doesn’t circulate as evenly as it should in your oven. 🙂
Sorry for over-reviewing, but pleasebnote that I used powdered buttermilk (with water) for my liquid. Also I only made a half batch by halving all ingredients, and I still have more than my wife and I can eat. We’ll finish them next week. KIDDING !!! Really great. I did neglect to stack them more than once. But they’re fine. I expected them to be raw on the inside because that usually happens to me. Not this time. Blair for President!!
Hahaha! Thanks, Rob!
These buttermilk biscuits come out delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
That’s awesome, Denia. Thank you for taking the time to let me know!
I have 2 bags of White Lily self rising flour, how would you recommend I change the baking powder measurement? Thank you!
Hi Jeanne! We haven’t tested this recipe with self-rising flour and can’t say for sure. However, the general rule of thumb is to remove 1 1/2 tsps of baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt for every cup of flour. We hope this helps and would love to know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Looks delicious, simple and just what I was looking for. Thank you.
You’re very welcome. We hope you enjoy!
Best flaky biscuits ever! Perfect delicate crunch!
Thank you, Adrianna! We’re so glad you enjoyed them.