These Southern Style Buttermilk Biscuits are tall, flaky, tender on the inside, and perfectly golden on the outside. Made with simple pantry ingredients and real buttermilk, these biscuits bake up soft and buttery every single time. Whether you’re serving them for breakfast, alongside dinner, or smothered in gravy, this is a true Southern staple everyone should know how to make.
Spread some Copycat Roadhouse Butter on these biscuits for a real treat!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
These homemade buttermilk biscuits are everything a Southern biscuit should be — light, flaky, and incredibly comforting. The buttermilk adds a subtle tang while helping create a tender crumb, and the simple dough comes together quickly with no fancy equipment required. They’re perfect fresh out of the oven with butter, honey, or jam, but sturdy enough for sandwiches, gravy, or hearty comfort food meals.
I highly recommend trying these with some Homemade Apple Butter or, for something a little different, some Hatch Chile Strawberry Rhubarb Preserve.
Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour
- Buttermilk
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Kosher Salt
- Frozen Unsalted Butter
See the recipe card below for exact measurements.
Looking for more Southern Favorites? Try this Hot Water Cornbread with a Twist!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1. Prepare Buttermilk Biscuit Dough
Begin by preheating a cast-iron skillet in the oven to 450°F.
While the oven heats up, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Next, place a box grater over the mixing bowl containing the flour mixture and grate the frozen stick of butter using the large holes. Chop up any remaining butter that’s too small to grate.
Now, cut the butter in with a pastry blender until you see clumps forming.
Use your fingers to sift through the flour, making sure everything is evenly distributed and breaking up any clumps that are too large.
Next, pour in the cold buttermilk and stir it in until it starts forming the dough and no longer sticks to the side of the bowl.
Step 2. Build the Biscuit layers
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and begin forming a square.
Your dough may seem dry yet sticky. This is perfectly normal.
Using a dough cutter/scraper, slice the dough into fourths, stack them, and press them down to form another square.
Repeat this step 4-5 times until the dough becomes springy when pressed down.
Step 3. Cut the Biscuits
Press the dough down to your desired thickness, but no less than 1 inch.
The thicker you leave it, the taller your biscuits will be.
Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter, cut out 5-6 biscuits and set them aside.
Do not turn or twist the biscuit cutter, as this will prevent the biscuits from rising properly.
Step 4: Bake the Buttermilk Biscuits
Carefully remove the cast-iron skillet from the oven, then melt about 3 tablespoons of butter in it.
Place the biscuits in the center of the skillet so they are touching eachother.
Brush the tops of each biscuit with a little more buttermilk, then increase the oven temperature to 500°f.
Place the skillet in the oven and bake for about 15-18 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown and cooked through.
Once baking is complete, immediately transfer the biscuits to a tea-towel-lined bowl and serve hot.
Serve these biscuits right alongside some Chicken Fried Steak with Cream Gravy for a full southern comfort meal.
Expert Tips
Keep everything cold. Cold butter and cold buttermilk are essential for flaky layers. If the butter melts before baking, you’ll lose that classic biscuit texture.
Don’t overwork the dough. Mix just until combined. Overmixing develops gluten and leads to dense biscuits instead of light, fluffy ones.
Fold for flaky layers. Gently folding the dough a few times before cutting creates beautiful layers without making the biscuits tough.
Use a sharp cutter. Press straight down when cutting biscuits. Twisting the cutter seals the edges and prevents them from rising properly.
Bake close together. Placing biscuits close together in the skillet helps them rise taller and stay soft on the sides.
Recipe FAQs
Southern biscuits are typically made with buttermilk and fat like butter or shortening, creating a soft, flaky interior with rich flavor.
Yes. You can prepare and cut the biscuits, then refrigerate them overnight or freeze them unbaked until ready to bake.
Absolutely. Freeze unbaked biscuits for up to 3 months. Bake straight from frozen, adding a few extra minutes.
Common reasons include overworking the dough, using expired leavening, or twisting the biscuit cutter.
They’re perfect with butter, honey, jam, sausage gravy, fried chicken, soups, stews, or breakfast sandwiches.
More Recipes You'll Love
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📖 Recipe
Southern Style Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 ½ Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tablespoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ Cup Unsalted Butter Frozen
- 1 Cup Buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat a cast-iron skillet in the oven to 450°F.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Place a box grater over the mixing bowl containing the flour mixture and grate the frozen stick of butter using the large holes.
- Chop up any remaining butter that’s too small to grate.
- Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until you see clumps forming.
- Use your fingers to sift through the flour, making sure everything is evenly distributed and breaking up any clumps that are too large.
- Pour in the cold buttermilk and stir until the dough starts to form and no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and begin forming a square.
- Using a dough cutter/scraper, slice the dough into fourths, stack them, and press them down to form another square.
- Repeat this step 4-5 times until the dough becomes springy when pressed down.
- Press the dough down to your desired thickness, but no less than 1 inch.
- Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter, cut out 5-6 biscuits and set them aside.
- Carefully remove the cast-iron skillet from the oven, then melt about 3 tablespoons of butter in it.
- Place the biscuits in the center of the skillet so they are touching eachother.
- Brush the tops of each biscuit with a little more buttermilk, then increase the oven temperature to 500°f.
- Place the skillet in the oven and bake for about 15-18 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown and cooked through.
- Once baking is complete, immediately transfer the biscuits to a tea-towel-lined bowl and serve hot.
Video
M says
Wow, look at the incredible layers on those biscuits!
I'm a pretty capable cook and baker, but for some reason biscuits are beyond me. They can sense fear, I think. Nevertheless, I like to look at biscuit recipes and dream about having them. These look amazing!
Jeremy Klae says
LOL! Yes they can be a little tricky but these are super easy to make and are delicious! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. Give 'em a try, you may be surprised.