The Easiest Biscuit Recipe | Best for Beginners
When I first started my baking journey, all I really wanted to learn to do was biscuits. Now, looking back, I realize that the biscuits were the gateway baked good to a much bigger journey! I wanted an easy biscuit recipe that made fluffy biscuits with flaky layers.
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Biscuits seem so simple, yet, they can be surprisingly difficult to master. Today, I am going to be sharing this easy homemade biscuit recipe.
I mastered this recipe years and years ago, and, it’s the only biscuit recipe I use except when making sourdough biscuits (which is an adaptation from this very recipe). These really are the best biscuits and a great recipe for beginners.
It’s hard for me to imagine a life without biscuits. Since my childhood, biscuits have been a major part of my memories on the weekends. Both my parents make great biscuits, so, I had to figure them out for myself, if I was going to be able to keep having them, ha ha!
This recipe turns out great every single time! Once you have these smothered in sausage gravy, you will be hooked!
I remember trying to make biscuits and failing over and over. I just couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong. Finally, I realized I was trying too hard! Biscuit dough doesn’t like to be fussed with too much. I needs to be brought together quickly and in the oven.
This recipe is so simple, yet, so delicious! It’s one of those recipes you will find yourself making over and over again. It uses simple ingredients you probably already have on hand.
For this recipe you will need
Unbleached All Purpose Flour
You can use freshly milled flour. I do often. I use freshly milled soft white wheat for a tender biscuit.
This is the grain mill I use: Nutrimill Grain Mill
You can also use self-rising flour and leave out the baking powder.
Cold Butter
I prefer to grate my cold butter and then cut it into the dough using a pastry cutter. You can do this with your hands or a fork as well, however you don’t want to warm up the butter so a fork or pastry cutter works best.
Cold butter makes flaky biscuits. So, forego room temperature butter.
Baking Powder
Baking powder is the leavening agent for the biscuits.
Salt
I use Redmond’s Real Salt for all of my baking. A good quality sea salt will work well.
Milk/Buttermilk
You can use whole milk, skim milk, milk substitute, or buttermilk. The recipe is very forgiving.
Full ingredient measurements in recipe card below.
Step by Step Instructions for making these Easy Biscuits
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Mix the dough
In a large bowl, add your flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well to combine.
Grate the cold butter using a box grater into the dry ingredients.
Use a pastry cutter or pastry blender to mix the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs and you can see small pieces of the butter throughout.
NOTE: You can use a fork or your hands to work the butter into the flour if you do no have a pastry cutter. A fork is preferred as your hands will warm the butter.
You could also cut the butter in using a food processor.
In a measuring cup measure the milk.
Add the milk/buttermilk and mix with wooden spoon or fork just until combined and a soft dough forms. Do not over mix as this will lead to a tough biscuit.
Shape the Biscuits
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Turn the dough a few times. Roll it out to 1/4-1/2 inch thick using a rolling pin. Cut biscuits out with a round biscuit cutter or mason jar lid.
This recipe makes 7-8 biscuits with a standard sized biscuit cutter depending on how thick you roll them out.
Place biscuits on greased baking sheet or parchment paper lined baking sheet. I prefer to use a cast iron skillet. I like to put it in the hot oven to preheat before adding the biscuits making for a nice bottom crust.
These are my favorite Cast Iron Skillets: 10 inch Cast Iron Skillet
Bake the Biscuits
Brush tops with olive oil or melted butter.
Bake for 12-15 minutes.
After 10-12 minutes check the biscuits, if they feel firm, they are done. All ovens are different.
If the tops aren’t brown enough, you can set the broiler until golden brown. Be sure to set a timer! They will burn quickly under the broiler.
Serving Suggestions
These biscuits are best piping hot with butter and jam or with gravy and sausage! It’s hard to stop eating them once you start, though! You’ve been forewarned ha ha!
Serve hot biscuits with an egg as a breakfast sandwich.
Open up while hot and slather with honey butter for the best treat!
This is the best biscuit recipe to whip up on a weekend for a big breakfast. The come together quickly and are sure to please the family!
Storage Tips
Store your biscuits, once they cool, in a bread bag or airtight container. They will last for up to 3 days.
You can also freeze the cooled biscuits in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
To reheat the biscuits, set your oven to 300 degrees F, place the biscuits in while the oven preheats. Once it’s preheated, they will be good and hot!
I hope you will give this simple recipe a try! There is nothing quite like a hot biscuit on a Sunday morning!
Easiest Biscuit Recipe
Equipment
- 1 mixing bowl
- 1 Baking Sheet
- 1 pastry cutter OPTIONAL
Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 stick cold butter grated
- 1 cup milk/buttermilk
Instructions
- Add flour, baking powder, and salt to a large mixing bowl.
- Grate the butter into the dry ingredients. Use a pastry cutter, your hands, or a fork to incorporate until the mixture becomes crumbly.
- Add milk/buttermilk.
- Mix just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Turn dough onto floured surface. Turn a few times. Roll out until 1/4-1/2 inch thick.
- Cut biscuits out with biscuit cutter or mason jar lid. This recipe makes 7-8 biscuits depending on how thick you roll them out.
- Place on prepared baking sheet. Brush with olive oil or melted butter.
- Bake in a 400 DEGREE F oven for 12-15 minutes.
- Check after 10-12 minutes. If the biscuits feel firm, they are done.
- ***If tops are not brown enough, put under broiler for just a few minutes***
Notes
- Calories: 118 kcal
- Fat: 4.22 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.54 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.13 g
- Monounsaturated Fat: 1.10 g
- Trans Fat: 0.17 g
- Protein: 2.82 g
- Carbohydrates: 16.90 g
- Fiber: 0.57 g
- Sugar: 1.05 g
- Cholesterol: 10.33 mg
- Sodium: 318.75 mg
- Potassium: 30.83 mg
- Calcium: 26.17 mg
- Iron: 0.75 mg
- Vitamin A: 39.83 IU
- Vitamin C: 0.17 mg
I made the easy biscuits and we loved them. I don’t always have buttermilk on hand so thank you for letting us know how to improvise. Thanks Mary for all the work you put into this and your simple instructions.
I used to cook/bake/can a lot then had brain injuries post lung transplants and can only do super simple easy stuff. THANK YOU for explaining why you do the tips/tricks and why they work. So wonderful!
My husband does the kneading. He grumbles the whole time and it’s rather funny! As if he thought a fairy made all his meals all these years and it took no work! Funny guy!
How funny! Thanks for sharing!
When using fresh milled, is the flour measurement the same? I’m used to working with weight, rather than volume and I’m still trying to figure out how to incorporate fresh-milled flour into recipes. Thanks!
I find it to be different slightly. I typically use a bit more fresh flour than store bought. I think the reason is that store bought floured gets packed down and fresh flour is much more airy and light. As far as weight, it would be the exact same.
Omg YES I have never been able to make good biscuits and I been trying for 51 yrs lol This was simple super quick and so good. I added cheddar cheese and bacon I also used the bacon drippings and the same pan to bake them in Sit the shredded cheddar and chopped bacon in freezer with butter and buttermilk I made my own buttermilk with milk and vinegar then sat it in the freezer while i did the rest. I also just did everything all in one bowl I added frozen butter and buttermilk at the same time at end stirred just until combined then pulled onto cutting boarded i did not need them at all i shaped into round cut into biscuits then baked so so very good
We loved these biscuits this morning. Soo easy to make. I did leave them in oven longer and ended up going to 450 to brown them. Will be my go to recipe for biscuits!
Super easy. Super Yum!!
Thank you.
I done know why I did wrong. The butter from the biscuits melted into the pan and they didn’t rise the instructions were so clear I have no idea what I did wrong
Was your butter cold before adding it to the flour mixture? If it was, I would suggest putting the dough after it is mixed into the fridge for 30 minutes for the butter to firm back up before baking.
Amazing, I added a tablespoon of sugar.
What an easy straight forward recipe! There simply no way for me to mess them up! :)) My mom felt like biscuits for breakfast and I found this recipe which will be my go to for now on! THANK YOU SO MUCH! My biscuits were soft flaky deliciousness! The whole family enjoyed them!
Oh, that’s awesome! I’m so glad to hear that!
Mary Rose, these were the easiest instructions to follow! However, just a few tips for anyone using something other than milk and needing to double batch this. Bad idea for me to try to do this for a party but I did. Needed to double, so I just doubled it and used 1c milk and 1c almond milk. Instead of just adding both cups, I think instructions should say: “add milk gradually.” I think b/c the almond milk is so watery, 1c was too much. Thankfully I had added more butter-for that extra butteriness, and ended up having to add more flour, but then turning it onto a floured surface explosed more wet flour so had to keep adding. Maybe when doing double batches, literally only make one batch at a time to ensure the right consistency? Fingers crossed! They’re in the oven!
Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful post with us.
Beginner? Then proceeds to tell me to pull out a pastry cutter. Come on lady.
So sorry about that! I will make a note on the recipe right away that you can use your hands or a fork.
You were 100% clear on your instructions on what was needed…. pastry cutter, hands or fork… I think you are doing an amazing job. Thank you for this amazingly awesome biscuit recipe ❤️ 😀 definitely one of my go too’s
Mine turned out looking and feeling like hockey pucks. They did not rise one bit. They look awful. Your recipe is so easy; what am I doing wrong?? Mine didn’ fluff up or do anything to make them look edible.
How old was your baking powder? It sounds like it wasn’t active.
Mary Rose ~ this biscuit recipe is awesome!! I did like one other lady and added 1 Tbsp of sugar, I tend to like the sweetness. They were delicious! The comment above about the pastry cutter was really uncalled for, it surely would have made combining the butter easier but I have never had one. Please keep up the great work and thank you for sharing your recipes and expertise with us! I am going to share it with someone who loves to do sourdough bread. 8 )
Hi, I was wondering if the recipe calls for 1/2 stick(1/4 cup) of butter or 1/2 cup? Do you use unsalted butter?
I use 1/2 a stick and prefer to use salted but unsalted works just as well.
what is considered 1/2 a stick? like a brick or have to buy the package that has the individual sticks in it? what’s the measurement of cold butter if using a brick?
If using a big brick of butter, use 1/4 stick. If using the single sticks use 1/2 of the stick.
I absolutely live this recipe!! We use it all the time! Can I freeze the biscuits before cooking them?
Yes, you can. Just bake them as usual when you want. The great thing is you can bake as few or as many as you want. I am so glad you like the recipe!
I made a half batch. It made 6 small ones. They are delicious! I used evaporated milk because I had no milk and it was just fine. I never grated butter before but it Grated beautifully!
Excellent biscuits! I used this recipe and my biscuits were so light and fluffy!
fabulous biscuits! easy and very yummy!
Very easy…absolutely loved how they turned out…reminds me of my grandmother’s biscuits….she as born in 1898 and did all of her cooking and baking in a wood-fired stove!
Thank you!
Absolutely love how the biscuits turned out…easy to follow recipe…
Reminds me of my grandmother’s biscuits…Phoebe Margaret was born in 1898 and cooked and baked on a wood-fired stove!
Turned out great!!!!
truly NOT JUST the EASIEST BUT ALSO TASTIEST !!
1/4 to 1/2″ thick was a bit thin so I doublestacked them. I still had 8 biscuits. Very Good.
WOW..What an amazing find❤️…I made these biscuits, and now it’s my to go to pair up with my Breakfast Gravy. Thank you so much, you can’t get anymore simplicity out of these biscuits…Not complicated at all…Lena
My dough did not become solid enough … it was more like the drop biscuits consistency than what you describe in the recipe.
I used gluten-free flour, full fat oat milkand vegan butter, but idk…
Only thing I miss about my ex is her biscuits and sausage gravy. Do you use a specific type of butter? Also, salted or unsalted butter? And does the unbleached flour make a big difference? And is the unbleached available at a regular grocery store?
Thanks in advance
I use salted butter, Kerry Gold brand, and I use King Arthur Unbleached All Purpose Flour. I get the flour at Walmart.
I use the same recipe but use white lily self rising flour. Sift before using it and follow the recipe you will have amazing biscuits. Grease a cast iron pan with a little butter to get the brown crust. Bake in pre-heated 450 degree oven.
biscuits in the oven now.
I haven’t baked biscuits from scrap for decades – I have a question. I followed the recipe and the dough is a bit sticky, instructions did’nt say to roll on a floured surface so I only floured my hands but it still stuck to the marble slab I used for rolling out.
any recommendations?
Sure, you can add a little flour but keep in mind if you add too much the biscuits will be dense. I like to use a little olive oil on the table if the dough is too sticky to work with. Just smear a tiny amount of oil or even water on the work surface to make the dough easier to work with. Hope that helps!
Just made these with frozen butter that I had prepared for another biscuit recipe but decided on yours is instead because it looked so easy. Wow! You are not kidding, this is an easy recipe and the biscuits turned out amazing. I will definitely be making these again and again in the future! Thank you!
I have tried so so so so so so many different “easy” biscuit recipes.
FINALLY – this recipe has landed a permanent place in my recipe cards.
I found I can make them big and fluffy, or thin and denser – and either way, they actually have real flavor! Wonderful to butter them up with jam, honey, gravy……Thank you!
I made these this morning and it was so wet. I had to add a bunch more flour. i used all the right tools and measured everything correct. They taste good though!
These biscuits are amazing. perfectly flaky and super easy to make. My forever biscuit recipe.
tried this recipe. easy to follow but did rise.so not sure what big did wrong. but i will try again and again and again.