Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe • The Prairie Homestead (2025)

This Buttermilk Biscuit recipe is one of my favorite from-scratch sides to make for dinner. I love that this Biscuits recipe doesn’t require yeast, it comes together in just a few minutes, and is 1000% better than of those “pop n’ fresh” biscuits from a can. I include instructions for how to make an alternative for buttermilk using normal milk, too, just in case you’re craving homemade biscuits but you’re lacking buttermilk right now.

Every homesteader needsa tried and true buttermilk biscuit recipe in their arsenal.

(That is, unless you’re gluten-free, but that’s a whole ‘nother topic…)

Homemade biscuits were one of the very first things I learned to make from scratch. I remember being soooo proud of myself that I didn’t have to buy those nasty “pop-n-fresh” biscuit cans at the store anymore. Yuck.

These delicate buttermilk biscuits are heavenly whether served up with from-scratch sausage gravy or drizzled with raw honey.

By the way, this particular biscuit recipe is the one from my cookbook. My cookbook is full of from-scratch recipes that don’t require fancy ingredients or complicated instructions. So if you love these biscuits, click here to learn more about my cookbook and order bonuses.

I also love how easy it is to make these homemade buttermilk biscuits. Don’t believe me? Check out my video below:

Homemade Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe

(This post contains affiliate links)

• 3 1?2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder (where to buy)
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (I use this one)
• 2 tablespoons Sucanat or other unrefined sweetener (where to buy)
• 1?2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 1?2 cups buttermilk, OR soured milk (see notes for soured/acidified milk instructions)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and sucanat together in a large bowl.

Cut in the cold butter until you have pea-sized butter chunks. (Or, try grating frozen butter with a cheese grater and adding the shreds into the flour.)

Add just enough buttermilk (or soured milk) to make a heavy, wet dough.

“Knead” the dough lightly- onlyabout 6-8 times-just enough to get everything to stick together.Do not overknead.Pat the dough out on a well-floured surface to approximately one inch thick.Use a floured glass or mason jar ring to cut into circles. (I recently snagged this set of biscuit cutters off of Amazon. Not an absolute necessity, but boy, do they make it nice!)

Place on an ungreased baking stone(where to buy) or cookie sheet. I like to leave the edges slightly touching as it makes for a softer biscuit. If you prefer crunchier biscuits, then spread them out a bit more.

Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Homemade Buttermilk Biscuit Notes

-Usecoldbutter. This is important to ensure that you end up with a nice, flaky biscuit.

–Do not overknead. The heat of yourhands will cause the butter to warm up- this makes the biscuits tough. And nobody likes tough biscuits.

–Do not overbake. At my house, we prefer soft, tender,biscuits– not hockey-pucks. Therefore, always be sure to set your oven timer for several minuteslessthan the recipe calls for. I usually pull mine from the oven when thebottomsare golden brown. Generally, the tops are not brown. If you wait that long, you will usually end up with a crunchy hockey puck.

–Buttermilk Alternative:Take 1 & 1/3 cups whole milk and 1 tbsp. vinegar OR lemon juice. By adding acid to the milk, it will curdle the milk and work with making the biscuits rise.

I have no doubt that after you try these, you will never go back to biscuits-in-a can again! Who invented those anyway? What a silly idea…

Soaked Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe

**Update**This is one of the first recipes I ever posted on this blog. However since that time, my thoughts of the whole concepts of soaking grains have changed a bit. However, this is still a very yummy recipe, and definitely suitable for those of you who still like to soak. (I don’t think there is anything detrimental about soaking, it’s just not a fit for my family.)

You Will Need:

• 3cups whole wheat flour of your choice- hard white or spelt will work just fine.
• 1 1/2cups cultured buttermilk (how to make cultured buttermilk) or whey(how to make whey)
• 2Tablespoons sucanat or brown sugar(where to buy)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt (I use this one)
• 6 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder(where to buy)
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small chunks or shredded with the coarse side of a cheese grater.
• Unbleached white flour (optional)

Combine flour, sucanant, and buttermilk. You should have a heavy, wet dough, but it should still be somewhatkneadable. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying and allow to soak at room temperature for at least 12 hours.

After the soaking time has elapsed, add the saltand baking powder to the flour mixture, kneading to incorporate. If the dough is too sticky to tolerate kneading, you may have to add a bit of white flour.

Add the cold butter pieces.Incorporate them into the dough, but do not over-mix. It is perfectly acceptable to havevisible chunks of butter within the dough. Over handling will cause the butter to melt and result intough biscuits.

Pat the dough onto a well-floured surface, approximately 1 inch thick. Cut with a floured glass or biscuit cutter. Place on an ungreased baking stone or cookie sheet and place in a preheated 425 degree oven for10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Yields approximately 12 thick biscuits.

Though this biscuits have a decidedly different texture than traditional white flour, baking powder biscuits, I think they are a good trade-off. They are still delicious, plus I feel better about serving them to my family since they have the added nutrition of whole wheat.

And psssst! Either of these two buttermilk biscuit recipe are heavenly when you pair them with my Savory Maple Sausage Patties or my From-Scratch Sausage Gravy!

Print

More From-Scratch Bread Recipes:

• My FAVORITE versatile dough recipe (perfect for bread, pizza, cinnamon rolls, and more)
• The perfect beginner Sourdough Bread recipe
• Troubleshooting Sourdough
• How to make a Sourdough Starter
• Click here to learn more about my cookbook