These sourdough buttermilk biscuits are the perfect addition to any breakfast. Need something to make a delectable sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich? Biscuits! Want to have something sweet with a cup of tea? Biscuits with butter and jelly! There are just so many uses, and these are the best you will ever have. They can be whipped up in less than 15 minutes with ingredients you probably already have on hand. Then into the oven they go!
I lived in Franklin TN for three years and had my fair share of biscuits. They are just such an essential part of southern country food. I have tried so many different recipes over the years and most of them were really good. But I was searching for a recipe that gave me a tender biscuit that would be soft, but also have that flakey, fall apart feel. I just couldn’t find a recipe that did both.
Then I started experimenting with adding sourdough to my recipes and the recipes for good biscuits dwindled. I now needed three things from a biscuit recipe, and I knew it might be asking too much. I needed soft, flakey, and sourdough. Then I found a recipe with a method I hadn’t tried before to achieve the flakey layers. I applied that to the sourdough biscuit recipe I was using at the time. Then tinkered with it a few times.
Volia! I had done it. The most perfect sourdough buttermilk biscuits were created.
Sourdough
Now, why did I so desperately need sourdough to be one of my three things for the perfect biscuit? Well, since starting sourdough back in 2022 I have been adding my starter to more and more recipes. It just adds a depth of flavor to things that I just cannot achieve with anything else. I also am always looking for new ways to use up my discard since flour is not cheap and I hate the thought of wasting food.
Another benefit to cooking and baking with sourdough is that the good yeast and bacteria in the sourdough starter breaks down the flour making it easier to digest. That means that these biscuits are good for your gut health!
If you are looking to learn more about sourdough, check out the e-book I wrote. The Art of Sourdough. It has all the tips and tricks for getting started, keeping a starter alive, and making wonderful recipes while not getting stressed or overwhelmed by it all!
Uses for biscuits
Bacon (or sausage), egg, and cheese sandwiches.
Served warm with butter and jam.
Chicken pot pie topped with biscuits instead of in a pie crust. (This is one of my favorites!)
Chicken sandwiches.
In a bowl of soup in place of bread.
With butter and a drizzle of honey.
Tools
Bowls
Measuring spoons
Measuring cups
Rolling pin – This is optional. It makes it easier to roll them out, but the dough is so soft it can be pressed out by hand as well.
Biscuit cutters – These make it easy but a mason jar lid, (or even the jar) works just as well. I use the one that is 2 3/4 inches in diameter.
Sheet trays. Use stainless steel whenever possible to avoid the chemicals in Teflon coated nonstick pans!
Ingredients
Flour – I use unbleached organic all-purpose flour.
Baking powder – Make sure to use double acting whenever doing a long ferment recipe. It allows them to rise both when they are mixed together, and when they are baked.
Baking soda – If too much of this is added to a recipe like biscuits or scones, it can make them taste terrible. However, if a small amount is added it reacts with the buttermilk, resulting in a fluffy and tender texture.
Sugar – This can be substituted for coconut or maple sugar as well if looking for an option that is free from refined sugars.
Salt – I use sea salt whenever possible. I love this brand because of how clean their products are and the high mineral content in their salt!
Butter – Don’t try substituting things like vegetable shortening for the butter. Butter is going to give you the best flavor and be the best for fueling your body!
Sourdough discard – Active starter can be used, but I prefer discard, especially when making long ferment sourdough buttermilk biscuits.
Buttermilk – Organic buttermilk is what I use!
Buttermilk substitute
I love buttermilk in pancakes, biscuits, and even in my peach scone recipe. However, I rarely ever buy it. If you don’t want to spend money on buttermilk you can do one of two things. Either take some heavy cream and shake it in a jar (or whip it in stand mixer) until it separates. You will be left with butter and butter milk. Or, you can take 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and add it to a measuring cup then add enough milk to equal one cup. Mix and allow it to sit for about five minutes then use it in place of buttermilk in a recipe!
Let’s make sourdough buttermilk biscuits!
Making the dough
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.
Cut the butter into slices and add it into the flour mixture. Break it in by hand until it is in marble sized chunks.
Add the sourdough discard and gently mix until it a dry shaggy mass. The goal is to evenly distribute the sourdough without further breaking up the butter.
Add the buttermilk and mix until it is just incorporated. Be careful not to over mix. It is ok if there are a few patches of flour.
Turn the dough onto a floured surface. Using your palms or a rolling pin, flatten it into a rectangle.
Fold the ends together until they meet in the middle of the dough.
Rotate 90 degrees, flatten, and fold again. Continue to repeat this process for a total of 5 times.
Roll the dough to 3/4 of an inch and cut out the biscuits.
Mix the scraps together and flatten again to get more biscuits from the dough. I used a cutter that was 2 3/4 inches and was able to get about 12.
Baking
Preheat the oven to 400
Place the sourdough buttermilk biscuits onto a parchment lined sheet tray.
Bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the tray and bake for an additional 2-5, or until the tops are golden. Over baking can cause the bottoms to become overly crunchy.
Store in an airtight container for up to five days at room temperature.
Enjoy!
Long ferment biscuits
To make this recipe more gut healthy, long fermenting the biscuits is the way to go.
Prepare them as above, cut them out, and place them onto a parchment lined sheet tray.
Cover and place in the fridge for 12-24 hours.
Remove from the fridge and place directly into the preheated oven.
Bake for 10 minutes.
Rotate the pan and bake for an additional 5-8 minutes.
Enjoy!
Note:
I personally prefer the quick bake option. I baked these and they have a tendency to change color a little bit. It is due to the reaction of the baking soda, but they have a slight bluish-grey hue to them. The texture is a little less flakey, but still soft. They still tasted great though.
Tips for success
Keep it cold
The key to the flakes is keeping the butter cold so it doesn’t soften and get absorbed into the dough. If you want to cut the butter and place it back into the fridge until ready to use that is a great option. It can also be cut quickly and just added right into the dough. Adding cold buttermilk is also helpful for keeping the butter as cold as possible!
Work quickly
Since the butter needs to stay cold, once it is added don’t walk away. Just mix it, roll it, shape it, and pop it into the oven. Now if you are working with kids or something comes up, it will be fine. If it is left for a long time, I would put it into the fridge or freezer to allow the butter to firm up before continuing.
Freezing
Yes, these can be frozen. I prefer to freeze them before baking. That way I still have oven fresh biscuits.
Keep them in a freezer bag or a freezer safe glass container.
When ready to bake, place them from the freezer into a parchment lined sheet tray. Bake for ten minutes and rotate the pan. Bake for another 5 minutes and check. Continue baking at two-minute increments until baked through and golden!
These biscuits are both incredibly fluffy and flakey. They take almost no time to make and are a huge hit everytime! For the added gut benefits long fermenting the biscuits allows the sourdough to break down the flour making it easier to digest. Prepare the biscuit dough as above. Instead of placing them on a baking sheet, put them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Remove from the fridge and immediately bake them. Bake for 10 minutes then rotate the pan and bake for an additional 5 or until golden brown. The baking soda can react with the buttermilk giving them a slightly bluish-grey appearance after sitting overnight. The baking soda can be left out if desired, the result will be a slightly less fluffy, but still very delicious biscuit. Long fermenting can cause the tops to not be as golden brown. Brushing them with a thin layer of egg wash or cream can help to achieve that aesthetically pleasing color that everyone looks for in a biscuit. There are two things you can do if you are out of buttermilk but still want to make this recipe. Take heavy cream and put it into the bowl of a stand mixer. Whip it past stiff peaks until it separates. There should be a chunk of butter and some liquid in the bowl. That liquid is buttermilk! This also works with a hand mixer. The other option is taking one tablespoon of lemon juice and adding it to a measuring cup then adding milk until it eaquals one cup.Sourdough Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Long Ferment
Buttermilk substitute
This recipe for sourdough buttermilk biscuits contains affiliate links. To learn more, click here.
Leave a Reply