Buttermilk Drop Biscuits
Easy Drop Biscuits – This practically foolproof recipe makes the most golden, buttery, and fluffy biscuits in less than 30 minutes. Buttermilk drop biscuits are perfect to enjoy as a savory, carb-y side dish with a smear of butter or any of your favorite spreads!
Why We Love This Easy Drop Biscuits Recipe
Need home-baked bread but in a rush? Homemade Drop Biscuits are here to the rescue! Warm, soft and tender biscuits are the perfect carb-a-licious side dish for scooping up sauces and gravies, smearing with sweet or savory spreads, or to enjoy as-is for a ‘lil comfort food snack.
While traditional buttermilk biscuits can be a bit on the laborious side, these drop biscuits are quick and easy to prepare without extra steps, cookie cutters, or messy counters covered in flour. Just combine basic ingredients into a sticky dough, scoop, and – as the name suggests – drop onto a baking sheet, and bake!
And along with being super simple to make, fluffy buttery biscuits are also easy to customize with cheese, herbs, and spices. Mix up a batch of buttermilk drop biscuit dough in just one bowl with all of your favorite flavors, and serve them to a hungry crowd in under 30 minutes!
Ingredients You Need
- All-purpose flour – sifted before measuring
- Baking powder and baking soda – using both creates the fluffiest, softest biscuit crumb
- Sugar – granulated white sugar is best
- Salt – just a bit to balance the flavors
- Cold butter – I prefer unsalted butter
- Buttermilk – you won’t believe how easy it is to make homemade buttermilk with just 2 ingredients
We love the cozy simplicity of this original recipe AND we also love that these biscuits are easy to customize with all kinds of irresistible flavors!
Keep reading for some suggestions for other savory ingredients to consider adding in, like fresh herbs and spices.
How to Make Buttermilk Drop Biscuits
- Preheat the oven and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Sift the flour first, then measure and level in a measuring cup. Then whisk the flour together with the other dry ingredients in a large bowl… This includes any extra spices you want to add.
- Now my favorite no-fail drop biscuit trick: Use a cheese grater with large holes (not super fine) to shave the cold stick of butter into the dry ingredients. Gently mix the shaved butter into the flour.
- Next add the buttermilk, and gently mix it in to create a lumpy dough. If you are adding other ingredients like cheese or fresh herbs, now is the time to mix them in as well.
Pro Tip: Be careful not to over mix the dough! We want the butter pieces to stay as cold as possible to make that perfectly flaky, soft biscuit center.
- Use a cookie scoop, ice cream scoop, or two spoons to scoop 3-tablespoon portions of biscuit dough. Dollop them on the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. (They won’t spread much.)
- Bake the drop biscuits for 12 to 15 minutes, until they are golden brown around the edges.
- Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. The moment the biscuits come out of the oven, generously brush the butter over the top of the biscuits. Devour immediately!
Get the Complete (Printable) Easy Drop Biscuit Recipe + Video Below. Enjoy!
Optional Add-Ins and Variations
Want to punch up the flavors of these buttery drop biscuits? This recipe is wonderfully easy to customize with all kinds of extra goodies! Here are our favorite drop biscuit recipe variations:
- Shredded cheese – Add shredded sharp cheddar cheese, smoky gouda, gruyere, parmesan, or spicy pepper jack cheese.
- Fresh herbs – Mix fresh chopped rosemary, thyme, chives, or parsley right into the dough – or, add them to the melted butter to brush onto the baked biscuits before serving.
- Ground spices – A sprinkle of spices like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, cayenne, Italian seasoning, garlic powder or onion powder are an easy way to make these biscuits “match” your meal!
- Red Lobster biscuits – With just a few tweaks – like including shredded cheese and Old Bay in the dough – this easily becomes the BEST homemade Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits recipe!
What to Serve With Drop Biscuits
One of the many (many!) great things about warm, soft homemade biscuits is that they pair so perfectly with nearly any butters, jams, and spreads of all kinds! Whether you are craving a sweet snack for breakfast or want a carb-y savory side dish with dinner, buttermilk biscuits have got you covered.
Serve them any time of day with your choice of spreadable condiments, like:
- Whipped Honey Butter
- Cinnamon Butter
- Pistachio Butter
- Homemade Peanut Butter
- Peach Preserves
- Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
- Hot Honey
- Tomato Jam
- Jalapeno Jelly (Hot Pepper Jelly)
Frequently Asked Questions
Overly-crumbly biscuits are usually the result of either too much flour or not mixing the dough evenly. I suggest sifting the flour to be sure you’re using the right amount, and so that it combines well with the other ingredients.
Buttermilk is acidic, and – combined with baking soda – creates bubbly little air pockets in the dough. This makes biscuits that are fluffy, soft, and tender. Using regular milk will make the drop biscuits more dense, but still tasty.
They definitely are tastiest when served fresh and hot from the oven. However, they will keep well for up to 1-2 days in an airtight container at room temperature or 2-3 days in the fridge.
Yes, you can! Let them cool completely before wrapping each drop biscuit individually in a layer of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Transfer all of the biscuits to a freezer-safe ziploc bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature for 30 minutes or so.
Wrap each biscuit in a slightly damp paper towel, and microwave for 10-20 seconds at 50% power. This will create a softer texture, outside and inside the biscuit.
For a crisper outside and chewier inside, you’ll want to reheat the biscuits in the oven. Loosely wrap the biscuits in one big section of aluminum foil, and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 5-10 minutes, until warm. Open the packet to uncover the biscuits and bake for another few minutes for an even crispier outside.
Looking for More Easy Side Dish Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
Buttermilk Drop Biscuits Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup cold butter + 3 tablespoons of melted butter for tops
- 1 cup buttermilk or whole milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and set out a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Set out a mixing bowl. Sift the flour, then measure and level it. Combine the dry ingredients in the bowl. Mix well.
- Using a cheese grater, shave the cold stick of butter into the dry ingredients. Gently mix the shaved butter into the flour.
- Add the buttermilk and gently mix to create a lumpy dough.
- Scoop 3 tablespoon portions of biscuit dough out and dollop them on the baking sheet, 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until golden around the edges.
- Meanwhile melt 3 tablespoons of butter. The moment the biscuits come out of the oven, brush the butter over the top of the biscuits. Serve warm.
Video
Notes
½ cup shredded cheese
1 tablespoon fresh chopped herbs – any variety
½ teaspoon ground spices, like cinnamon, cayenne, or any variety
¼ teaspoon garlic powder or onion powder Leftovers – Homemade biscuits are tastiest when served fresh and hot from the oven. However, they will keep well for up to 1-2 days in an airtight container at room temperature or 2-3 days in the fridge. To Freeze – Let them cool completely before wrapping each drop biscuit individually in a layer of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Transfer all of the biscuits to a freezer-safe ziploc bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature for 30 minutes or so. To Reheat – Wrap each biscuit in a slightly damp paper towel, and microwave for 10-20 seconds at 50% power. This will create a softer texture, outside and inside the biscuit. For a more crisp outside and chewy inside you’ll want to reheat the biscuits in the oven. Loosely wrap the biscuits in one big section of aluminum foil, and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 5-10 minutes, until warm. Open the packet to uncover the biscuits and bake for another few minutes for an even crispier outside.