Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

Buttermilk drop biscuits are a southern classic with all the flaky, buttery flavor of a rolled biscuit but a lot simpler to make!

When I was a kid and visiting my grandmother in Georgia, Saturday morning breakfast was an event. All of the uncles came over, and there would be piles of eggs, bacon and sausage, piles of grits with puddles of melting butter and a sprinkle of sugar. It was a full house of full bellies.

But the piece de resistance of those breakfast feasts were the biscuits. Light and fluffy, packed with butter and perfectly tender. They weren’t the usual rolled biscuits, but something a little bit more casual and no less amazing. They were drop biscuits, with a dough mixed in a bowl then baked by the heaping spoonful.

I’ve tried to replicate those Saturday morning biscuits here with this Buttermilk Drop Biscuit Recipe. And while I’m pretty sure you can’t actually replicate a Southern grandma’s recipe on the internet, these are just about as close as you can get.

The texture is of these drop biscuits light and fluffy, with a nice crusty outside. You can bake them in a cast iron skillet for an even crispier crust. Serve them with butter and strawberry or peach jam, or as a perfect side for a quiche or grilled ham steaks. Or maybe go all the way and make some Southern Chicken and Waffles.

Ingredients

• 3 cups (405 g) all-purpose flour — see note below about using self-rising flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold — I like to grate this with a cheese grater, then place it in the freezer for about 10 minutes before cutting it into the flour
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk –whole milk can be substituted in a pinch

Making Biscuits using Self-Rising Flour

Many biscuit recipes call for self-rising flour, which makes beautiful fluffy biscuits! If that’s what you have on hand and you wish to substitute it for the all-purpose flour in this recipe, substitute it cup-for-cup.

Also, self-rising flour has salt and baking powder already in it, so you shouldn’t add any more salt and reduce the baking powder to 1/2 tablespoon. Self-rising flour has a lower gluten content count than all-purpose, so you’ll be less likely to over-mix the batter and have tough or chewy biscuits.

How to Make Easy Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

Mixing the Biscuit Dough

Begin by grating the cold butter, or cut it into small cubes, about 1/2″ big. Pop it back into the refrigerator to keep it as cold as possible.

Preheat the oven to 425°F and line two baking sheets with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Put the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Whisk it all together until the powder and salt are evenly distributed in the flour.

With a pastry cutter or two knives, cut the pieces of butter into the flour until it’s a sandy texture.

Stir the buttermilk into the flour and butter mixture with a wooden spoon or large fork until it’s completely combined. The biscuit dough will be fairly damp–you may need to add another 1-2 tablespoons of buttermilk if the dough seems dry at all.

Baking the Biscuits

With a large spoon, scoop up a heaping spoonful of the biscuit dough. Place 6 of them on each baking sheet with several inches between the biscuits to give them room to rise. You can make 12 average sized biscuits, or 8 large ones.

Bake the buttermilk drop biscuits for 18-20 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown and the tops are slightly browned also. If you’ve made large biscuits, they may take longer to bake.

Serving and Storing Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

Biscuits are best eaten the day they’re made, and are perfect fresh out of the oven! Serve them with butter, and the option of jam or honey.

If you do have leftover biscuits, store them in an airtight container or bag at room temperature. Don’t refrigerate them, as it can dry the biscuits out.

You can serve these buttermilk drop biscuits with:

• Instant Pot Dijon Pork Tenderloin
• Sundried Tomato, Spinach, and Gouda Quiche
• Chicken Apple Salad
• Bacon and Cheese Quiche
• Cottage Egg Casserole

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