Light and flaky with crisp, golden edges, these sour cream biscuits get their soft, pillowy center from a rich mix of sour cream and buttermilk. Cold butter and buttermilk create delicate layers, while a hot oven brings just the right amount of lift. The result? A biscuit that’s tender inside, buttery outside, and perfect for any meal.
The Best Sour Cream Biscuits Recipe
Have you ever used sour cream in biscuits? When I want to make a biscuit that’s richer than a traditional buttermilk biscuit, I’ll add sour cream. It makes both dinner rolls and biscuits softer with a somewhat velvety texture. Combining sour cream with buttermilk is what gives these biscuits a soft yet flaky interior.
Grating frozen butter is one trick you can use for flaky and tender layers in biscuits. Because the butter is in small pieces, it easily incorporates into the flour mixture and creates steam while the biscuits bake. This results in lots of air pockets that create a delicate, fluffy crumb.
If you don’t want to grate the butter, which is a little bit of a chore, you can use a food processor to chop up the butter with the flour mixture. A third alternative is to use a pastry cutter on cold but not frozen butter.
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These large biscuits are sometimes referred to as cat head biscuits because they’re as big as a cat’s head. For those times when you need a larger biscuit to hold all that yummy sausage gravy. Of course you can make these smaller if you prefer.
The large surface area of these homemade biscuits are especially good for breakfast with grits, bacon and eggs and a little jam. But really, you can’t go wrong no matter what you serve them with.
Any leftovers can be saved in an airtight container on the counter for a couple of days. After that freeze them, they will dry out in the fridge. Reheat in the oven at 350º for about 5 minutes.
If you need to make these ahead of time, just cover and refrigerate the cut biscuits until you’re ready to bake them.
Ingredients You’ll Need for the Best Biscuits
A full list of ingredients can be found in the Recipe Card below.
- Sour cream – full-fat sour cream produces the richest texture
- Buttermilk – use store-bought or make your own, just be sure it’s cold
- Butter – place it in the freezer for at least 20 minutes before grating, or keep it cold and cut into cubes.
- Baking soda and baking powder – add lift for flakier biscuits
Sour Cream Biscuits are Easy to Make
Step 1 – start with dry ingredients
Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sour cream in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2 – add cold butter
With a pastry cutter, fork, or food processor, incorporate the butter into the flour mixture. Work quickly so the butter stays cold.
Step 3 – stir in the buttermilk
Pour in cold buttermilk and stir in until just combined. Be sure not to over mix or your biscuits will be hard and tough.
Step 4 – roll the dough
Put the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Use a rolling pin to flatten it into a rectangle with a 1-inch thickness. This works better than using your hands to pat the dough, as your body heat will soften the butter.
Step 5 – cut the biscuits
Use a round 3-inch biscuit cutter to slice straight down through the dough.
Pro tip – If you don’t have a biscuit cutter, you can use a knife and cut the dough into eight equal squares.
Step 6 – bake the biscuits
Bake until golden brown. Remove from the oven, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with flaky salt. Bake for another 2 minutes.
How to store Leftovers
Let them come to room temperature and store in a ziplock or an airtight container. They will stay fresh for about 1 to 2 days, after that store in the freezer.
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Light and Fluffy Biscuits Made with Sour Cream
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup butter frozen
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450º and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sour cream.
- Grate the butter with a cheese grater using the largest holes. Quickly combine with the flour mixture using a pastry cutter.
- Add cold buttermilk to the mixture, stirring just until combined. Turn out onto a floured surface.
- Roll out into a 1 inch thickness. Using a 3 inch biscuit cutter, cut straight down without turning and place on the prepared pan.
- Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown, remove from the oven and brush with butter and flaky salt, then bake for 2 more minutes.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- If you don’t want to grate the butter, you can use a food processor or a pastry cutter. If using a pastry cutter, use cold but not frozen butter.
- Make sure the buttermilk is cold.
- Try not to handle the dough any more than you have to.
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own.
- You can make the dough in advance and refrigerate the cut biscuits until you are ready to bake them.
Nutrition
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