These flaky sourdough buttermilk biscuits are my take on a southern classic. They're light and crumbly but still hold their shape enough to sandwich some eggs and bacon in the middle. They're also delicious plain with a whole lot of butter!

These biscuits are super easy and only require a few ingredients.

Cake flour -- If you don't have cake flour, you can substitute all purpose flour. You biscuits will be a little less light and tender but will still taste great!
All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Baking soda
Kosher salt
Granulated sugar
Unsalted butter -- Cut the butter into small cubes and then pop it back in the fridge until you're ready to make the biscuits so that it stays nice and cold!
Sourdough starter discard -- Don’t have a sourdough starter? Never fear! Just check out my Sourdough Guide for all my tips and tricks!
Buttermilk -- If you don't have buttermilk, just mix together ¾ cup whole milk and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and let it sit for at least 5 minutes before using!

Making light, tender biscuits is all about technique! You want to use super cold ingredients and make sure not to overwork the dough in order to achieve that perfect texture. While I was testing this recipe, I definitely overworked the dough a couple times and made some dense biscuits (Kyle still ate them all though). So I decided to make this video so that I can just show you exactly what I'm talking about when I reference the "dry, shaggy dough" and the stacking technique.

Check out the video to see the best technique for making these sourdough buttermilk biscuits!

Video Notes:

The house Kyle and I are renting has an awesome kitchen! It has a gas range, double oven, and a huge island! But it also has the most horrible laminate counter-tops. I had granite counter-tops growing up and the last couple apartments I lived in, so I didn't realize how much I took them for granted. Granite and marble counter-tops stay colder than room temperature which is fantastic for making pastry dough that needs to stay as cold as possible. So when we moved in, I bought a Pastry Stone* and it's been a total game changer! I highly recommend getting one if you have laminate counter-tops.

You'll notice in the video I use a Bench Scraper* to form the dough. This tool is totally optional but I highly recommend getting one! It's a cheap, super versatile tool that I use for so many things!

Flaky sourdough buttermilk biscuits on a cooling rack.

If you make these sourdough buttermilk biscuits, please leave us a star rating at the bottom of the page! This provides helpful feedback to both me and other readers. Happy baking!

Sourdough Buttermilk Biscuits

★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

Author: Kyleigh Sage
Prep Time: 10 minutes + 15 minutes chilling time
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 9 biscuits 1x

Print Recipe

Description

These flaky sourdough buttermilk biscuits are my take on a southern classic. They're light and crumbly but still hold their shape enough to sandwich some eggs and bacon in the middle.

Ingredients

Scale

1 ½ cups cake flour
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed
½ cup (scant) sourdough starter discard
¾ cup cold buttermilk
2 tablespoons butter, melted (for brushing)
flaky sea salt

Instructions

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
Cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients by flattening the cubes into disks. You want the butter to remain in relatively large chunks (about quarter sized).
Pop the entire bowl into the freezer for about 5 minutes to let the butter firm back up.
Remove the bowl from the freezer and gradually stir in the sourdough discard until it's incorporated throughout the flour.
Slowly drizzle buttermilk over top, combining as you go. Knead a few times in the bowl until you have a very dry, shaggy dough.
Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and shape the dough into a 1 inch thick square.
Using a knife or bench scraper, cut dough into 4 equal pieces. Stack pieces on top of one another, sandwiching any loose dry bits of dough between layers, and press down to flatten.
Roll dough into a 1 inch thick rectangle (about 9x9) and cut into 9 square biscuits (you can instead use a round biscuit cutter).
Transfer the biscuits to a parchment lined baking sheet and pop in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking.
While the biscuits are chilling, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Remove the biscuits from the freezer and brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
Bake biscuits for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown on top.