Buttermilk Biscuits

Method

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1. Heat the oven to 220C fan. Whisk the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and sugar.

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2. Add the cold cubed butter and rub it in quickly with your fingertips, or pulse in a processor, leaving pieces the size of a pea. Visible butter is the point.

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3. Pour in the buttermilk and stir with a fork just until a shaggy dough forms. It will look under-mixed. Leave it that way.

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4. Tip onto a floured surface and pat into a rough 2 cm rectangle.

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5. Fold it in three like a letter, pat out again, and repeat three more times. Do not knead.

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6. Pat the dough to 2.5 cm thick and cut rounds with a 6 cm cutter, pressing straight down without twisting. Push the offcuts together gently and cut the rest.

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7. Set the biscuits on a tray so their sides touch — they help each other climb.

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8. Bake 14 to 16 minutes until risen and golden. Brush with the melted butter as they come out.

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Chef’s Tips

• Cold butter, cold buttermilk, warm oven. Any warm butter and you get scones, not biscuits.
• Never twist the cutter. Twisting seals the edge and the biscuit rises lopsided.
• Sides touching on the tray gives you height; spaced apart gives you spread.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• Out of buttermilk? Stir a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar into the same amount of ordinary milk and let it sit five minutes before using.

Pairing Suggestions

• Sausage gravy
• Honey and butter
• Fried chicken

Storage & Reheating

Best within hours. Freeze unbaked cut rounds and bake from frozen, adding 3 minutes.

Common questions

Nutritional Highlights

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.