Southern Biscuits

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

Show: Good EatsEpisode: The Dough Also Rises

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (260)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(260)

Cook Time:
20 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
1 dozen

Times:

Prep: 20 min
Inactive Prep: --
Cook: 20 min
Total:: 40 min

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Ingredients

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup buttermilk, chilled

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using your fingertips, rub butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. (The faster the better, you don't want the fats to melt.) Make a well in the center and pour in the chilled buttermilk. Stir just until the dough comes together. The dough will be very sticky.

Turn dough onto floured surface, dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting. (Biscuits from the second pass will not be quite as light as those from the first, but hey, that's life.)

Bake until biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes.

MA MAE'S BISCUITS
Advice courtesy Mae Skelton

I don't have much use for recipes but the one you get on a bag of White Lily(r) self-rising flour is hard to beat. And it's a lot easier than the one my crazy grandson dreamed up.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Southern Biscuits
edyta ottawa, ON 02-09-2010
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Excellent...and so Easy!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made them several times and the only thing I do differently is add extra 1/4 cup of buttermilk and 1 1/2 cups of shredded... cheddar cheese. 16min in the oven and done! they freeze so well too!Read more
recipe Southern Biscuits
Mary Lincoln, NE 01-30-2010
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Unfortunately this is a great recipe
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

My husband said this was the best biscuit he's ever tasted. He just went on and on about it. I was hoping that it wouldn't be... that good so I coud occassionally substitute refrigerated or frozen ones. Now the bar is set so high that I don't think I can ever make anything else again. Read more
recipe Southern Biscuits
Elida Avondale, AZ 01-25-2010
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Alton...you're the man baby!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

When I want the best recipes I always turn to Alton first, With Alton I know I am getting his very best work. His recipes... are never missing those important details, like oven temp ( as I see with Paula Deen) . Also, I can trust that his recipes will not have an excessive amount of sugar or butter that tend to ruin the entire recipe. I have wasted perfect lobster or chocolates using other chef recipes that had to much sugar or some other strange seasoning that over powers the dish. AB is perfect in every way...and he's adorable too. Read more
recipe Southern Biscuits
Kimberly Tampa, FL 01-24-2010
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The only Biscuit Recipe I use!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

My headline said it all! I have not found a better recipe as of yet. Adding cheddar cheese and garlic makes them yummy! Also... adding different jellies or preserves on top of the warm biscuits is great!! Read more
recipe Southern Biscuits
Bret Lancaster, CA 01-23-2010
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Easy Recipe, excellent biscuits, 4 inches tall!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

OK, First, for me biscuits are more difficult than dinner rolls to make. But I don't care for the taste of pop-a-can... biscuits. So I followed the recipe exactly, except I only had a 2-1/2 cutter. The batter/dough was not sticky like the recipe said it would be and when I formed it into a 1 inch thick disk I was only able to get 9 biscuits (but they were 2-1/2" diameter). When they came out of the oven they were 4 inches tall! Next time I will make the disk only 1/2" thick. My Family devoured them within minutes. Oh yeah I didn't have shortening so I used lard, it's the original shortening anyway.Read more
recipe Southern Biscuits
C Vista, CA 01-23-2010
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Great
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is only the second time I made biscuits and this recipe works great. I did not have buttermilk so I used whole milk and... it work great. Anybody can make these.Read more