An easy gluten-free biscuits recipe made Southern style with buttermilk. Flaky and tender. The recipe has a dairy-free and Vegan option.
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Gluten-Free Biscuits
If you have been following my blog you probably already know that my husband is from the South- Knoxville, Tennesse to be exact. We spent many years living there and both of my oldest children were born there.
I adore Southern cooking. One of the main food groups in a Southern’s diet is buttermilk biscuits.
In the South, biscuits hold an honored place at your table, no matter which meal is being served. Biscuits are eaten at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
One of the things my husband misses the most since we both went gluten-free is biscuits. For years I was able to buy a gluten-free drop biscuit mix that was pretty good and helped with his biscuit cravings.
Well, I can no longer find the Martha White’s gluten-free buttermilk biscuit mix. So it was time for me to get in the kitchen and work on a gluten-free Southern buttermilk biscuit recipe.
It’s taken me some time to perfect my gluten-free biscuit recipe and I am very excited to share it with you all!
How To Make Gluten-Free Biscuits- Step By Step
The first thing you are going to want to do is Preheat oven to 450° F. I know my oven takes forever to heat up and you want your oven to be nice and hot.
Cut the butter into small pieces and put in the freezer for 10 minutes.
If you do not have buttermilk you can make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to the cup of milk (or dairy-free milk) and let stand 5-10 minutes in the refrigerator to keep cold. You can also make buttermilk out of dairy-free milk.
In a large bowl add the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum (leave out if your flour already has it like the Pillsbury gluten-free flour) baking powder, salt, sugar, and give it a quick whisk or stir to combine the ingredients. (photo 1)
Cut in the butter (or Smart Balance or shortening for dairy-free) into the flour with a pastry cutter or fork into until it looks like the size of small peas. (photo 2 and 3)
Add in the buttermilk and the whisked egg (I whisk the egg right in the buttermilk) and stir until a soft dough forms. The dough will be sticky. (photo 4)
The key is to not over mix the dough because over-mixing causes the dough to yield tough biscuits. There is nothing is worse than a flat, tough biscuit!
Add one tablespoon of flour to a large piece of parchment paper. Please do not roll out the dough.
Place the dough on top of the floured parchment paper. Dust the top of the dough with 1 tablespoon of flour. (photo 5)
Gently fold the dough over on itself 2 times. You do this by folding the dough in half on top of itself and then doing it a second time. (photo 6)
With your hands form a dough round that is about 7 inches in diameter and 1 inch thick. If you make it any larger or flatter you will end up with hard, flat biscuits. (photo 7)
Cut out 2-inch biscuits using a biscuit cutter, the mouth of a glass or the lid of a mason jar. Do not twist cutter when cutting; this will crimp the edges of the biscuit causing it not to rise well. (photo 8)
Reform the dough scraps into a dough round and cut out more biscuits.. ( photo 9 and 10)
Put the biscuits in a greased large cast iron pan or a greased baking sheet. You will have 12 biscuits to bake. (photo 11)
Bake the biscuits for 15-20 minutes at 450° F. At the 15-minute point please check your biscuits to see if they are golden brown. Please watch your biscuits because all ovens are different.
I like to brush melted butter on top of the warm biscuits. Serve warm and enjoy! (photo 12)
Pro Tip For Freezing The Biscuits
You can batch make the biscuits and save some for later. Flash freeze the cut biscuits (unbaked) for 30 minutes on a parchment-lined baking sheet before placing them in a freezer bag and putting them back into the freezer. When you are ready to make your biscuits bake the frozen biscuits for 15-20 minutes at 450° F. Please watch your oven because all ovens are different.
The Best Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour For Making Biscuits
These gluten-free biscuits are made with an all-purpose rice flour cup for cup blend. A cup for cup all-purpose gluten-free flour blend is one that already has xanthan gum it.
Most gluten-free all-purpose flour blends have xanthan gum already in them. The xanthan gum helps replace the elasticity and texture of gluten.
Make sure to check to see if the brand of gluten-free flour you are using has xanthan gum in it. If it already has xanthan gum in the blend, do not add any extra xanthan gum to the recipe or you will get gummy baked goods!
My favorite brand of gluten-free flour is Pillsbury gluten-free flour. Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. You may experience different baking results depending on the gluten-free flour blend you choose.
I test baked with the Pillsbury Gluten-Free, Betterbatter, Bob’s Red Mill Cup for Cup, King Arthur, Pamela’s, and Great Value Gluten-Free Flour. The Bob’s Red Mill flour, King Arthur, Pamela’s and the Great Value Flour have sorghum flour in it, which is different from the Pillsbury gluten-free flour.
The biscuits made with Bob’s Red Mill, King Arthur, Pamela’s and Great Value Brand were not as fluffy and the dough was wetter. If you use the King Authur measure or measure you will need to add more flour to the biscuit dough, so you will need 2 ½ cups of their gluten-free flour.
I have not tried this recipe with either almond or coconut flour. These gluten-free biscuits should only be made with a gluten-free rice flour blend.
Almond flour does not have the same taste and texture of rice flour. Almond flour biscuits are also denser than biscuits made with rice flour. Gluten-free rice flour mimics the taste and texture of traditional wheat flour better than almond or coconut flour.
If you are looking for a biscuit recipe that is made with almond flour try Wholesome Yum’s Low Carb Paleo Almond Flour Biscuits recipe.
Pro Tip For Measuring Gluten-Free Flour
The best way to measure gluten-free flour is the “spoon & level” method. Using a spoon, scoop the flour into the measuring cup. After you’ve spooned the flour into the measuring cup, use the back of a knife to level off the top of the measuring cup. Friends, please do not scoop the flour out of the bag with your measuring cup.
There are so many ways to eat these tender and flaky gluten-free buttermilk biscuits. I love to drizzle them with honey or slather them with strawberry jam. I also like a savory sausage biscuit or a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit.
Dairy-Free Baking
I have also included a dairy-free option to this gluten-free biscuit recipe. My husband, myself and youngest son are all dairy-free as well. So now you too can enjoy a gluten-free and a dairy-free biscuit.
For this recipe, I tested it with both Smart Balance butter and shortening. I preferred the Smart Balance butter over the shortening.
I also used almond milk when baking the dairy-free version of this recipe. Almond milk is my preferred.
To make dairy-free buttermilk add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to the cup of dairy-free milk and let stand 5-10 minutes in the refrigerator to keep cold.
I also really like baking with cashew and coconut milk. If you need to be nut-free you could also use soy milk in this recipe.
Egg-Free Baking
Recipe updated December 2018
We recently found out that my husband has an egg sensitivity. My husband LOVES biscuits, so I knew that I had to try and make my biscuits egg-free.
I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Egg Replacer, which is also gluten-free. They turned out great! They were not as fluffy as my regular biscuits but they were just as flaky and delicious.
I made them both dairy-free and egg-free, so they would also be Vegan gluten-free biscuits. So if you also need to be egg-free or are Vegan you too can enjoy my gluten-free buttermilk biscuits!
Now my family can enjoy authentic Southern buttermilk gluten-free biscuits. I can’t tell you how happy my husband is.
I’ve also turned my gluten-free buttermilk biscuits into Gluten-Free Cinnamon Biscuits {Dairy-Free Option}!
Check out some of my other easy gluten-free breakfast recipes! Below are some of my reader’s favorites.
- Easy Gluten-Free Pancakes {Dairy-Free & Vegan Option}
- Easy Gluten-Free Blueberry Banana Muffins {Dairy-Free and Refined Sugar Free Option}
- Easy Gluten-Free Waffles {Dairy-Free & Vegan Option}
- Gluten-Free Blueberry Scones {Dairy-Free Option}
- Easy Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Crumb Muffins {Dairy-Free Option}
These gluten-free biscuits are flaky on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside- which equals perfection in my book. They are easy to make from scratch, I promise!
★Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below in the comments!★
Gluten-Free Buttermilk Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour I like Pillsbury gluten-free. Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. You may experience different baking results depending on the gluten-free flour blend you choose.
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum ,leave out if your flour already contains it
- 1 tablespoon gluten-free baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk Make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to the cup of milk and let stand 5-10 minutes in the refrigerator to stay cold. Dairy-free use almond, cashew, or coconut milk and add the vinegar to make dairy-free buttermilk.
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter dairy-free/Vegan use Smart Balance butter, shortening, or Earth Balance butter
- 1 large egg egg-free/Vegan use Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer
- 2 tablespoons gluten-free all-purpose flour (I Like Pillsbury gluten-free)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450° F.
- In a large bowl add the gluten-free flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and give it a quick whisk or stir to combine the ingredients. I like Pillsbury gluten-free flour. Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. You may experience different baking results depending on the gluten-free flour blend you choose.
- Cut the butter into small pieces and put in the freezer for 10 minutes. If you do not have buttermilk make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to the cup of milk and let stand 5-10 minutes in the refrigerator to keep cold. You can also make buttermilk out of dairy-free milk.
- Cut in butter (or shortening for dairy-free) into the flour with a pastry cutter or fork until it looks like the size of small peas.
- Add in the buttermilk and the whisked egg (or egg replacer) and stir until a soft dough forms. (I whisk the egg right in the buttermilk) The key is to not over mix because over-mixing causes the dough to yield tough biscuits. The dough will be sticky.
- Add one tablespoon of flour to a large piece of parchment paper. PLEASE DO NOT ROLL OUT THE DOUGH.
- Place the dough on top of the floured parchment paper. Dust the top of the dough with 1 tablespoon of flour and gently fold dough over on itself 2 times. You do this by folding the dough in half on top of itself and then doing it a second time.
- With your hands form a dough round that is about 7 inches in diameter and 1 inch thick. If you make it any larger or flatter you will end up with hard, flat biscuits.
- Cut out 2-inch biscuits using a biscuit cutter, the mouth of a glass or the lid of a mason jar. Do not twist cutter when cutting; this will crimp the edges of the biscuit causing it not to rise well. Reform the dough scraps into a dough round and cut out more biscuits. Put the biscuits on a greased large cast iron pan or baking sheet. You will have 12 biscuits to bake.
- Bake the biscuits for 15-20 minutes at 450° F. At the 15-minute point please check your biscuits to see if they are golden brown. Please watch your biscuits because all ovens are different.
- I like to brush melted butter on top of the warm biscuits. Serve warm and enjoy!
- The biscuits can be stored in an airtight container. They are best enjoyed warm.
Notes
- I like Pillsbury gluten-free flour. Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. You may experience different baking results depending on the gluten-free flour blend you choose.
- I test baked with the Bob's Red Mill Cup for Cup, Great Value Gluten-Free Flour, King Arthur, Pamela's, Better Batter and Pillsbury Gluten-Free flour. The Bob's Red Mill flour, the Great Value Flour, King Arthur and Pamela's has sorghum flour in it, which is different from the Pillsbury gluten-free flour.
- The biscuits made with Bob's Red Mill, Great Value Brand, King Arthur, and Pamela's were not as fluffy and the dough was wetter. If you use King Arthur gluten-free flour you will need to add ½ cup more flour to the recipe. So you will need 2 ½ cup of King Arthur gluten-free flour.
- The best way to measure gluten-free flour is the “spoon & level” method. Using a spoon, scoop the flour into the measuring cup. After you’ve spooned the flour into the measuring cup, use the back of a knife to level off the top of the measuring cup. Friends, please do not scoop the flour out of the bag with your measuring cup.
- For dairy-free option use Smart balance butter or shortening, almond, cashew or coconut milk.
- For egg-free use Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Egg Replacer. The egg-free biscuits were not as fluffy as the regular biscuits but were still flaky and delicious!
- If Vegan use egg replacer, shortening/Earth Balance butter, and dairy-free milk. The Vegan biscuits were not as fluffy as the regular biscuits but were still flaky and delicious!
- You can batch make the biscuits and save some for later. Flash freeze the cut biscuits (unbaked) for 30 minutes on a parchment lined baking sheet before placing them in a freezer bag and putting them back into the freezer. When you are ready to make your biscuits bake the frozen biscuits for 15-20 minutes at 450° F. Please watch your oven because all ovens are different.
- I have the K&S Artisan Complete Pastry Cutter Set
- Mama says, "Check all of your labels!"
Gail Wilson says
Made these again a week ago and am so delighted to once again have biscuits! Thank you Audrey for investing your time and talent to help those of us who can’t handle gluten❤️
Christina says
Wow, this recipe is AMAZING! I decided to give this recipe a try on a whim and it’s honestly the best GF bread/biscuit I’ve ever had. We have tried SO many different types of GF breads, baked goods, etc. After years of GF trial and error, I just assumed all GF baked goods would just be subpar. Not with this recipe! I was so thrilled. A couple of short cuts: I just folded all the ingredients together and skipped cutting it out into biscuits. I thought I would try a “drop biscuit” style. I dropped a large spoonful into a paper muffin liner and threw two of them into the Airfryer at 400 degrees for 8 minutes and they literally tasted perfect. This will be so helpful for rushed school mornings. Thank you SO MUCH for creating these amazing, life-changing recipes. I’m so excited to try other recipes on this site!
Chuck says
I made these biscuits for supper, did this recipe but I used lactose free milk since my lady is lactose intolerance. The family loved it. Also I used the gluten free flour to make my sausage gravy to go over the biscuits. The meal was a success. Thanks can’t wait to try more of your meals!!!!
Brenda Willis says
Thanks so much for returning biscuits to my gluten free life! Have not had biscuits for over 12 years and this recipe is delicious and would have to say even better than my Moms biscuits and she was an expert! I used a combo of King Arthur general purpose baking mix and GF Bisquick and turned out perfectly light and airy and buttery tasting. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Love them.
Gail Wilson says
I just made these for dinner this evening and I am so thankful to finally find an easy to make gluten free biscuit recipe that is absolutely delicious! They were so soft and golden brown and even my husband who doesn’t care for gluten free breads liked them! I have truly missed being able to eat biscuits since my doctor advised me to go gluten free so thank you for this “keeper” recipe.
Becky says
Hi! These biscuits are a favorite in my house! My family is gf and df. Before I found this recipe I tried so many biscuit recipes and they were edible I but nothing like the southern biscuits we all knew. Your recipe turns has never failed, and we’ve made them almost weekly. I used Bob’s 1:1 bc I couldn’t find pillsbury, oat milk with 1 tbsp of lemon juice, and country crock olive oil sticks. Perfection, every time!
Lynette says
Wow – these were so delicious and quite easy to make! They are very sticky when folding and cutting, but turned out perfect! I substituted fine coconut sugar for the sugar and the whole family loved them – baby, toddler and hubby. Easy to adapt to make PALEO. Thank you so much!!
Kris says
I LOVE these biscuits so much!! 😊 I have been researching and experimenting with biscuit recipes and gluten-free flours for so long working to create that flaky biscuity texture and this recipe is phenomenal! I appreciate all of the testing you did of the gluten-free flours and the recommendation of the Pillsbury brand! I, too, had tried so many of the other brands and wasn’t liking the way they turned out and looked all over for this flour and, then, all of a sudden, one of my favorite grocery stores started carrying a few of them. I couldn’t wait to try it and got up, tonight, in the middle of the night and made them! SO DELICIOUS!! I also appreciated all of your tips when making them…thank you for everything you did in putting this recipe together. I just signed up for your ebook of recipes! Thank you, thank you🌈
MelO says
These biscuits are fantastic! I’m from the south and I grew up eating biscuits made by my grandmother. I was really sad to have to go gluten free and I searched for a good biscuit recipe for over 7 years before I finally found this one. These are even good (great, actually!) for coffee & biscuits…you know, where we southerners soak the biscuits in coffee before we eat them! I tried a few other recipes after I found this one and none of them even came close. This is the biscuit recipe I’ll pass down to my own kids.
Carrie says
Thanks for all the detailed research and sharing your findings as you tried the different flours and ingredient combos. I am newly GF so have a steep learning curve and don’t know what and why to look for. Made these as specified but since dinner was still 3 hours away I used your refrigerator trick so I could bake them right before dinner was served. The only change I made was adding a little honey to the melted butter painted on top. I was shocked how nicely the biscuits held together, the “dough” seemed very crumbly, I was afraid they would fall apart. Maybe I did something wrong but they turned out fine. Thanks again for sharing your expertise.
Karen says
I just made these biscuits and they came out just so light and fluffy! Thank you so much for this recipe. I used Divided Sunset gluten free all purpose flour.
Jolene says
Thanks for a good gf biscuit recipe! I used my own flour blend and it worked well.
Lisa C. says
These biscuits are AWESOME! I didn’t have to do anything special with this recipe, which I loved. The biscuits were flaky, moist, and not one bit gummy like most GF breads. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Luisa says
Thank you so much for sharing your recipe! It is the first time in over 9 years that I have eaten biscuits that aren’t rock hard!!! Even with the ingredients that I use for my Mock Better Mixture ( rice flour, cassava flour, corn starch , gelatin and xanthum gum – ) and lard instead of butter and coconut milk – they turned out just like normal biscuits!😀 Thanks
Luisa says
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us!!! I live in South America and don’t have access to all the different kinds of gluten free flour so I make my version of mock better batter with white rice flour , cassava root flour , cornstarch, gelatin, and xanthum gum. I have never had any luck making biscuits they always turned out like rocks! This is the first time in over 9 years that I have been able to enjoy good gluten-free biscuits!!👏🏻👏🏻😃 I was so excited that my biscuits were actually rising that I started singing!! THANK YOU!!!
Colleen says
I used Bob Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour and used 2% milk with the 1 tbsp of lemon juice to sour. Fantastic hot from the oven… though not as good several hours later. So I think when I make again, I will use the freezing trick and then can put them in the oven just before I want to serve them. Thanks for the good recipe.
Shelby says
Made a special trip to the store to get the recommended Pilsbury GF flour and made the recipe as written (buttermilk and real butter) . Hubby and I just indulged in one fresh out of the oven – oh, so yummy! Gluten free biscuits are hard to pull off! These were fluffy and moist and perfect. Hubby says they are the kind of biscuit that would go well with gravy. Next time I will make a double batch and keep some on standby in the freezer. Thank you for this lovely recipe.
Dot says
These biscuits are tasty. 😋 We are plant-based and gf. It can be challenging at times but these have become an instant fav. I used Bob Red mill 1 to 1 gf flour, soymilk, Energy egg replacer and homemade df butter. Yummy! Baked some light life hot dogs along with biscuits. I really was surprised of the nice golden color. GF? Lol. Thanks again for sharing.
Dawn Parks says
These biscuits are the best! Even my husband said he loved them!! Thanks for sharing!!Dawn
Jennifer Collins says
I have to say I was very skeptical when I read your post because zi have tried so many recipes trying to find a recipe for my husband to be able to enjoy biscuits again. He is both gf & df. To no avail I have always failed until yesterday with your recipe that I followed to a tee, ( had to go to 3 grocery stores to find the flour, was shocked to find it) When I finally pulled those biscuits out of the oven, I had to do a small happy dance there in the kitchen, because zi knew that he would finally be happy to have sausage biscuits and biscuits with Msyhaw jelly back in his life after 6 long years.Thank you for all your hard work for the recipe.
Audrey says
Jennifer you just made my day! I am so happy that you and your husband the biscuits. I am glad that you were able to find the Pillsbury gluten-free flour. I order it from Walmart or Amazon. You are so very welcome, I love sharing the recipes I make for my family and helping others. Thank you for the wonderful recipe review.
Susan says
I have made biscuits a number of times using this recipe. It surpasses any other recipe for gluten free biscuits and I am so appreciative of it. I actually cut the recipe in half, which was a mistake because I ate three biscuites as soon as they came out of the oven. I put ham on one and ate the other two with butter. That left only one! I ate that one the next day. lol. Next time…….full recipe. Thanks Audrey for all your hard work and for making my gluten free life easier. I, also, bought your cookbook which I love! I’ve already used many recipes from that. Thanks again!
Audrey says
Susan you just made my day! Thank you so much for the awesome recipe review and for buying my cookbook. You are so welcome, I love sharing the recipes I make for my family and helping others.