Sourdough Biscuits
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Use up your “discarded” starter in these EPIC biscuits! With that sourdough tang, these biscuits are so flaky, so buttery + so so good.
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reasons to make sourdough biscuits
- Easy, simple recipe for beginners and home bakers
- Moist and tender on the inside
- Crispy and flaky on the outside
- Has just the right amount of tang
- Great way to use up extra sourdough starter
- Perfect for breakfast, sandwiches or a side dish for stews and soups
what is sourdough discard
Sourdough discard is the excess portion of the sourdough starter that is being removed and thrown away before feeding the starter. Sourdough starter is the active portion, combining flour and water, and allowing it to ferment. The starter is fed regularly to keep it healthy and is used to make sourdough bread.
sourdough starter or discard, which to use
Discard! Just starting your sourdough journey, feeding it regularly and not knowing what to do with all the excess starter? No need to throw it in the trash. It’s time to make sourdough biscuits, perfect for breakfast with scrambled eggs and bacon or go purist-style and split them open, serving with butter, fruit jam or honey.
tips and tricks for success
- Start with frozen butter. Using frozen butter is ideal, contributing to a better rise and flakier biscuits. If using warm butter, it will melt too quickly during mixing. We want the butter to melt in the oven for those super flaky layers.
- Use buttermilk. While adding a slightly tangy flavor, buttermilk is a key ingredient here contributing to the flavor, texture and rise. Using milk will lead to more neutral flavors along with flat and dense biscuits. You can also make a buttermilk substitute using milk, adding 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup milk.
- Avoid overworking the dough. Knead the dough just until it comes together. Overworking the dough can lead to dense, dry biscuits.
- Use a floured biscuit cutter. Flouring the biscuit cutter beforehand will prevent sticking. Avoid twisting the cutter as the biscuits may slope and rise unevenly.
- Freeze before baking. Although biscuits can be frozen before or after baking, freezing before baking is preferred to preserve texture and for optimal freshness.
FREEZING AND STORAGE
Storage
Leftover biscuits can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Reheating
Reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes.
Freeze before baking
Place the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper, freezing for 1 hour until solid. Transfer the biscuits to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 3 weeks. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and bake as directed.
Freeze after baking
Let the biscuits cool completely. Transfer the biscuits to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 3 weeks. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes.
what to serve with sourdough biscuits
Sourdough Biscuits: Frequently Asked Questions
Sourdough discard can be kept at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the fridge for 7-10 days. Although discard can be kept indefinitely (as long as there is no mold), it will become more acidic and sour over time.
A quick and easy buttermilk substitute is creating your own buttermilk with whole milk and something acidic such as lemon juice or distilled white vinegar.
You can add 1 tablespoon acid (lemon juice or vinegar) to 1 cup milk, letting it stand for 5-10 minutes.
A sharp knife should do the trick using a downward motion. Using a dull rim, such as a glass or mason jar, can prevent the biscuits from rising.
Yes! Biscuits are very freezer-friendly, flash freezing once assembled (before baking) and storing in the freezer for up to 3 weeks.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Sourdough Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup unsalted butter, frozen
- 1 cup sourdough discard
- ½ cup buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
- Grate butter using the large holes of a box grater. Stir into the flour mixture.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together sourdough starter and buttermilk. Add to the flour mixture and stir using a rubber spatula until a soft dough forms.
- Working on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough 2-3 times until it comes together. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 1 1/2-inch thick rectangle. Cut out 8-10 rounds using a 2-inch biscuit or cookie cutter.
- Place biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 14-18 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Serve warm.
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These are delicious. I was short on time and patted the dough out onto a parchment sheet, used a knife and cut the dough into squares! They still had that nice flakey high rise as seen in your pictures
These were amazing! I have never baked with sourdough starter until now and I used my discard for this (activated it before using it in the recipe). They turned out great! I baked mine for 13 minutes and also did an eggwash (egg yolk and buttermilk) and rolled the tops in demerara sugar for a nice crunch. When they came out I topped them with honey and raspberry jalapeno jam. Wow 10/10 thanks for another amazing recipe!
Made this for the second time today. Fabulous taste and a great way to use sourdough discard too!
Absolutely superb! 🙂
I followed the recipe exactly and used discard rather than active starter. This is going to be my “go-to” discard recipe for sure!
These are absolutely perfect! If I had to compare them to something, it would be McDonald’s breakfast biscuits (which is exactly what I wanted).
I’m actually currently making them a second time by request of my partner
These freeze very well! I keep a batch in my freezer at all times. So good!
I freeze mine too! What temp do you bake at and for how long?
This recipe makes the best biscuits! Thank you for sharing!
Damn delicious!
I have made the biscuits and froze them unbaked and they still turn out good but don’t seem to raise as high(I baked mine at a lower temp for longer). I also have baked them and then froze them. They reheat very well in the toaster oven
I make these biscuits all the time. They are very good. Sometimes I add herbs like rosemary or thyme. I have also made them with garlic powder and shredded cheese. They always turn out very yummy.
These were amazing! I tripled the batch and was able to make 28 biscuits. I baked them on a metal sheet pan with parchment paper for 15 minutes 1/2 inch apart and they came out super flaky, tall, and soft! Perfect recipe for biscuits. Definitely will be using this recipe in the future.
Can you substitute buttermilk with something else?
I didn’t have any milk on hand so instead I used 1/2 cup of milk mixed with 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice. I mixed them together and let the mixture sit for 10 minutes before mixed in the starter. They were delicious!!
I substitute my home cultured Kefir all the time for buttermilk.
Question: I’m using gluten free flour, do I need to use xanthan gum with the sourdough starter?
Looking forward to trying these sourdough biscuits!!!
Delicious! I only had 1/2C starter from night before, rice milk and dairy free butter. I made them as drop biscuits and still turned out amazing!
Make them the night before and freeze. In the morning pop them in your preheated oven frozen and bake as directed. Make a double batch and have homemade biscuits always ready to serve. Also I cut the dough into squares and never have those not so perfect, re-rolled from scraps, biscuits.
Hi, Do I bake the biscuits before I freeze them ? “bake as directed”….the baking time remains the same even though they are frozen?
Thanks for the tip !!!
I have made the biscuits and froze them unbaked and they still turn out good but don’t seem to raise as high(I baked mine at a lower temp for longer). I also have baked them and then froze them. They reheat very well in the toaster oven
I agree Courtney. I make a batch and then froze unbaked. When I baked them, there was barely any rise.
I’m a self declared biscuit snob, but this recipe has elevated my what I expect to a whole new level. Tangy, fluffy and chewy all at the same time.
GreT recipe Family loved the biscuits.would definitely make again. My oven is new took onw12 /13 minutes to bake perfectly..Thanks for the recipe
So easy and so yummy! I didn’t have a full cup of sourdough starter…. maybe had like 3/4 a cup. Biscuits still turned out delish!
If I could give this a 10, I would. I am an avid baker and have made buttermilk biscuits in the past. This recipe is the best of them all. Thanks for the recipe. I made these with beef stew and WOW!!!.. This was great for the soul. If you knew me, I would not say this about any recipe. I love to bake with sourdough. I feed my sourdough regularly and wanted to find more recipes to make and this surpassed any expectations. Thanks again.