The Secret to Perfect Southern Biscuits
Follow these 12 secrets and your biscuits will be top notch!
Servings: 24
Calories: 300kcal
Ingredients
- 4 Cups Self Rising Flour White Lily Soft Winter Wheat plus extra for dusting the bread board and for kneading.
- 1 tablespoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Granulated white sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon Kosher salt divided
- ⅔ Cups Crisco Shortening
- 2 Cups Very Cold Buttermilk
- ⅓ Cup Evaporated Milk
- 2 tablespoon unsalted sweet cream butter - melted
- 6 tablespoon unsalted sweet cream butter - divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. That's super hot!
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, sugar and a ½ teaspoon salt together with a whisk. The whisk helps mix things very well.
- Drop the Crisco into the flour mixture and use a pastry cutter to cut the crisco into the dry ingredients. Rock the cutter and make chopping motions until the crisco is in small pieces and the flour has a wet clumpy appearance throughout (see photo). Do NOT use your hands to mix the crisco in.
- Keep the buttermilk in the fridge until ready to use. Add the buttermilk all at once and mix together with a rubber spatula until it just comes together.
- Place ½ a stick of butter (4 Tbsp) in a rimmed half sheet pan (jelly roll pan) and allow it to melt in the oven as the oven comes to temp. Do not allow the butter to burn. You will hear it bubbling probably. The butter should be melted and bubbly (but not black) by the end of the next 3 steps.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface (it will be very wet looking) and sprinkle the surface with a small amount of flour. Knead the dough by folding it over on itself about 6-8 times. Sprinkle on enough flour as you go to keep it from sticking to the board. It is going to stick to your hands a little no matter what you do. The dough should feel soft and smooth when it is ready.
- Using your hands pat and press the dough down into a flat circle that is 1” thick (no need to use a rolling pin).
- Cut the biscuits using a biscuit cutter and cut in a straight motion down towards the counter. DO NOT twist the cutter. Remove the hot buttered pan from the oven. Sprinkle half of the remaining salt onto the hot buttered pan.
- Gently lay the cut biscuits onto the hot pan into the butter. The biscuits may touch one another. Put the biscuits in the pan quickly so as to return the pan to the oven as quickly as possible. Brush the tops of the biscuits with evaporated milk using a pastry brush. Sprinkle some of the rest of the salt over the tops of the biscuits. Return the pan to the hot oven. Shut the oven door and DO NOT open it again for at least 10 minutes.
- Bake biscuits for 18-25 minutes. The biscuits are done when they are golden brown and risen.
- On removing the biscuits from the oven, brush with hot melted butter. This recipe will yield 18-24 biscuits.
Notes
See the post for the Pro Tip!
Nutrition
Calories: 300kcal