A few weeks ago my partner woke up craving biscuits. He’s somewhat of a biscuit aficionado so I knew I had to pull out all the stops to impress. This vegan buttermilk biscuit recipe has always lived in my back pocket but after three years of dating, I had still never made them for him. Now they’ve become a weekly thing because we’re eating them so fast.
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This recipe uses vegan buttermilk. It’s super simple to make and works in any recipe that calls for buttermilk, vegan or not. All you need is a cup of plant milk of your choice and a tablespoon of acid. The usual acid of choice for me is lemon juice, however, you can also use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar. You won’t be able to taste the acid in the final product so don’t stress over that. Once you add the acid to the plant milk, set it aside for around 5 minutes to sour and curdle. I know that sounds disgusting but just trust me on this. I do this as the first step of making the biscuits so when it comes time to mix in the milk it’s ready.
Once you add the dry ingredients to the bowl, it’s time to cut in the butter. You can absolutely do this with a pastry cutter or two forks but if we’re being honest here, I use my hands when I can’t be bothered to take my time. Just be aware, if you use your hands you will melt the butter into the dough and they won’t be quite as flaky. Reserve a little extra butter on the side to melt up and brush on the biscuits before they go into the oven.
I absolutely love these biscuits with butter and jam or veganaise and fresh tomato slices.
Add in your vegan buttermilk 1/4 cup at a time until sticky dough forms. You won’t need the entire cup of milk but the amount will differ based on the environment you’re baking in. Once the dough comes together, turn out onto a floured surface and knead just until the dough is no longer sticky. This happens fairly quickly so doing it by hand is no trouble at all. Roll out the dough until it’s about 1 inch thick and cut into your biscuits. You can use a biscuit cutter or a wine glass lightly floured on the rim. The key to tall fluffy buttermilk biscuits is the way you cut them. Take your biscuit cutter and cut straight down and lift straight up. Do not twist the cutter. When you twist, it seals the sides of the biscuit which will prevent them from rising to their full potential. Keep rolling out and cutting the dough until you run out of dough. You should get around 5 biscuits depending on the size of your cutter.
Once all the buttermilk biscuits are cut, place them onto a baking sheet and make a small indent on the top with your finger. This also helps with the rise in the baking process. Brush each with melted butter and bake away! Allow the biscuits to cool for around 30 minutes before diving in.
- 2 cups AP flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 4 tbsp unsalted vegan butter (plus a little more for melting), cubed and cold
- 1 cup plant-based buttermilk 1 cup plant milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice or white vinegar
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add butter and combine with hands until mixture is the texture of soft sand.
- Add buttermilk one 1/4 cup at a time until sticky dough forms. You will not need the whole cup.
- Turn dough out onto a floured surface and gently knead until it all comes together and is no longer sticky. Roll out to a 1 inch thickness and cut out biscuits. Keep reforming dough and rolling out until you run out of dough (should be around 5 biscuits).
- Place biscuts on a baking sheet (do not let them touch) and brush tops with melted butter. Poke a small divot into the middle of each biscuit with your finger.
- Bake for 13-16 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before diving in.