Bo's Buttermilk Biscuits

Bo’s buttermilk biscuits are six-ingredient Southern biscuits done right. Flour, buttermilk, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and a tablespoon of shortening. The fold-and-roll method is what gets these tall, with visible flaky layers when you split one open.

The baking soda is the move that separates a great buttermilk biscuit from a mediocre one. The acid in buttermilk reacts with the soda to give a powerful, immediate rise that baking powder alone can’t match. If your buttermilk is genuinely sour (not just commercially cultured), add a pinch more soda to balance the extra acid.

Get these in a hot 400°F (200°C) oven the moment they’re cut. Resting biscuit dough kills the rise.

Pro Tips

• Work the dough as little as possible. Overworked biscuit dough turns dense and tough; you want to see streaks of unmixed flour going into the oven.
• The fold-and-roll step creates layers. Roll out, fold in thirds like a letter, roll again. This builds the structure that flakes apart.
• Cut straight down with the biscuit cutter, no twisting. Twisting seals the edges and prevents proper rise.
• Bake on a sheet without a silicone mat. The bare metal gives the bottoms a crisp brown crust.

Variations

• Swap shortening for cold butter (cubed) for richer flavor with the same flake. Use 2 tablespoons since butter has water.
• Stir in 1 cup grated sharp cheddar for cheese biscuits.
• Add 2 tablespoons honey to the buttermilk for a sweeter, breakfast-leaning biscuit.