These easy gluten free Buttermilk Biscuits are ready to enjoy in less than 30 minutes. Perfect smeared with jam, or served with your favorite hearty soup.
In my pre-gluten free days, I used to make a pretty mean biscuit.
The kind that Aunt Bee would serve to Opie. The kind that you could use to clean your plate after a meal. The kind that were great for dinner, brunch, or breakfast, topped with cheese and jam or just a dab of butter. I missed those.
I tried to convert my old recipe, and it just did not work well. But, after creating these yummy gluten free Vanilla Scones, I figured that I could tweak that recipe to make some great big, fluffy gluten free Buttermilk Biscuits to go with our soup. And it worked.
Some more gluten free breads you might enjoy:
- Gluten Free Popovers
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Scones
- Gluten Free Millet Sandwich Bread
- Artisan Gluten Free Bread
- Gluten Free Pull Apart Dinner Rolls
Easy Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe:
Easy Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits
The type of light & fluffy gluten free buttermilk biscuit you can serve for dinner, brunch, or breakfast, topped with cheese and jam or just a dab of butter.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca starch
- 3 teaspoons xanthan gum (UPDATE - it works with 2 tsp, but I find 3 works best)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
- 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into chunks
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- milk for brushing the tops of biscuits before baking, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and sprinkle with some brown rice flour. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine all the dry ingredients. Pulse to combine. (If you don't have a food processor, combine all dry ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl.)
- Add the butter and pulse until the butter is the size of a lentil/pea. (Or, use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the dry ingredients, being sure to work quickly, because you want your butter to stay cold).
- Add the eggs and buttermilk, and run the food processor until the dough comes together in a ball. (Alternately, you can use a wooden spoon and stir until the dough comes together).
- Turn dough out onto the parchment lined baking sheet, and flour your hands with more brown rice flour. Working quickly, pat the dough down into a square shape, approximately 10"x10", and 3/4-inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut into 9 biscuits.
- Gently rearrange the biscuits so they are not touching and have room to grow while they are baking. Gently brush the tops of the biscuits with milk, and sprinkle with course salt (optional).
- Bake in preheated oven for 14-16 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on a cooling rack before serving. Store remaining biscuits in an air-tight container.
Notes
Be sure to use cold butter to make buttermilk biscuits, and try to handle the dough as little as possible, so that the butter stays cold for baking.
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carrie @ gingerlemongirl.com says
lolol! Awesome looking biscuits girl… but I think you mean the kind that Aunt BEE would serve to Opie! 😛
Jeanine says
Ha! And that is why you should never do your blogging early in the morning, before the kids are awake. 😉
becky @ the Mixing Bowl Diary says
those are fantastic looking biscuits. now i need to work my dinner plans around making these tonight!! thanks 🙂
becky @ the Mixing Bowl Diary says
Ok, I made these biscuits tonight and have to say they are fantastic. Fluffy inside, slightly crisp on the outside, with a nice flavor. I served them with Vegetarian Curry Soup and they were a hit. My family is dairy free, so made a few changes: used Earth Balance in place of the butter. Also made my own dairy free buttermilk by using about 1/3c Almond Milk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice {let it sit for about 5mins before adding to the recipe}. Instead of brushing them with milk, I just sprayed them with cooking spray!!
Everyone wanted more. Thanks for the recipe. I will def. make these again.
Jeanine says
Thanks so much for the comment, Becky! I know others will find your substitutions very useful (and I’m excited to know that they worked too!). 🙂
rachel says
just a quick question as we don’t have biscuits like these in Australia (biscuits here are like cookies), so what is the difference between a scone and a biscuit?
Jeanine says
Hi Rachel, great question! I’m not a pro (I’m a home cook), but I see the scone and the American biscuit being very similar. The only differences I can see are:
Biscuits are more savoury with less sugar.
Scones are usually sweeter with add-ins (like currants or other dried fruit) and drizzled with a glaze.
However, they both use a similar process & similar ingredients when being mixed and baked. Great question! Can anyone else add to this?
InTolerant Chef says
Biscuits and scones are very similar but scones don’t use eggs. They should be lovely and fluffy still, but you’re right in that our Aussie scones are served mostly sweet especially with jam and cream like a Devonshire Tea.
Your biscuits certainly would be lovely with a big bowl of warm soup, yummm…
Rogene says
I never have come up with a good gf biscuit. But I didn’t make good biscuits before. I was famous (or should I say infamous?) for my crunchy biscuits. I’ve never used eggs in buscuit dough before — will have to give your recipe a try.
autumn says
These are impressively fluffy! You typically use superfine brown rice flour, right? Did you use that here? Thanks for a great looking recipe!
Jerry Ko | Simply Good Eating says
I love that fact that these biscuits are gluten free and fluffy. Perfect compliment with many meals 🙂 Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Megan Hull says
I just made these biscuits for the second time. They are SO good! They are great with just butter, but I also used this recipe for chicken and biscuits and were perfect!
Jeanine says
Mmm…chicken & biscuits! Sounds fantastic! Glad that the recipe worked well for you!
Heidi says
As I so often do with your recipes I double them right off the hop because I KNOW they will be good – what with getting all the extra stuff out for GF baking – makes baking for a GF family worthwhile. I made one batch plain and the other savory with garlic pwd, shredded old cheddar and some well blotted dry sliced olives. Both were amazing especially right out of the oven. I have tucked the rest into the freezer to go with chili this weekend when we are moving our son. Don’t tell him he gets to keep the MCC thrift store crockpot the chili will be heating in while we clean and pack! (Can’t send out for pizza!)
Jeanine says
That is so awesome, Heidi! I hope moving went well, and great way to think ahead of meals!
Stacy says
Thank you for a wonderful recipe! Even my DH who doesn’t have to eat GF ate 3! LOL. I highly recommend doubling this recipe. If you’re lucky enough to have any left over they make great mini sandwiches too.
Jeanine says
Thanks, Stacy! Glad to hear this. Needing some reassurance after others have had trouble with this recipe. lol
Ali Williams says
Just what I was looking for!! Thanks so much, now I’m off to make hubby some sausage gravy and your beautiful biscuits! Ali
Blair says
Hi, I found your recipe on pinterest. I made them, and they looked super fluffy and wonderful in the oven. When I took them hot to cool, however, they started to deflate. Now they are flat. They still taste good, but just wondering why this would be happening. Thanks!
Jeanine says
Hmm…did you make any substitutions? The only thing I can think of is that they needed more time to bake, if they are under baked in the middle, they would fall. I haven’t had that problem with mine though, and I’ve made these numerous times. Is your oven temp correct?
Leah says
I just made these and they tasted like sand. They were so dry. Maybe I did something wrong but I followed the recipe exactly and they came out horrible…
Jeanine says
If the texture is “sandy”, I would definitely double check your rice flour. Not all flours are created equal, you may need to look for “superfine” brown rice flour if the texture is gritty.
Amy says
Mine came out quite dense, flat and sandy – but that’s likely my mistake as I used cornstarch instead of tapioca. Do you know what kind of difference it makes to bake with one or the other flour? What kind of constituents do they offer to gluten-free baked goods?
Elizabeth says
tried making these biscuits today and they turned out amazing. I used they whey from making homemade yogurt instead of buttermilk, turned out great, tasted good too!
Jeanine says
Now that’s a great use for whey! Thanks for sharing, Elizabeth!
cindy says
These came out great! Thank you for the awesome recipe. I try to cook all homemade for my family so I’m sure I will be here quite often. :oD
Jeanine says
That’s great, Cindy! My family loves these biscuits too – feel free to add different herbs or cheese too, a very versatile recipe.
Sheena says
My family loved these! Especially my husband who loves wheat bread…he said they were the BEST biscuits ever!! Thank you for a great recipe.
Mykel says
These look great. Question…as Im still a newbie….can you sub all of this:
•1 1/4 cups brown rice flour
•1/4 cup tapioca starch
•4 teaspoons xanthan gum (UPDATE – I’ve made with 2 tsp, and it worked GREAT)
•2 teaspoons baking powder
•1 teaspoon baking soda
for a baking mix already packaged or a gf all purpose flour (adding the baking powder and soda of course)?
Jeanine Friesen says
Hi Mykel! If you have an all-purpose that has xanthan included already, you’re welcome to sub 1 1/2 cups of the all purpose flour in place of the brown rice & tapioca. I haven’t tried it myself, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
Judy says
I dud use 1-1/2 cups of an all purpose gf flour mix from Namaste Foods that had the tapioca and xantham gum in it. It came out well. Good taste and texture too. Thanks!
Jeanine Friesen says
Awesome! Glad to hear that, Judy! I’ve never tried the Namaste blend, but have only heard good things about it. Thanks for letting me know!
jeannine says
Made these tonight as directed – EXCELLENT. will definitely be making again. Guests who were over couldn’t believe they were “gluten free”
. One of the best recipes i’ve made so far. Good work. Thanks.
Jeanine Friesen says
Awesome! Glad to hear that, Jeannine! LOVE when those that don’t need to eat gluten-free are surprised by how good GF can taste. 🙂
Michelle says
Hi. If you have Food Allergies or are vegan: For buttermilk: Simply add 1 tsp vinegar (pref apple cider) to nondairy milk of choice and let it sit a few mins! (I’d use coconut milk, personally). Use the same nondairy milk for brushing. Also: for refined sugar free, use agave or coconut sugar! Guar gum may work vs xanthan gum, imo, too. Hope this info helps someone! 🙂
Rosemarie says
Just found out that ground chia works instead of xanthum too! And much better for you 😉
Michelle says
Hey, I just made these using my dairy free subs and they turned out really good! I’d include a pic here but don’t know how.
Jeanine Friesen says
Yeah! Glad to hear that, Michelle! What did you use to make them dairy free?
Beth says
Another winning recipe!! Make these for sausage biscuit sandwiches and my family loved them. They were light and fluffy. My husband has requested them for sausage gravy with biscuits next time.
Tara Grozelle says
All I have is All purpose Gluten Free flour but doesn’t have xanthan gum included.. Can I still sub the flour I have for what’s called for in the recipe? I’d really like to make those as I miss eating scones….
Rosemarie says
So here goes….subbed ground chia seed flurry for xanthum gum, and arrowroot for tapioca, and cider vinegar/almond milk for buttermilk, grated the cold butter and mixed with wooden spoon. I floured my hands and made little rounds. Still in the oven but smellls yummy…
Rosemarie says
Excellent! Needed just a bit more salt…but amazing with my homemade plum butter! 😀 Thank you!!
Jeanine Friesen says
Glad to hear all those substitutions worked for you, Rosemarie! Thanks for letting me know!
Tito says
Hi Rosemarie, for your chia seed ground, did you sub it 1 to 1 for the Xanthan? I have been doing the same lately with Gluten Free doctors Pixie Dust mix and was wondering the ratio. Also I’m subbing Arrowroot as well… looking forward to trying this tonight 🙂
Kelsie says
Made these tonight with the following substitutions (Mostly to make dairy and free)
Guar gum instead of Xantham
Coconut oil instead of butter
Almond milk instead of buttermilk (I didn’t sour it, too lazy 😉 )
Chia “egg” (1 tbsp ground chia seed mixed with 3 tbsp water) (Only because I only had 1 egg left in the fridge)
I used them for chicken ‘n’ biscuits. I mixed the dry ingredients in a metal bowl. I glopped the coconut oil on top of that, and then set it outside for 10 minutes (it’s well below freezing here today). I mixed it quickly with the pastry cutter, then formed “patties” out of it (working quickly, that coconut oil melts FAST), and dropped them on top of the chicken mixture. They were AMAZING! My kids were wide eyed in amazement, haha!
I baked the remaining dough on a pan, and they didn’t turn out quite so good, but I’m quite sure I handled them more than I did the ones in the chicken casserole, so that probably made a difference. Either way…WIN!
Thanks for the recipe! I made a different recipe of biscuits this summer, which also used rice flour. They were SO gross and gritty, I couldn’t even eat them, let alone expect my kids to…I had given up….but these were FAR superior, and I was even using the same rice flour as I did with the “other” ones.
Georgina Goulding says
Thanks so much for the great recipe Jeanine. I doubled the recipe & so glad I did…..Highly recommend doing this or you will be in your kitchen all morning making the next batch 🙂
Jeanine says
Ah, thank you so much Georgina! 😀 Love that!
Danielle says
I am not sure what I am doing wrong, but my biscuits didn’t really rise, they flattened and when done they are dry and crumbly.
The only substitution I made was a chia slurry instead of the gum. Honestly, this always happens when I attempt to make gluten free biscuits, while I never have the problem with regular ones.
What is it that I am doing wrong?
Thanks!
Jeanine says
Danielle – is your baking powder fresh? It does have a shelf-life, and if it sits in the cupboard too long, it won’t work anymore. Also, is it possible that your chia slurry is too thick, holding things down? Chia really, really sets up with time. I leave mine a little thicker before baking, and always have nice thick biscuits. Is your butter perhaps too warm?
Nikki says
Any chance I could sub blanched almond flour for rice flour? I’m not familiar with rice flour and it’s properties…
Thanks!
Jese Hadwen says
I’ve made these lots! They’re great, Tried white rice flour and they came out kinda bland. Tried buck wheat {not real wheat}, they were yummy. I sliced them and made little ham and cheese sandwiches! so good. I have some left, going to slice them in half and make french toast! Supper easy. Thanks
Deb says
I made these tonight and they didn’t fluff up at all. I don’t know if it was because I subbed potato starch for the tapioca starch or if my baking soda is bad. I will try them one more time with the Namaste flour blend because I could see the potential fluffiness
Jeanine says
That could be a part of it, they also work best if you use fresh baking powder, so a container that has been opened for a while won’t rise the same as a new container. Also, be sure to pat them a little on the thicker side, that will help them to be nice, thick biscuits when they bake up.
Beryl says
Oh my!!! These are fabulous! I needed something that I could make an Egg McMuffin for at a school breakfast programme I help out with. One of our little guys is gluten free. I do lots of gluten free baking for friendsand if any one asked for biscuits I would certainly make these. I had a pint of soured half and half that I wanted to use so that is the only thing I did differently. They rose beautifulyl and even tho’ I am not gluten free, they were divine warm out of the oven with some butter. (I had to make sure they were OK didn’t I???) Using a large biscuit cutter I got 5 English Muffin size biscuits. They will be perfect. Thanks so much!!!!!!
Jeanine says
That’s awesome, Beryl! So glad that you liked them, even though you don’t have to eat GF. Definitely have to make sure they pass though. 😉 Bless you for helping that little guy feel normal! <3
Jaclyn Smith (not THE) says
My husband and I recently went to a little diner for breakfast. Not on the menu, is a DELICIOUS breakfast called “Mr. Walter’s Special”. Biscuit, medium-fried egg, cheese, smothered in sausage gravy. It was AMAZING…and I felt so incredibly guilty for devouring it in front of my Celiac-Husband! So…Tonight…I WILL MAKE Mr. WALTER’S SPECIAL for him and our daughters!!! My mouth is already watering!!
Bridy says
These were yummy!
I used the recipe to make a biscuit top for a lazy chicken pot pie.
Jeanine says
YUM! That’s my kind of chicken pot pie! Sounds great, actually!
Donna says
Jeanine,
Just made these tonight using 1 1/2 cups of my gluten free flour (http://theculinaryartist.com/the-culinary-artists-gluten-free-flour-no-gums-added/) instead of the brown rice flour & tapioca combo. They were fabulous! Served them with gluten free chicken divan and it was a treat. They came together in no time at all using the food processor. Great recipe!
Jeanine says
Awesome, so glad to hear that, Donna! That chicken divan sounds fabulous too!
Martha says
Mine turned out harder and very brown… I’ll try them at a lower temperature but this is the second time I can’t seem to get them to work 🙁
Jeanine says
Hmm… that stinks. Sorry to hear that, Martha. Be sure to shred cold butter into the flour mixture, you want to have bits of butter still visible in the dough. Be sure your baking powder is still active, old baking powder doesn’t have the same rise new stuff does. If using darker or thin pans, definitely decrease the temperature. You may want to also invest in an oven thermometer, since ovens can vary greatly. And lately, when rolling or patting the dough out, be sure to leave the biscuits at least an inch thick, too thin, and they will bake too quickly. If you still find they turn dark too quickly, don’t brush the tops with anything before baking, and brush them with melted butter after baking. Brushing with milk helps encourage browning. Hope this helps!