Sour cream biscuits are almost unbelievably soft, with tender, flaky layers and a slight tang that makes them downright irresistible. This easy biscuit recipe uses basic pantry staples like all-purpose flour, butter, and just a touch of milk to create golden brown perfection. Once you try them, they might just become your new go-to biscuit recipe!
What makes this sour cream biscuits recipe so special? It’s all about the texture. The sour cream acts as both a tenderizer and a fat, giving your biscuits a moist, rich crumb without feeling heavy. Unlike traditional buttermilk biscuits, these have a smoother bite with subtle tangy notes that balance out savory or sweet toppings beautifully.
One of the best parts of using sour cream in biscuits is how easy they are to work with. The dough comes together quickly and is easy to roll and cut. You don’t need any fancy tools—just a mixing bowl, a biscuit cutter (or even a glass), and a baking sheet. And because the fat content is higher, you get those dreamy, bakery-style layers with minimal effort.
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Why We Love This Recipe
- The rich, tangy flavor is so delicious you can enjoy this sour cream biscuit recipe all on its own! Even so…
- They’re great to use in other recipes, It’s the best biscuit recipe to learn when making savory dinners, breakfast sandwiches, and more!
- The bake time is extremely short — less than 25 minutes! Not quite as quick as our 15-minute Bisquick biscuits with buttermilk… but they come pretty close!
If you’re new to baking biscuits or want to explore more easy options, check out our quick easy biscuit recipes for foolproof favorites you’ll love!
Why Use Sour Cream in Biscuits?
The answer is all about moisture and flavor! Sour cream in biscuits creates an incredibly soft, tender texture thanks to its fat content. It also adds a bit of acidity, which helps activate the baking powder for better lift and rise. Plus, the slight tang of sour cream gives your biscuits a subtle depth of flavor that’s just a little more special than your everyday buttermilk biscuit.
So whether you’re making these for brunch guests or just want something cozy on a Sunday morning, sour cream is the secret ingredient you didn’t know your biscuit recipe needed.
Why Make Biscuits With All Purpose Flour?
Self-rising, bread, whole wheat, and cake… of all the types of flour that you could use in the kitchen, what makes biscuits with all purpose flour the best?
The truth is that the flour is all about the body. We need a flour that hosts a healthy amount of protein — which you need to develop gluten — but not so much that the biscuit becomes too dense.
High-protein flours like bread flour will yield a very chewy biscuit, while low-protein cake flour will be so soft that you won’t get that golden brown crust. All purpose flour falls right in the middle for a tender, pillow center and perfect crust.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- All purpose flour: All of the ingredients need to be cold, so stick it in the fridge 15 to 20 minutes before starting! You can’t go wrong with simple, all purpose flour! We explain why below.
- Butter: It needs to be cold, and it needs to be salted! Freeze the butter beforehand and grate it so that it can be easily incorporated into the dough.
- Sour cream: Again, it needs to be cold! It’s possible to use low-fat variations, but full-fat sour cream makes for a fuller, richer flavor.
- Milk: An optional ingredient to get the classic, golden, Southern sour cream biscuits look!
Recipe Variations
- Use unsalted butter – This gives you better control over the flavor and salt content in the dough.
- Roll dough thinner for crispier, biscuit-style rounds—or thicker for those tall, diner-style classics.
- Want to bake biscuits straight from the freezer? When you need fresh biscuits quickly, simply freeze them unbaked and pop them into a hot oven.
- Add a touch of baking powder and don’t overwork the dough if you love fluffy biscuits with tall layers.
- Mix in garlic powder and fresh herbs like chives or rosemary for a savory version that’s perfect with soups or roasted chicken.
Equipment Used in this Recipe
- Medium mixing bowl
- Dough whisk
- Wooden spoon
- Baking sheet
- Large bowl
- Rolling pin
- Biscuit cutter
How to Make Sour Cream Biscuits Recipe
- Fold the dough for fluffy, flaky layers.
The most important step of this recipe is to fold three separate times to create a thick, layered piece of dough that you’ll cut the sour cream biscuits from.
This technique is crucial for a tender, layered biscuit! If you’re more of a visual learner (we are, too!) then see this technique in action over in our homemade biscuits with self-rising flour recipe. See the video at the 48-second mark!
- Gently roll out the dough in a lightly floured surface.
In order to keep the butter from melting, handle the dough as little as possible.
Dump it out onto the table, pat it out, then use a rolling pin to roll it out to your desired thickness.
- How to make biscuits that rise right every time.
Want to know how to cut biscuits that are guaranteed to be fluffy and pillowy? It’s not always about the ingredients — it’s also a matter of technique!
And it all comes down to the motion itself. You need to press the cutter down and lift it up… that’s it!
It might seem simple, but many people actually twist the cutter to get a clean cut out. They don’t realize that, by doing this, they’re sealing the edges and preventing them from rising during baking.
So don’t complicate things: press, lift, repeat!
- Don’t overbake… and don’t underbake, either!
It can be a little tricky to know when a biscuit is done baking, so keep an eye out for these tell-tale signs that your batch is ready to leave the oven.
Visually, they’ll rise considerably and become golden brown around the edges and top. If they’re pale, they likely need more time.
Additionally, they should be firm. Check by giving them a quick tap on the surface. If there’s a bit of resistance, and you leave a small dent, they’re done!
If you poke the biscuit and it doesn’t bounce back, or if you end up with batter on your finger, it requires more time.
Love flaky biscuits? Some of my best biscuits are easy drop buttermilk biscuits and my go-to recipe for cheese biscuits with Bisquick. Try these recipes and it might be your new favorite!
Serving Suggestions
These sour cream biscuits are incredibly versatile. Serve them warm with a pat of butter and a drizzle of honey or your favorite jam for a comforting breakfast or brunch. They also pair beautifully with sausage gravy, crispy bacon, or slices of salty ham for a heartier Southern-style meal.
For a fun twist, try adding a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese to the dough before baking, or serve alongside a bubbly brunch with citrus juice or soda on the side. You can use them to mop up soups and stews; wait until you see how well they soak up flavor!
🎯 TFN Pro Tip
Make 10 regular-sized or several smaller sour cream biscuits.
Using a 2 ¼” cutter, as we do, will yield 10 old fashioned biscuits with all purpose flour. This is a good size for breakfast sandwiches, to serve with gravy, as a dinner side, and so on.
But if you’re looking to make a larger number or snack-sized rolled biscuits, then use a 1 ¾” cutter or even a shot glass like we do with our mini biscuits — this size makes for a fantastic appetizer!
Recipe FAQs
If your sour cream biscuits come out crumbly, it’s likely that you used too much flour. There aren’t many other dry ingredients in our sour cream biscuit recipe, after all, so there couldn’t be any other culprit!
When combined, the dough should be solid yet sticky. If it seems crumbly even at this stage, add a bit more sour cream.
In our sour cream biscuit recipe, we brush with milk before baking. This helps the biscuit tops brown — but not get too brown or overbaked.
We then brush with melted butter after baking to get the same buttery flavor! It’s really a best-of-both-worlds technique.
Yes! And this is an especially great recipe to freeze because there is no rising involved. No added complications!
Line them on a baking sheet and transfer to a freezer. Once partially frozen, transfer to a freezer bag and store for up to 3 months.
Sour cream biscuits can be kept on the countertop for 2 days or so. Store in a Ziploc baggie or other airtight container. They’ll keep for up to a week in the fridge, if you wish to make them last even longer.
Reheat in the oven at a lower temperature, around 375°F, for just a few minutes until warmed through.
More Breakfast Recipes To Love…
If you tried this sour cream biscuits recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Sour Cream Biscuits
Equipment
- medium mixing bowl
- dough whisk
- rimmed baking sheet
- rolling pin
- Biscuit cutter
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour cold
- 2 teaspoons baking powder cold
- ½ teaspoon salt cold
- 6 tablespoons butter shredded from frozen *See Notes
- 1 cup sour cream cold
- 2 tablespoons milk optional (for brushing tops before baking)
Instructions
- To encourage a higher rise and fluffier texture in the biscuits, chill all dry ingredients in the fridge for 15-20 minutes.
- While ingredients are chilling, use the large holes of a box grater to grate the frozen butter. Then, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 425°F.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk until completely mixed.Create a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the butter and sour cream. Stir until the dough comes together in a ball. You may need to finish mixing by hand.
- Lightly flour your work surface and place dough on it. Using your hands, flatten it into a disc shape about 2 inches thick.Fold the bottom third of dough up and over the middle, then fold the top third down, (like you're folding a letter). Turn the dough clockwise 1/4 turn, then fold letter style again. After folding, you should have a thick square of dough consisting of several layers.
- Lightly dust rolling pin, then roll the dough into a disc shape about 1 inch thick. Using a 2 1/4-inch biscuit cutter, cut out 10 biscuits from dough. Note: Press the cutter straight down through the dough, then pull it straight up – do not twist. Twisting seals the edges of the dough, resulting in dense, flat biscuits.
- Arrange unbaked dough on the prepared baking sheet, leaving 1-inch of space between each. Optional step: Before transferring sour cream biscuits to the oven, use a pastry brush to apply a little milk to the tops, to encourage browning. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, or until biscuit tops are golden.
Notes
- Use unsalted butter – This gives you better control over the flavor and salt content in the dough.
- Roll dough thinner for crispier, biscuit-style rounds—or thicker for those tall, diner-style classics.
- Want to bake biscuits straight from the freezer? Freeze them unbaked and pop them into a hot oven whenever you need fresh biscuits in a flash.
- Add a touch of baking powder and don’t overwork the dough if you love fluffy biscuits with tall layers.
- Mix in garlic powder and fresh herbs like chives or rosemary for a savory version that’s perfect with soups or roasted chicken.
- You can keep sour cream biscuits on the countertop for about two days. Store in a Ziploc baggie or other airtight container. They’ll keep for up to a week in the fridge, if you wish to make them last even longer.
- Reheat in the oven at a lower temperature, around 375°F, for just a few minutes until warmed through.
Nutrition
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Tara says
Oh yum! That flavor sounds amazing with the use of the sour cream. I love how quickly the biscuits come together too.
Amanda Wren-Grimwood says
This recipe came out perfectly and thank you for all of the tips too – really useful.
Dannii says
These were so light and flakey. Really incredible!
Suja md says
This was delicious! We really enjoyed both making and eating it!
Erik says
These were so delightful. Never thought that sour cream could add so much to biscuits.