I made the buttermilk biscuit recipe in The Food Lab and they are flat. I’d love to get some input from the recipe creator but I’m happy to get any guidance I can. My leading hypotheses are that I’m rolling them too thin before cutting or that my biscuit cutter isn’t sharp enough so it’s pinching the edges together rather than cutting through the dough.
by JustGreatness
15 Comments
The recipe says it makes 8 biscuits and I can see what looks like a dozen so I’m guessing you rolled too thin. Old baking powder is always something to look out for with biscuits too.
How old is your baking powder/soda? I replace mine every 4 months or so. It’s cheap, and exposure to humidity really does a number on its effectiveness over time.
Checking the expiration dates on your baking soda and baking powder.
Snuggle them closer together in the pan. They hold each other up when they bake with their sides touching.
I doubt it has to do with your biscuit cutter’s sharpness.
I don’t have a biscuit cutter so I always use a lowball glass as it’s round and the mouth is the right size.
Could be rolled too thin old baking powder/ soda or could be oven is too cold or could be your biscuits/ butter was too warm. This is an excellent recipe so i hate to say it but its definitely something you did. Hopefully given this and other comments can help you troubleshoot
Did you use Biscuit flower? It has a different protein content than all purpose
Also make sure that you aren’t rotating the cutter after you cut in. Just one clean cut down.
Over working the dough will totally flatten your biscuits and make them tough. Keep cold and barely touch.
when you used the biscuit cutter, did you twist? did you use anything other than a biscuit cutter? these biscuits kind of look like the edges may have been sealed so they couldn’t rise appropriately.
experience: southerner with lots of buttermilk biscuits under my belt.
Kenji does a lot of things well but his biscuits are just so-so
When you use your cutter, push straight down and then up & out. DO NOT TWIST. Twisting the cutter can cause the layers to bind to each other instead of rising & getting flaky.
Once you open up your baking powder you have 6 months to use it.
Make sure all dairy is ice cold and don’t handle it too much. I agree 100% about the age of baking powder as well.
Good eye on the comment that said your count was off/rolled roo rhin.
Biscuits are pretty easy but also very easy to screw up. I dont use Kenjis recipe but any variation will definitely be similar. It’s all about the leavening and I box grate my frozen butter right into the flour mixture. As it gets easier to get great results by getting faster and less handling time. You’ll get dialed in with really nice height and more defined layers from the butter steaming/leavening, working in conjunction with the other leavening agents.
Did you over work the dough?