Easy 3 Ingredient Homemade Biscuits Recipe (No Milk)
Want to learn how to make 3 ingredient biscuits without milk? Save money by making your own nutritious biscuits! You can quickly whip up these mouth-watering biscuits for any breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I even make these biscuits when I’m out of homemade sandwich bread and the kids use these as the bread for their sandwiches!
In the South, biscuits and/or cornbread are a great side dish to any meal. And if you have never had delicious biscuits with your supper, I encourage you to try it!
I’m sharing a simple recipe for 3 ingredient biscuits without milk so that you can add this to your next meal.
Why should I make 3 ingredient biscuits without milk?
- You should make homemade biscuits to control the ingredients and make them more nutritious.
- You should make homemade biscuits to save money!
3 ingredient biscuits without milk are healthier.
The main reason to make homemade biscuits is to control the ingredients and make them healthier. If you have any food sensitivities or food allergies, you can make easy substitutions to suit your needs and still get tasty biscuits!
You can also tailor the basic biscuit recipe to suit your taste buds. Adding chopped chives or herbs will give your biscuits some extra flavor. Just add whatever herbs you’re already using in your meal.
I don’t like to buy pre-prepared and processed foods because it’s generally pumped full of chemicals so that the shelf life is extended…which is necessary since the food has to travel from the factory to grocery stores nationwide.
By making these biscuits, you can choose nutritious ingredients like whole wheat flour, home-rendered lard or grass-fed butter, and cultured dairy.
Making homemade biscuits is cheap!
Making biscuits from scratch at home is a great way to save money! Premade biscuits are much more expensive than the ingredients to make them yourself. It just takes a little time and planning to make your own perfect biscuits at home.
A package of pop-open biscuits cost $3 or more for a small can that makes eight biscuits. That can get pretty expensive if you buy several cans during each grocery haul. Plus you are costing your health in the long run by eating those highly processed foods.
However, you can make your own nutritious biscuits for a fraction of the cost and your family will be healthier in the long run!
What is the best flour to use for homemade biscuits?
The best flour to use for homemade biscuits is whatever you have on hand and what you can afford. Biscuits can be made with any type of flour and you’ll still have great-tasting results.
You can get pretty creative here. And there’s no wrong answer. But the recipe I’m sharing calls for self-rising flour made from all-purpose flour, since that’s easy to find in local grocery stores.
I’ve made my own self-rising flour using freshly milled whole wheat flour, einkorn flour, and regular unbleached all-purpose flour and all turned out delicious. I imagine that alternative flours such as almond flour and oatmeal flour would also produce good results but I haven’t tried them.
Since organic flours can be on the expensive side, I recommend that you use what you have and what you can afford. Stressing about buying expensive ingredients isn’t good for your health, either!
This biscuit recipe will work regardless of whether you use whole wheat, einkorn, or all-purpose flour as the base for your self-rising flour. Did you know that you can make your own self-rising flour?
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How to make your own self-rising flour.
If you don’t have a bag of self-rising flour, don’t fret! Make your own!! The first time I made my own self-rising flour, I couldn’t believe it was so simple. This recipe makes a large half-gallon mason jar of self-rising flour, but you can half it or double it to suit your needs.
In a large mixing bowl, combine 7 and 3/4 cups flour, 4 tablespoons of baking powder, and 2 teaspoons of fine sea salt. (I like using Redmond Real Salt.) Mix the dry ingredients together with a whisk and store it in an airtight container.
If you use freshly milled flour like whole wheat, you need to store your self rising flour in the refrigerator to keep it from going rancid in the short-term. Or for long-term storage, keep the flour in your freezer for best results.
How do you make fluffy biscuits?
The keys to making fluffy biscuits is to use very cold fat and to cut the biscuits with a very sharp cutting tool versus mashing and twisting them with another tool.
Use cold fat to make biscuits fluffy.
First, let’s discuss cold fat. Whether it’s cold butter from the refrigerator, or refrigerated home-rendered lard, tallow, or even leftover sausage grease and bacon fat (don’t knock it until you try it), one of the keys to making your biscuits rise is to use cold fat.
Cold fat doesn’t mix all the way into the flour when you cut it in, so when you put your biscuits into the oven to bake, the steam from the cold fat lumps will force the biscuit dough to rise. Read more about animal fats here: Why we need animal fats & Rendering Animal Fats, Made Easy. If you use room temperature fat, it’ll incorporate too fully into the flour and make almost a paste. You don’t want that!
Use a sharp pizza cutter to make biscuits fluffy.
Another key to making biscuits rise is to cut them with something very sharp.
Personally, I like to use a pizza cutter and cut the biscuits into rough squares. My edges are always more round, though.
In my humble opinion, it’s much easier to cut biscuits using a pizza cutter than a biscuit cutter or cookie cutter! Sometimes biscuits fail to rise when using a biscuit cutter or other tool because it’s tempting to push down and/or turn the dough. Doing this seals the edges though, which makes it hard for the biscuits to rise properly.
How do you make biscuits moist?
The key to making biscuits moist is to add the right amount of fat, but the liquid you use will also determine moistness.
If you have dairy sensitivities, stick with water, homemade broth, and unfiltered apple juice. And use cold home-rendered lard, sausage fat, or bacon fat. Your biscuits will be plenty moist.
I like to use homemade plain yogurt or homemade buttermilk for these easy biscuits but plain, store-bought yogurt and buttermilk also works. When our dairy cow Belle is in milk, I make plain yogurt by the half-gallon mason jar. I think using yogurt makes such a big difference in how moist the biscuits are afterward. And I’ve noticed that they tend not to dry out as fast as they would when using just water.
If you want to make your own quick mock buttermilk, add a couple tablespoons of lemon juice or vinegar to some regular milk and give it a stir. The acidity will work on the milk solids and it’ll start to thicken and clabber.
How to make 3 ingredient biscuits without milk from scratch.
This is such an easy biscuit recipe. Here’s what you’ll need.
Tools
- food processor (or large bowl and pastry cutter)
- measuring cups
- spatula
- cutting board
- pizza cutter
- parchment paper
- cookie sheet
Ingredients
- self-rising flour
- lard (or other cold fat)
- water (or other cold, mild-flavored liquid)
I used home-rendered lard from our pig harvest in this tutorial, but I have a confession. I absolutely LOVE to make biscuits using cold sausage fat and cold bacon fat. It’s my secret ingredient to get delicious and tender biscuits every time!
If you don’t have any home-rendered lard of your own, you can use cold, unsalted butter and you’ll get delicious buttery biscuits. Don’t buy lard or vegetable oil from the grocery store because it’s highly processed and unhealthy.
If you don’t have plain yogurt on hand, you can also use buttermilk for buttermilk biscuits. You can even use heavy cream for more traditional biscuits. (I used to use heavy cream back before we moved to the farm.)
Easy Homemade Biscuits Recipe
There’s really nothing fancy about this easy recipe. It takes just a few minutes of actual work if you’re using a food processor or electric mixer.
1. Make the biscuit dough.
Get out your food processor (or bowl and pastry cutter) and three simple ingredients: self-rising flour, lard (or other cold fat), and water (or other cold, mild-flavored liquid)!
Add 3 cups of self-rising flour and 6 tablespoons of cold fat into the food processor. Pulse until the fat is about the size of peas, which is normally within just a few seconds.
Don’t over-do it on the pulsing. The best way to make biscuits is to leave larger chunks than risk making your fat pieces too small to properly raise the biscuits in the oven.
Then you’re going to turn your food processor on and slowly add 1 cup of cold liquid into the flour mixture.
If you’re using plain water, you’ll need slightly less than the whole cup of water. It’s just about 2 tablespoons less. When using a thicker liquid like apple juice or bone broth, you’ll need the full cup.
Mix just until the dough forms a ball. This happens quickly. (If your dough doesn’t form a ball and is too liquidy, just add more self-rising flour until it does form a ball. It’ll still taste fine!)
For the right consistency, don’t over-mix the dough! Otherwise, you’ll get tough biscuits.
2. Shape and cut your biscuit dough.
Put some parchment paper on a cookie sheet or baking tray and dust it with a little bit of flour.
Scrape out your biscuit dough onto the lightly floured surface. It’s handy to have a small bowl of flour nearby so that you can add flour to your hands and the surface of the dough, as necessary.
Dust your clean hands with a little bit of flour and gently press and spread the dough on the parchment-lined baking sheet into a rectangle shape the best you can. If your hands start to stick, just dust them with more flour. You can also use a rolling pin, but I prefer the rustic look when I use my hands.
Don’t flatten the biscuits too much. The goal is to spread the dough out enough to cut 12 good-sized biscuits.
Cut your biscuit dough into 12 square shapes using your pizza cutter.
Be careful that you don’t twist and mash the dough if you use something other than a pizza cutter. Otherwise it won’t rise correctly.
After cutting your biscuits, spread them out so that they bake evenly. The edges of the biscuits will get firm and golden brown.
3. Bake your biscuits and serve them up!
Bake the biscuits at 425°F (218°C) for 15 minutes until they are golden brown.
Serve it up with melted butter, sausage gravy, or honey butter. And enjoy these hot, dairy-free biscuits while you save money!
These biscuits pair really well with healthy, quick-fried seasoned potatoes for breakfast!
And since breakfast wouldn’t be complete without a protein, be sure to check out my post on how to cook eggs in a cast iron skillet without sticking!!
Simple Biscuit Recipe Card
3 Ingredient Homemade Biscuits (No Milk)
Equipment
- food processor (You can also use a large bowl and a pastry cutter to mix the ingredients.)
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- spatula
- half sheet pan/cookie sheet
- parchment paper
- Pizza Cutter
Ingredients
- 3 cups self-rising flour
- 6 tbsp cold fat (You can use butter, lard, tallow, or even cold, rendered sausage grease or bacon fat.)
- 1 cup cold water (You can also use apple juice or another clear liquid with a mild flavor. For a supper biscuit, you can use cold chicken bone broth or beef broth.)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Add flour and fat to the food processor and pulse 3 to 4 times quickly until the fat is about the size of peas.
- Then add the liquid (slightly slowly) while your food processor is mixing. You may not need all the liquid depending on what you use. For example, if you're using water or thin juice, you'll need slightly less than 1 cup (about 2-3 Tbsp less). If you're using thick broth, you'll need 1 whole cup.
- Mix just until the dough comes together into a ball. (This is quick.)
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and dust the paper with flour.
- Scrape out your biscuit dough onto the parchment paper.
- Dust your clean hands with flour and gently press and spread the dough into a rectangle shape the best you can. If your hands start to stick, dust them with more flour.
- Cut the dough with a pizza cutter into 12 biscuits.
- Spread out the biscuits on the cookie sheet.
- Bake at 425°F (218°C) for 15 minutes until they are golden brown.
Substitutions for the 3 ingredient biscuits without milk recipe
This easy homemade biscuit recipe is one of my favorite recipes. And it’s versatile, too!
Cold Liquids
If you’re not allergic to dairy, you can use whatever regular milk you have like whole milk or 2% milk (so long as it’s cold milk), cream, and buttermilk.
If you do have dairy sensitivities, you can use homemade beef or chicken bone broth (chilled), plain water, and even apple juice for your liquid.
Cold Fat
You can substitute the lard with tallow, butter, sausage grease, and bacon fat.
I wrote a post on how long homemade lard lasts in the fridge if you’re interested in learning more!
Flaky Biscuits
If you like flaky biscuits with flaky layers and a buttery flavor, it just takes a little bit more work.
First, make your biscuit dough without the cold fat. Then, roll it out on a lightly floured surface until it’s 1/4 or less inches thick.
Cut up a stick of cold butter, and put a quarter of the cold butter chunks on half of your biscuit dough. Then grab the other half of the biscuit dough and pull it over the buttered half. Then, roll the dough out again.
You’ll have bumpy chunks of butter, so just be careful. If your dough starts to stick, add a bit of flour on your rolling pin and over your biscuit dough.
Repeat the process three more times until you use up all the cold butter chunks.
This adds a lot of glorious butter flavor to your hot biscuits. And when you pop your biscuits into a hot oven, the steam will make your biscuits flaky and fluffy!
Savory Biscuits
To make a savory biscuit that is perfect for lunch or dinner, add some parmesan cheese, roasted garlic, and fresh herbs to your biscuit dough.
Sweet Biscuits
If you’re looking for a sweet biscuit, add a little bit of sugar and cocoa powder or carob powder when you mix your biscuit dough. A chocolate biscuit is a nice treat with some hot tea for a simple snack idea!
Of course, homemade jams, jellies, preserves, and marmalade go a long way to sweeten up regular biscuits, too!
How long can I store my 3 ingredient biscuits without milk?
Homemade biscuits will last about two days on a kitchen counter or in a bread box. They’ll last a little bit longer in the refrigerator when you store them in an air-tight container.
I generally do not freeze my biscuits because they’re so quick to make and freezing changes the texture of the biscuit. It’s best to just make biscuits fresh whenever you want them.
I tend to make a big batch of homemade biscuits just so that I have extra for the next meal, and I leave them out on the counter. When the kids are hungry during the day, they grab a quick biscuit.
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Let me know if you try this 3-ingredient biscuit recipe!
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Never heard of these kind of biscuits, they look delicious!
They are! I make these biscuits at least twice per week.