These Sourdough Biscuits are incredibly flakey, made with only 6 simple ingredients, and ready in under 30 minutes! They are perfect for breakfast or a snack! They also use a lot of sourdough discard, so if you have an abundance of discard in your refrigerator, this recipe is for you!

If you bake a lot of sourdough bread, you'll know that you usually have a ton of sourdough discard leftover in your refrigerator. Sure, you can make sourdough blueberry muffins or sourdough lemon loaf, but making classic sourdough biscuits is one of my new favorite ways to use sourdough discard!
These biscuits are so buttery and flakey, you'll be making them again and again. All you need are a few simple ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen and a bowl. Mix everything together, cut out biscuits, and bake! It doesn't get easier than these simple biscuits!
Serve these biscuits with melty butter, mixed berry jam, or blueberry jam! You won't regret it!
The Best Sourdough Biscuits
These sourdough biscuits are super tender and full of flakey layers. The key is to not work the biscuit dough too much, and to add lots of butter!
Sometimes, biscuits have sugar in them, these do not. I find that the biscuits have enough flavor from the butter to the tangy sourdough, you don't need sugar. If you do like a biscuit that is sweeter or if you want to make these biscuits into a recipe like strawberry shortcake, add up to 2 tablespoons of sugar to the recipe for a sweeter biscuit.
Ingredients to Gather

- Unsalted butter. This is key. The first time I made these biscuits I used salted butter and the biscuits were a little too salty. The butter should be very cold.
- Sourdough discard. After you feed your active sourdough starter, it should be fed and the extra "discard" kept in a mason jar in the refrigerator. You can then use that discard to make lots of different sourdough discard recipes like sourdough discard focaccia or sourdough discard sandwich bread.
- Leavening agents. Since we are using sourdough discard, not active, bubbly starter, you'll need both baking powder and baking soda. This will give the biscuits a tall rise and help make them light and fluffy.
- Flour. All purpose flour is best to get the softest, fluffiest biscuits.
Be sure to check out the printable recipe card for full recipe information on ingredients and quantities.
How To Make Sourdough Biscuits


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix well.
Cut the cold butter into very small pieces, or you can grate the butter on a cheese grater. Add the cut butter into the mixing bowl. Pour the sourdough discard into the bowl and mix all the ingredients together. Do not overmix at this point. You want the mixture to look like course sand.


Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Press the dough into a square. Cut the biscuits out of the dough with either a knife or a biscuit cutter. Place the biscuits on the parchment lined baking sheet.


Brush the tops of the biscuits with milk. You can sprinkle with sugar if you would like. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown on top.
Lynn's Tip!
Make sure you do not overwork the dough. It's ok if the dough does not stick together all the way. It should be slightly crumbly to get the soft, flakey texture of the biscuits.
Can I Use Active Sourdough Starter for Biscuits?
Yes! You can make these biscuits with active sourdough starter instead of sourdough discard. Use the same amounts as listed in this recipe, except use active starter instead of inactive stater and remove the baking powder and baking soda. Here's how you do it:
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt.
- Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter or your fingers until the mixture looks like large crumbs.
- Add 1 cup of sourdough starter and mix until a rough dough forms.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it gently until it comes together into a smooth ball. Do not overmix at this point.
- Place the dough back into a large mixing bowl, cover it with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap, and let it ferment at room temperature for about 8-12 hours.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently pat it into a circle about 1 inch thick.
- Use a biscuit cutter or a glass to cut out biscuits from the dough. Cover the biscuits with a clean kitchen towel and let them rise for another 30 minutes to 1 hour. They should puff up slightly during this time.
- After the initial rise, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the cut biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving some space between each one.
- Once the biscuits have risen, bake them in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until they are golden brown on top and cooked through.
- Remove the biscuits from the oven and let them cool slightly before serving.

Storage Info
Let the biscuits cool to room temperature and then place them in an airtight container. Keep them on the counter for 2-3 days. You can reheat the biscuits in a toaster oven and serve them with butter and jam.
These are really freezer friendly too! To freeze these biscuits, place the room temperature biscuits in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Make sure they are not touching each other.
Place the baking sheet in the freezer for about 1-2 hours, or until the biscuits are frozen solid. This prevents them from sticking together when stored.
Once the biscuits are frozen, transfer them to a resealable freezer bag or an airtight container. Label the container with the date for reference.
Store the biscuits in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. To be honest, they would probably last even longer than that! To defrost the biscuits, place them on the counter and let them defrost at room temperature.

Sourdough Biscuit FAQs
In this recipe, we don't need the egg because there is enough fat in the butter and enough liquid from the sourdough discard.
Make sure your baking powder and baking soda are fresh and not expired. Expired leavening agents will lead to flat, dense biscuits.
That is because the butter is too cold. Make sure the butter is really, really cold. If the butter warms slightly, place the biscuits in the refrigerator before you bake them.
More Sourdough Recipes
Did you love this recipe?
If so, don't forget to leave a 5-star review and tag me on Instagram and Facebook! Make sure you join our sourdough Facebook page to get tips and tricks from other sourdough lovers!
📖 Recipe

Sourdough Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups All Purpose Flour
- 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 12 tablespoon Butter, very cold Unsalted
- 1 cup Sourdough Discard Inactive, unfed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, add the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Mix well.
- Cut the cold butter into small pieces (or use a cheese grater to grate the butter) and add it to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Mix until the butter is just incorporated into the bowl. Do not overwork.
- Add the sourdough discard and mix until it just forms a dough.
- Lightly flour your surface. Turn the dough onto the surface. Cut the dough into 8 pieces with a sharp knife or with a biscuit cutter.
- Place the biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet leaving at least 2 inches between each biscuit. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Notes
- This recipe makes 9 small biscuits. You can make larger ones or you can double this recipe to make more biscuits.
- You can use active starter or inactive starter. If you don't want to use baking powder or baking soda, check out the blog post for more information about how to long ferment the biscuits.
Leave a Reply