This post may contain affiliate links. Please see disclosure policy here.
Cast Iron Skillet Biscuits are easy and delicious and the perfect addition to just about any meal!
I look for any excuse to cook in my cast iron skillets. Since my 3 cast iron skillets have taken up permanent residency on my stove top I need to keep them busy. Soup season is here and one of my favorite things to serve with a bowl of homemade soup is homemade skillet biscuits.
What Makes Skillet Biscuits Different?
Yeast and Baking Powder. Cast iron skillet biscuits are actually a cross between a yeast roll and a baking powder biscuit. They have yeast in them but they also have a lot of baking powder so they look more like a biscuit and are flaky like a biscuit. But the yeast makes them a little lighter than a traditional baking powder biscuit.
Refrigerate Dough. After mixing the dough together, you will need to refrigerate it for at least 2 hours. But you can also leave it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. That is one of the best things about this recipe! If you only need to make six biscuits, just keep the rest of the dough in the refrigerator and use it in a few days. For empty nesters like us, this is perfect! I love being able to mix up the dough and then have it on hand for the rest of the week.
Ingredients Needed
- Active dry yeast
- Sugar
- Flour. My preference is unbleached all purpose flour
- Baking powder. It’s an important ingredient in this recipe so make sure it is fresh.
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Butter. I use salted butter, make sure it is cold.
- Buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk, make your own by combining 1 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup of milk and let sit for 5 minutes, it will begin to curdle.
- Coarse salt. My favorite is a grey French salt or Maldon Flaky Salt.
How to Make Skillet Biscuits
- Start by adding your yeast to warm water and sugar and allow it to sit for 5 minutes. The yeast mixture should get nice and puffy.
- Put dry ingredients in a bowl and use a pastry blender or a fork to blend shortening into dry ingredients. It will form a small crumb.
- Pour yeast mixture into crumb mixture.
- Stir until mixture is well combined and there is no dry ingredients. This is a fairly wet dough. At this point you can refrigerate the dough in an airtight container and just pull out the amount of dough you want.
- The skillet biscuit mixture can keep in the refrigerator for 5-6 days.
Drop Biscuits Vs. Rolled Biscuits
If you are ready to enjoy some fresh baked angel biscuits you can form your biscuit two different ways:
- Make a drop biscuit by dropping scoops of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet or a greased muffin tin.
- Make a cut biscuit by rolling out dough and using a biscuit cutter to cut into circles.
Baking Skillet Biscuits
- Add half of melted butter to a cast iron pan and place cut biscuits into pan.
- Allow the biscuits to rise for 30 minutes before baking.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Brush biscuits with remaining melted butter before serving.
Tips from Leigh Anne
- If working with yeast scares you, I put together a great post where I walk you through how to work with yeast. This will help guarantee your biscuit making is a big success.
- Don’t skip the melted butter and sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top. The butter makes them golden brown and the salt makes these skillet biscuits extra delicious.
For more delicious biscuit recipes try these:
Be sure and follow me over on You Tube for weekly cooking demos.
Skillet Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup water warm , 100-110 F
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 5 cups all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 5 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup butter cold
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1/2 cup butter melted
- coarse salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- Mix together water, yeast and 1 tsp sugar. Let stand for 5-7 minutes until foamy.
- Mix together flour, 3 Tbsp sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until crumbly.
- Add in yeast mixture and buttermilk and stir until dry ingredients are incorporated. Do not overmix
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours up to 5 days.
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times. Roll dough into a 3/4 inch rectangle, fold dough and repeat.
- Roll out dough to 3/4 inch thickness and cut with a 2 inch round biscuit cutter.
- Add 1/2 of melted butter to a 10 inch cast iron pan and place cut biscuits into pan.
- Brush top of biscuits with 1/2 of melted butter.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and brush with remaining butter. Sprinkle with coarse salt.
Tips & Notes:
- If working with yeast scares you, I put together a great post where I walk you through how to work with yeast. This will help guarantee your biscuit making is a big success.Â
- Don’t skip the melted butter and sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top. The butter makes them golden brown and the salt makes these skillet biscuits extra delicious.
Recommended Products
Nutrition Facts:
Susan K says
These were great and my husband loved them. Question: in the description but not in the printed recipe, it says to add 1/4 cup melted butter to pan before inserting biscuits. Is this 1/4 cup part of the 1 cup or an additional 1/4 cup to the recipe instructions?
Thanks very much!
Leigh Anne Wilkes says
So glad you enjoyed them – I updated the recipe so it reads correctly. Thanks
Susie Ford says
I am sure I already rated this perfect recipe! But I wanted to add that it made 2 full skillets of giant fluffy biscuits. I made the second batch 5 days later. YUM!!!
Susie Ford says
So perfect and delicious! I made today for Thanksgiving Dinner because I forgot to pick up rolls. I made one cast iron pan full and will cook up the rest soon. Not sure if the dough is freezable, but the cooked biscuits are. I did use plain kefir in place of the buttermilk which even makes them lighter. Will make again and again.
Neisha says
I think I used too big of a skillet or didn’t put them as close together so they were a little wide and flat but still oh so delicious!!
Seth says
Best biscuits recipe