While living with my friend Robin in Alabama, I was introduced to a nifty hack for making biscuit lickety splits. In the time it took me to drink a cup of coffee, she prepared delicious, soft biscuits for breakfast, and nothing could have made me feel more welcome. The secret was an old Southern trick born of frugality: using mayonnaise instead of butter.
I love fresh, warm biscuits, especially when Smothered with creamy sausage gravy Filled with or Fluffy scrambled eggs. That said, I’m not a morning person, so cutting the butter and mixing the butter into the dough with a pastry cutter is usually too much for me in the morning.
With this recipe, I can just mix the mayonnaise into the dry ingredients with a fork—it takes seconds. The recipe also uses whole milk instead of buttermilk, which is great, because I never have buttermilk in my fridge.
Mayo flour is also much easier to work with than butter-based flours. I can roll or tap it at lightning speed to keep the dough cool, contributing to the lightness and smoothness during baking. Mayo biscuits don’t have the same crispness as butter biscuits, but I don’t mind because they are so easy to make.
Choosing the right Mayo
Substituting mayonnaise for butter isn’t just easy, it also makes the biscuits melty soft thanks to the eggs in the mayonnaise.
Just like my friend Robin, I use Duke’s Mayonnaise, a Southern staple now available nationwide. Duke’s has a higher egg yolk ratio than other commercial mayonnaise brands, and has a creamy, custardy texture that works well in recipes. You can use Homemade mayonnaise Or fancy gourmet aioli instead, but stay away from “light” mayonnaise, as it won’t have enough fat for this recipe.
Options for convenience
This dough is very easy, and there are many ways you can make it into biscuits. My friend Robin uses a large spoon to drop the dough onto the baking sheet. This makes round drop biscuits with a nice crumbly texture and is quick to make.
I prefer to roll the dough, fold it a few times like a letter, then cut it into rounds or squares. This extra step produces fluffier, higher risers that make great breakfast sandwiches.
A hot tip
Remember two important things for the best biscuits: keep the ingredients cold and keep the oven very hot. Chilling the flour and mayonnaise mixture in the freezer for 15 minutes will help the mayonnaise to separate into small blobs in the dough, giving the finished biscuits a light, flaky texture.
Baking the biscuits in a very hot oven activates the baking powder quickly and gives the biscuits extra lift. Butter burns at this high temperature, but mayonnaise can handle the heat. You’ll end up with a golden brown beauty that can say “Okay, butter my biscuits!”
Cook mode
(keep screen awake)
- 2 Cup (255Yes) All purpose flour
- 4 Tea spoons Baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- Piling up 1/3 Cup Mayonnaise (preferably Duke’s)
- 2/3 Cup cold whole milk
- 2 Tablespoons Salted butterMelted (optional)
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Cool dry ingredients and mayo:
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the mayonnaise until just combined – the mixture should be slightly runny. Place the bowl in the freezer for at least 15 minutes and overnight.
Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
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Preheat oven to 450°F.
Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment and set aside.
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Make the Dough:
Add the cold milk to the flour mixture and stir with a fork until it comes together in a crumbly mass.
Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
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Shape the biscuits:
Turn the cut dough onto a floured surface and roll or pat into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle, dusting the top with flour as needed if the dough is sticky. Fold the top third of the dough towards the middle and then fold the bottom third over the first fold into a rectangle.
Turn the dough 90 degrees and gently roll the dough into a rectangle that is 3/4 inch thick. Repeat the folding and rolling process 2 more times, working quickly and letting go of the idea that the dough has to be perfect.
Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
Simple tip!
For drop biscuits, skip this step and drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet in 6 to 8 blobs with an ice cream scoop or large serving spoon.
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Cut the biscuits:
Use a sharp knife or a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter to cut the dough into 6 or 8 squares or circles and arrange them side by side on the prepared baking sheet.
Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
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Cook:
Bake the biscuits, rotating the pan halfway through, until they are golden brown on top, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with melted butter, if using, and serve immediately.
Leftover biscuits can be cooled on a rack and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Leftover biscuits are best if reheated in a hot oven or toaster oven for 5 minutes.
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Just recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek
| Nutrition facts (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 217 | Calories |
| 11 grams | thick |
| 26 grams | Carbohydrates |
| 4 g | Protein |
| Nutrition facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings: 6 to 8 | |
| Amount per serving | |
| Calories | 217 |
| % Daily Value* | |
| 11 grams | 14% |
| Saturated fat 3 g | 17% |
| 13 mg | 4% |
| 532 mg | 23% |
| 26 grams | 9% |
| Dietary fiber 1 g | 3% |
| Total sugar 1 g | |
| 4 g | |
| Vitamin C 0 mg | 0% |
| Calcium 165 mg | 13% |
| Iron 2 mg | 10% |
| Potassium 64 mg | 1% |
| *% Daily Value (DV) tells you how much of the nutrients in a serving of food contribute to your daily intake. 2,000 calories per day is used for general nutritional advice. | |
Nutrition information is calculated using the ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient substitutions are given, the first listed nutrient is counted. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.