Biscuits with Shortening

Is there anything more comforting than a fresh biscuit warm from the oven? Most of us could eat biscuits every day, whether they’re covered in honey and butter for breakfast or served alongside one of Grandma’s best suppers. We’ll show you how to make biscuits with shortening from scratch simply, so you never again have to rely on the pop-open cans.

What is the best fat for biscuits?

When it comes to fats used in baking recipes, you have several options to choose from: butter, margarine, shortening and lard. They’re not all interchangeable in recipes, so be careful with how you substitute. Each fat has unique properties that make it better suited for certain baking applications.

Shortening is a vegetable oil that’s been partially or fully hydrogenated to become solid, so it’s similar in structure to butter. Shortening, however, contains 100% pure fat—unlike butter—so don’t substitute butter for shortening in your biscuit recipes. If you do need a sub for shortening, try lard instead, which also contains 100% fat.

What does shortening do in your recipes? Quite simply (and literally), it shortens! Shortening serves to shorten the strands of gluten in flour, which helps create that more-flaky, less-chewy texture you want in biscuits and crusts.

Ingredients for Biscuits with Shortening

• All-purpose flour: Among all the types of flour, all-purpose has enough gluten to provide just enough structure in these shortening biscuits without them becoming too tough or chewy.
• Baking powder: The lift in these fluffy biscuits comes from a healthy scoop of baking powder, which is the main leavening agent in this biscuit recipe with shortening.
• Seasoning: A little sugar adds a hint of sweetness to these biscuits, and a wee bit of salt enhances the savory buttery flavors.
• Shortening: Shortening retains moisture in the biscuits while leaving them flaky and tender.
• Egg: Just one egg helps provide structure, color and flavor in these fluffy biscuits.
• Milk: This biscuits recipe with shortening calls for 2% milk, though you can use whole fat milk for even richer results. For that classic tang in your biscuits, go for buttermilk instead.

Directions

Step 1: Whisk together the dry ingredients

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.

Step 2: Cut in the fat

Cut the shortening into the dry ingredients using a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Editor’s Tip: Be sure to use very cold shortening here. Cold fat equals flaky layers, and flaky layers mean better biscuits.

Step 3: Add the wet ingredients

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk. Pour this mix into the dry ingredients, and stir until just moistened. The dough will be wet.

Editor’s Tip: You don’t want to overwork the dough here. The more you handle the dough, the tougher the biscuits will be and the fewer flaky layers you’ll have. Just mix until the ingredients come together. A few specks of dry flour won’t hurt anything.

Step 4: Give the dough a quick knead

To develop a few more flakes in the dough, you’ll want to give it a quick knead. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface, and gently knead it 8 to 10 times.

Editor’s Tip: This step may vary from biscuit recipe to recipe. You’ll skip this when making drop biscuits, for instance. Other recipes require you to fold the dough over on itself a few times to develop the layers. If you make biscuits like Joanna Gaines, she says to “smoosh” the dough. For this fluffy biscuit recipe, though, just give the dough a quick knead. Work fast to keep the dough cool.

Step 5: Roll and cut the biscuits

After you’ve kneaded the dough, roll it out to about 1/2-inch thickness. Cut it with a floured 2-1/2-inch biscuit cutter.

Editor’s Tip: Square and round biscuit cutters both work. If you don’t have a biscuit cutter on hand, you can flour the rim of a glass and use that.

Step 6: Bake the shortening biscuits

Arrange the biscuits on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Biscuits with Shortening Variations

• Add cheese: For a savory, nutty kick in your shortening biscuits, add grated or shredded cheese to the dough. Check out our cheese biscuits recipe for inspiration.
• Fill them with fruit: Prepare the biscuits as directed in this recipe, then roll each unbaked biscuit in cinnamon sugar and top it with a dollop of fruit jam before baking, as in our cinnamon fruit biscuits recipe.
• Go for whole wheat: Swap in whole wheat flour for all or half the all-purpose flour in this recipe. You’ll enjoy the wholesome, earthy flavor the flour provides.

How to Store Biscuits with Shortening

You’ve got options for storing your biscuits. You can store baked biscuits at room temp or in the freezer. You can even freeze unbaked biscuits and bake them off months later.

How long do biscuits last?

To store these biscuits at room temp, cover them and keep them away from heat and light. There, they’ll keep for three to five days. Technically, you can store your biscuits in the fridge, but they’ll dry out quickly and lose their freshness—so we don’t recommend that.

Can you freeze biscuits with shortening?

Yes, these biscuits with shortening keep nicely in the freezer. To store your baked biscuits, let them cool completely, then arrange them on a baking sheet and place them in the freezer until they’re frozen. Then, transfer the frozen biscuits to a freezer container or bag, and store them in the freezer for up to three months.

You can freeze unbaked biscuits too. After you’ve cut them out, arrange the biscuit dough cutouts in an even layer on a baking sheet and freeze them until frozen. Transfer them to a freezer container, and keep them for up to three months in the freezer. When you’re ready to bake them later, place them directly from the freezer onto a baking sheet and into the preheated oven (no thawing needed). Just add 5 to 10 minutes to the bake time as needed since you’re starting from frozen.

Biscuits with Shortening Tips

Can you use baking soda instead of baking powder in this biscuit recipe with shortening?

Baking powder and baking soda are not the same ingredient, and they shouldn’t be used interchangeably in your recipes. Baking soda requires an acidic ingredient in the recipe to work, whereas baking powder does not. Also, you need much less baking soda for your desired effects than you do baking powder. In short, don’t replace one with the other. You won’t get the same results.

What can you serve with biscuits?

Shortening biscuits can be enjoyed any time of day. For a stress-free morning, enjoy your biscuits alongside an easy breakfast with five ingredients or less. Sticking with the stress-free motif later in the day, serve these biscuits with one of our favorite 30-minute meals, like breaded pork tenderloin or meat loaf muffins.