Ranch Biscuits Are Like Regular Biscuits, Only Better

updated Mar 11, 2021
ranch biscuits sit stacked on parchment paper
Credit: Meghan Splawn

This over-the-top recipe is designed for the ranch-obsessed, boasting a ranch dressing-infused buttermilk mix and a delicious ranch butter to slather on while they're still warm.

Makes12

Prep25 minutes

Cook22 minutes to 26 minutes

Jump to Recipe
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
ranch biscuits sit stacked on parchment paper
Credit: Meghan Splawn

Let me introduce you to your new favorite weeknight carb: flaky, flavorful, sky-high ranch biscuits. This over-the-top recipe is designed for people who love ranch, with a triple-threat of flavor: ranch dressing-infused buttermilk, homemade ranch seasoning sprinkle, and a delicious ranch butter to slather on while they’re still warm.

These biscuits are herby without scaring off my picky eater, easy enough to make on even the busiest night, and have so much flavor packed into each one that they really could be the center of the meal. Let’s get into them!

Credit: Meghan Splawn

How to Make the Tallest, Flakiest Biscuits

To make these biscuits as tall and flaky as can be, I borrowed a technique from my favorite Southern biscuits, where you use grated butter and a series of folds to create layers upon buttery layers. Grating the butter on the large holes of a box grater rather than cubing it makes it easier to incorporate into the dough, and adding it in two batches ensures these biscuits are soft, tender, and flaky.

How you fold the dough is also important. After patting it out into a rough rectangle, you’ll fold it over onto itself about eight times (you’ll know it’s ready when the dough is a little springy to the touch). This process builds layers of butter that will help the biscuits pop up in the oven, giving them their pull-apart texture. Using a sharp knife to cut the biscuits into squares means that you don’t have those pesky scraps that you have to re-roll, which can make your biscuits tough. Once the dough is cut, snuggle the squares close together: This closeness will help the biscuits climb together to reach their full height.

A Triple Dose of Ranch Flavor

When it comes to the ranch flavor, these biscuits aren’t messing around. Here’s how they get all their ranch goodness.

  1. Homemade ranch sprinkle: This flavorful combination of dried parsley, dried onion, dried garlic, and dried dill gets folded into the biscuits and is also used to make the ranch butter. Why not just use the store-bought packet? Unfortunately, the starches designed to keep the mix from clumping will affect the biscuits’ rise, so you’ll want to stick with homemade.
  2. Ranch-infused buttermilk. This tangy liquid — a simple mix of ranch dressing and cold buttermilk — flavors the biscuits and helps them get light and fluffy. You can certainly use whatever ranch is in your fridge, but Hidden Valley and Litehouse Foods are my two favorite brands for flavor and texture.
  3. Ranch butter. While this component is technically optional, I would strongly suggest making it. It’s super easy: Just mix room-temperature cultured butter, which has a tangy flavor, with some of the remaining ranch sprinkle.

Sky-High Ranch Biscuits

This over-the-top recipe is designed for the ranch-obsessed, boasting a ranch dressing-infused buttermilk mix and a delicious ranch butter to slather on while they're still warm.

Prep time 25 minutes

Cook time 22 minutes to 26 minutes

Makes 12

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

For the ranch sprinkle:

  • 1 tablespoon

    dried chives or dried parsley

  • 1 tablespoon

    onion flakes or dried minced onion

  • 1 tablespoon

    dried garlic flakes, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 1 teaspoon

    dried dill weed

For the biscuits:

  • 4 cups

    all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

  • 1 tablespoon

    baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon

    baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon

    kosher salt

  • 1 cup

    cold buttermilk

  • 1 cup

    bottled ranch dressing, such as Hidden Valley or Litehouse

  • 2 sticks

    (8 ounces) cold unsalted butter

For the ranch butter: (optional)

  • 8 ounces

    cultured butter

  • 1 tablespoon

    ranch sprinkle

Instructions

  1. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 425°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment if desired. If making the ranch butter, let 8 ounces cultured butter sit at room temperature to soften.

  2. Make the ranch sprinkle: Place 1 tablespoon dried chives, 1 tablespoon onion flakes, 1 tablespoon dried garlic flakes, and 1 teaspoon dried dill weed in a small bowl and stir to combine.

  3. Make the biscuits: Place 4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Place 1 cup buttermilk and 1 cup ranch dressing in a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl and whisk to combine.

  4. Place a box grater over a small piece of parchment paper or a butter wrapper. Grate 1 stick of the unsalted butter on the large holes of a box grater. Add to the flour mixture and use your fingertips to work this butter into the dry ingredients until only pea-sized pieces of the butter remain.

  5. Grate the remaining 1 stick unsalted butter. Add to the flour mixture and gently toss to combine. If you have any small nubs of butter, chop that nub into 5 to 6 small pieces and add to the flour mixture.

  6. Make a well in the dry mixture and pour in the buttermilk mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

  7. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured cutting board and pat into a 1-inch-thick rough rectangle with a shorter side closer to you. Sprinkle with about half of the ranch sprinkle. Fold the dough in half from top to bottom, then pat it back down into its original shape. Repeat with the folding and patting, alternating folding from each side, the bottom, and the top until you have completed a total of 8 folds. At the end, the dough should be a little springy to the touch.

  8. Pat the dough into 9x13-inch rectangle that's about 3/4-inch thick. Use a sharp knife to cut the biscuits into 12 square biscuits. Arrange the biscuits on the baking sheet so that the biscuits touch each other but not the sides of the pan. Sprinkle with about 2 teaspoons of the ranch sprinkle.

  9. Bake until the biscuits are golden-brown, 22 to 26 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the softened cultured butter with 1 tablespoon of the remaining ranch sprinkle if desired. Serve the biscuits with the butter.

Recipe Notes

Storage: The biscuits can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days. The ranch butter can be refrigerated up to 1 week.