These soft and flaky gluten-free biscuits are based on side-by-side tests with 12 different gluten-free flour blends. I share exactly how each one performed, plus dairy-free and vegan tweaks that actually work. Whether you’re new to gluten-free baking or you just want the tallest, most reliable biscuits, this recipe has you covered.
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This gluten-free biscuit recipe is based on my side-by-side baking test of 12 gluten-free flour blends, with clear adjustments for each one. I also include tips for making the recipe dairy-free or vegan, along with reader-tested options, step-by-step guidance, a video to walk you through making the biscuits, and troubleshooting advice to help you bake with confidence.
❤️ Why these gluten-free biscuits are the best:
Testing multiple gluten-free flour blends has been a fun project for my whole Fearless Dining family and me. I’ve tested over 900 gluten-free recipes since 2013!
These biscuits are the perfect topper for my Gluten-Free Chicken Pot Pie recipe! I have a lot of incredible gluten-free biscuit recipes, including sweet and savory!
Allergen Information:
- These homemade biscuits are gluten-free, egg-free, nut-free, soy-free, and oat-free.
- It is easy to make these gluten-free biscuits vegan, which several of my readers and I tested using dairy-free butter and milk.
Video: Watch Me Make These Gluten-Free Biscuits
Watch me make these gluten-free biscuits step by step (filmed in my kitchen with real results). Click here to watch my Gluten-Free Biscuit Tutorial on YouTube! This is a longer video, approximately 10 minutes, and I show you every step of making these gluten-free biscuits. If you enjoyed watching this video, consider subscribing to my YouTube channel.
Which Gluten-Free Flour Blend Is Best for Biscuits?
Most gluten-free flours rose similarly in my test. Cup4Cup had the best rise. Here are a few things that stood out:
| Gluten-Free Flour Blend | Worked in My Recipe? | Rise/Texture | Modifications |
| King Arthur Measure for Measure | Yes | Good rise | Add 1 TBSP flour |
| Better Batter Artisan (gum-free) | Yes | Good rise | Add 2 TBSP milk |
| Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 | Yes | Good rise, gritty texture | Let the dough chill for 15 minutes. |
| Cup4Cup (both versions) | Yes | Best rise | None |
| Pillsbury | Yes | Great rise | None |
| Target Good & Gather | Yes | Good rise, gritty texture | Add 2 TBSP milk. Chill the dough for 15 minutes. |
| Just About Food Whole Grain Gluten-Free Blend | NO! | Horrible flavor | I don’t recommend |
| Pamela’s All Purpose | Yes | Good rise | Add 1/4 cup milk |
| Gluten-Free Bisquick | Yes | Good rise, gritty texture | Use this recipe: Gluten-Free Bisquick Biscuit |
| My DIY Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend | Yes | Great rise | Add 1 TBSP milk |
| Namaste | Yes | Great rise | Add 1 TBSP milk |
| Arrowhead Mills 1:1 | Yes | Good rise | Add 1 1/2 TBSP milk |
Reader-Tested Flour Blends:
Readers also participated in this test and sent me the blends they had used successfully. I love it when my readers write to me with the blends they try because we all benefit!
- Pinterest reader Jess W. said, “I use the GF Americas Test Kitchen flour blend that I make up in large quantities and add the teaspoon of xanthan gum. “Works awesome; my family loves them!”
- Sunset Divided Flour
- Jules Gluten-Free Flour
- Mannis Gluten-Free Flour
- Life Smart All-Purpose Flour Blend
My gluten-free biscuits rise so well that I used this recipe as a foundation for my popular Gluten-Free Bread Without Yeast.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten-Free Flour – You can use any of the blends I tested above or try another. Just make sure it contains xanthan gum or another binder. If not, you will need to add a teaspoon of xanthan gum to your flour mix. See the related reading for more details and tips.
- Baking powder – This recipe calls for two tablespoons of baking powder. Be sure to use aluminum-free baking powder. Regular aluminum baking powder will leave a metallic aftertaste. I use both Rumford and Thrive Market Aluminum-Free Baking Powder with good results. Other brands of gluten free baking powder without aluminum include Argo and Bakewell Cream.
- Butter – I used unsalted butter. It is a personal preference. If you use salted butter, you may consider reducing the amount of added salt. Use regular butter or vegan butter. Just make sure the vegan butter is very cold if you use it.
- Milk – I prefer using whole milk. You can use non-dairy milk, but be sure to use one that is not sweetened or flavored. You can also use buttermilk if you prefer gluten free buttermilk biscuits.
Prefer flavored biscuits? Try these Gluten-Free Pumpkin Biscuits and Gluten Free Cornmeal Biscuits recipes!
👩🍳 Note From My Kitchen:
When I first started testing gluten-free biscuits, I quickly realized how different each flour blend behaves. Some absorb more liquid, some make the dough sticky, and some surprise you with a perfect rise on the first try. That’s why I tested 12 flour blends, and why I keep updating this post with more reader-tested results.
If your dough feels off, don’t panic. Too sticky? Sprinkle on a bit more flour. Too dry or cracking? Add a tablespoon of milk at a time, gently working it into the dough. The key is to feel the dough; it should be soft, slightly tacky, and hold its shape when pressed. Don’t overwork it because you don’t want to melt the butter bits. If you’re unsure, chill the dough before cutting!
Also, if your biscuits aren’t rising high, check that your baking powder is fresh. I go through a lot of it over the holidays and always write the open date on the lid so I don’t use an old can by accident. You’ve got this, and I’m here if you have questions!
How to Make Gluten-Free Biscuits From Scratch:
Step 1: Add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk them to blend. Add the 5 TBSP of cold butter. Use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour.
EASY TIP: No pastry blender? No problem. Freeze the butter and use a large cheese grater to grate the frozen butter into the dry ingredients.
Step 2: Your flour mix will resemble crumbs, as shown in this photo.
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Step 3: Add the milk and mix into the dough.
📢 Sandi says: Every gluten-free flour blend has a different starch-to-grain ratio. The brand of gluten-free flour you use will affect the moisture of the batter. If your dough is too runny, add more flour, and if it is too thick, add more liquids.
Read Why Gluten-Free Flour Blends Vary to learn more about this.
Step 4: Your dough should look similar in consistency to my photo. If your dough is too wet, add more flour; if it’s too dry, add more milk. If you work the dough a lot, trying to get the consistency right, put the dough into the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to re-chill the butter.
Step 5: Put the dough on wax paper or a silicone mat. You may want to dust it with a tiny bit of gluten free flour. It depends on which gluten free flour blend you use. Press the dough to 1 1/2 inch thickness. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out biscuit shapes from the dough. You can use a large ice cream or
Step 6: Place your biscuits on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet to bake in the oven. Brush the top of each biscuit with milk. This will help your biscuits get that nice golden color.
Make them in your air fryer. If you want to cook these in the air fryer, follow these directions for my Gluten-Free Air Fryer Biscuits.
Step 7: Bake the biscuits at 425º F for 15 minutes. You will know the biscuits are done baking when they have a light golden color on top.
Step 8: Here are the test batches. I baked one at a time, so each cooled on the wire rack and then transferred to another tray while the next set cooled.
Spread this Kumquat Honey Butter over warm biscuits for a citrusy flavor.
Storage and Freezing Tips:
Store in an airtight container. They will stay fresh for up to 3 days, but they won’t retain their fluffiness as they did on the first day. I advise freezing the extras and then reheating them in a microwave oven.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes! Make these vegan by using vegan butter and dairy-free milk. Several readers have made these biscuits vegan using brands like Country Crock, Violife, and Earth Balance. They have also used almond milk and rice milk. I have had success with Oatly Simple.
Yes, buttermilk adds some great flavor to this biscuit recipe. If you can’t find buttermilk, it is very easy to make buttermilk from scratch. Reduce the baking powder to 2 teaspoons and add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda.
Yes. Use a cookie scoop and drop onto your baking sheet, no shaping needed.
I like to use butter for baking biscuits. You can use shortening, but I find the best fats are European butter. Another reader uses Crisco and said it works very well.
Cup4Cup (old formula) gave the best rise and layers. Pamela’s, Pillsbury, and my DIY All-Purpose Blend are also great with small tweaks.
I made these biscuits tonight for a de-constructed chicken pot pie. Because it was the first time I tried the recipe, I didn’t know if they would get soggy cooking them on top of the the chicken and vegetables. I used King Arthur Measure for Measure flour. I made them dairy free with almond milk and Country Crock Plant Butter. I used 2 extra tablespoons of almond milk. I made 8 drop biscuits that baked in about 16 minutes. They were the best biscuits I have had since becoming gluten free about 12 years ago.”
Bethany, Blog comment
My Favorite Biscuit Set:
I absolutely love this biscuit set I bought on Amazon. It has everything you need to make biscuits (or scones.) It includes a pastry blender, biscuit cutters in multiple sizes, and a cutting tool for making square-shaped biscuits. It is all dishwasher safe and easy to clean.
More Gluten-Free Biscuit Recipes From My Kitchen:
- These Gluten-Free Cheese Biscuits are easy to make. Use any cheese flavor you enjoy!
- Sweeten things up with these Gluten-Free Cinnamon Sugar Biscuits.
- We love serving these Gluten-Free Oat Biscuits with breakfast!
- Vary the sweetness level to make these Gluten-Free Chocolate Biscuits sweet or savory!
- Need grain-free? These Paleo Biscuits get rave reviews!
- Use sourdough discard to make these Gluten-Free Sourdough Biscuits.
Love This Recipe?
💬 Did you make this gluten-free biscuit recipe? I’d love to hear how it turned out—and which pan or flour blend you used! Your feedback helps others (and helps me keep improving these recipes for you). ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Gluten-Free Biscuits That Work Every Time (With Vegan Options)
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Combine 2 cups gluten free flour blend, 2 tablespoons aluminum-free baking powder, and 1 teaspoon salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk the ingredients to blend them. Add the cold 5 tablespoons unsalted butter.
- Use a pastry blender to cut in the butter into the flour. Cutting in the cold butter is what helps make the flaky layers!
- *If you don't have a pastry blender, you can freeze the butter and use a cheese grater to grate the frozen butter into the dry ingredients.
- Add the 1 cup milk to the bowl and mix to form a nice dough ball. It should be soft, firm, and workable.
- Preheat your oven to 425º F.
- Put the dough on wax paper or a silicone mat. Depending on the gluten-free flour blend you used, you may want to dust the wax paper or silicone mat with a tiny bit of gluten-free flour. It depends on which gluten free flour blend you use. Press to 1 1/2 inch thickness.
- Use a biscuit cutter to cut out biscuit shapes from the dough. If you prefer, you can use a large ice cream scoop or cookie scoop to make drop style biscuits.
- Place each biscuit on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Brush the top of each biscuit with milk. This will help your biscuits get that nice golden color on top.
- Bake at 425º F for 15 minutes.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
- Please read my full post for the list of tested gluten-free flour blends and the adjustments needed. It is too long to post here in the notes.
- If your blend doesn’t contain a binder such as xanthan gum or psyllium husk as a binder, add 3/4 tsp of xanthan gum.
- You need to use VERY cold butter.
- This recipe calls for 2 TBSP of aluminum-free baking powder. Be sure to use aluminum-free baking powder. Regular aluminum baking powder will leave a metallic aftertaste. I used Thrive Market Aluminum-Free Baking Powder. Other brands of gluten free baking powder without aluminum include Rumford, Argo, and Bakewell Cream.
- To make this dairy-free, use non-flavored/sweetened dairy-free milk and vegan butter. Several readers have successfully tested multiple dairy-free brands.
- Each brand of flour blend performed a little differently. This is because every blend has a different starch-to-grain ratio. Please read the post for some tips for each blend. Some needed additional liquid.
- If you prefer to use buttermilk, you can add 1 TBSP of lemon juice to one cup of milk. Use 2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda if you use buttermilk.
- These biscuits will keep fresh for up to 3 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer. Freeze the cooled biscuits in a freezer-safe container or zipper bag.
Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
Tried this recipe?
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Gluten-Free Related Reading:
I have tried so many gluten free biscuit recipes, but I’m done now. These were fantastic. My whole family loved them. They reminded me of my mom’s. I used Bob’s Red Mill 1-1, and I did drop biscuits, because that was much easier than rolling dough and cutting each biscuit. I did have to cook them for about 10 minutes more than recommended. I just pulled them out when the bottoms got to the brown color I desired. Thank you sharing!
You made my entire day, Keely. I am so glad you loved my biscuit recipe. Thank you so much for coming back to let me know!
I’m so excited to have finally found a gluten-free biscuit recipe that tastes wonderful! These have excellent texture and flavor—very light and fluffy. I’ve been making these every morning to eat with fresh peaches…I finally decided to mix up a double batch of the dry ingredients so that I can make perfect fresh portions each day. The section with tips for different flour blends was especially helpful. Thank you so much—I’m eager to try some of your other recipes!
I am so glad you found my tips valuable!! Thank you so much for coming back to let me know you loved these biscuits, Cindy.
Disclosure, these are just out of the oven and I haven’t tasted them yet.
I followed this recipe exactly, using sifted Arthur’s 1:1 and only swapping almond milk (that’s all I had on hand). Everything else was exact. It was a simple recipe to follow and reminds me of my mother’s recipe.
They did not brown, they look anemic, and have no risen at ALL. Im hoping they at least taste okay but I dont know what I did wrong.
Hi Dianna, The biscuits will not brown if you use dairy-free milk. It is the fat in milk that browns the biscuits. As for not rising, I have several questions to help me figure out why they didn’t rise. First, did you use the full amount of aluminum-free baking powder? Aluminum-free is very important, and also check to verify your baking powder was not expired. When you cut your biscuits, did you twist the biscuit cutter? Doing this will seal the edges of the biscuits, so they can’t rise.
I’m sorry, wax paper? Isn’t that the thing that catches fire in an oven… where biscuits are baked?
Hi Jennifer, I see where the confusion came from. I added the wax paper because many of my readers have written asking what to use if they don’t have a silicone mat. I roll and cut the biscuits on wax paper or a silicone mat. I move them to a parchment paper lined baking sheet. I clarified this. Thank you.
Always in search of a great recipe for biscuits! This is it! Easy to make and they are so light and delicious! I use my own flour blend (2 grains, 2 starches and a nut flour) and this is the best recipe!
Thank you so much for coming back to let me know you loved my biscuit recipe. Thank you so much.
My son needs to have gluten free dairy free foods. What 1:1 flour works great that is GFDF?
Namaste, King Arthur Measure for Measure and Bob’s work. If you read my post, I tested 11 gluten free flour blends and readers tested even more. Only one has dried milk powder.
I followed the recipe to a T. I use Bob’s Red, no gluten-free1 to 1 flour. I used frozen butter which I grated. I blended To just mixed because I didn’t want to overmix it. They didn’t cry at all and they were kind of doing it in the middle. I want to try them again so do you have any suggestions?
Hi Cindy, I am not quite sure what you mean by cry…do you mean rise? If your biscuits rose in the middle, but not the edges, most likely you twisted the biscuit cutter and sealed the edges. I highly recommend You press the biscuit cutter into the dough then lift it out without twisting. I shared a 10 minute vidoe walking you through the entire process in this post. It may be helpful for you to watch that.
I did mean “rise at all” (talk to text…ugh). Thanks, I’ll check out the video but they really didn’t rise at all, even the edges.
Hi Cindy, Did you use aluminum-free baking powder in the same quantity? Is the baking powder expired? This is not a common result with this recipe, and it has been made a lot. Please reach out after watching the video if you have any other questions.
Wouldn’t it be best to sift the dry ingredients ?
I don’t sift the ingredients, and given I used finely milled gluten free flour…I do not feel it is necessary. If you do sift your ingredients, you will probably need to tweak the amount of dry ingredients to the liquids.