If you’ve ever found yourself craving Red Lobster’s biscuits at home, this easy cheddar bay biscuits recipe is the answer. These copycat cheddar bay biscuits deliver everything you love! Garlicky, buttery flavor packed into soft, cheesy biscuits in a super simple, no-fuss recipe!

cheddar bay biscuits in a cast iron skillet

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Think of it as the ultimate easy copycat recipe. No biscuit cutter, no trimmings. Just scoop and bake for perfect homemade biscuits every time.

These Red Lobster copycats are made with simple ingredients and go perfect alongside your favorite seafood dishes like clam chowder or this hearty crab chowder. You can even pile it onto your brunch plate or serve them up as a cozy snack fresh from the oven. Whether you’re new to biscuit recipes or already have a few in your back pocket, these easy drop biscuits will make you rethink how effortless homemade biscuits can be so you can ditch that boxed mix!

Key Ingredients

ingredients for cheddar bay biscuits - all-purpose flour, cheddar cheese, unsalted butter, cultured buttermilk, Old Bay seasoning, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, granulated sugar

All-purpose flour. Has enough gluten for a stable structure so the biscuits don’t fall apart.

Cheddar cheese. I opt for medium cheddar but you can use sharp cheddar cheese or other cheeses. Smoked gouda has a good melt and can give more body to the flavor of the biscuits.

Cultured buttermilk. Is thicker than regular buttermilk with a tangy flavor. Helps tenderize the crumb, making the biscuits soft.

Unsalted butter. Carries the flavor for the biscuits and the chunks of butter create small layers and pockets in the biscuits. Use cold butter instead of room temperature to retain the chunks in the biscuit dough.

Sugar. Granulated white sugar is used for a neutral flavor and to add a bit of contrast to the rich savory flavors.

Seasonings. Old bay seasoning for the signature flavor along with garlic powder

Leavening agents. This homemade biscuit recipe uses baking powder for leavening. No baking soda is needed.

Tips for the Best Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Use cold butter and buttermilk. The secret to the perfect biscuit is behind the buttery pockets in the dough. Using cold butter as well as cold buttermilk helps prevent the butter chunks from melting and reabsorbing into the dough during mixing.

Don’t knead the dough until it’s smooth. For the same reasons above, kneading the dough til completely smooth causes the chunks of butter to absorb into the dough. Without butter chunks the biscuits will still be soft but will have more of a bread-like texture.

Don’t use pre-shredded cheese. Pre-shredded cheeses tend to be covered in anti-caking agents which prevent the cheese from melting properly. Shred cheese from blocks for optimal results.

Skip the parchment paper. These cheddar bay biscuits have a high ratio of fat so using parchment paper can prevent the butter from completely browning resulting in flat flavor and soggy biscuits.

Spoon the flour into the measuring cups if not using metric measurements. Metric measurements (in grams) are the most precise for accurate and consistent results. If you opt to use measuring cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cups to avoid packing and using too much which would result in a dry and tough biscuit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are my biscuits dry? Using too much flour is usually the culprit for dry biscuits. For best results, use a kitchen scale to measure out ingredients in grams. If using measuring cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cups then level to avoid packing.

Does grating butter for biscuits work? Not really. Although grating the butter helps to preserve the chunks it does away with an important step – coating the flour in the butter. As the butter is rubbed into the flour mixture the fat coats the flour and prevents it from developing too much gluten as the gluten is worked. This is the same principle used in the reverse creaming method that gives these pink champagne cupcakes and brown butter vanilla cupcakes their tender and pillowy crumb.

What’s the difference between cultured buttermilk and regular buttermilk? Cultured buttermilk is fermented and has a thicker consistency and tangy flavor. Regular buttermilk has not been fermented so it is thinner and has a sweeter more subtle flavor.

How to Make the Best Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Step 2. Add the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, Old Bay seasoning, garlic powder & salt to a mixing bowl. Stir thoroughly to evenly distribute all the ingredients.

Step 3. Add the cold unsalted butter to the flour mixture and rub it into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles sand but still has some chunks of butter. Rubbing the butter into the flour coats the flour with fat which helps to prevent tough biscuits. You can also use a pastry cutter for this step.

cold butter rubbed into dry ingredients to make cheddar bay biscuits

Step 4. Add the cold buttermilk and mix with a spoon just until the dough comes together. Mix only until there are no dry spots to leave as many butter chunks intact as possible.

Step 5. Using a cookie scoop, portion the biscuit dough out onto a baking sheet or greased cast iron pan. Allow for a ½ an inch of space around the dough portions for pull-apart biscuits. For individual biscuits allow for at least 2 inches of space around each ball of dough.

biscuit dough in a greased cast iron skillet

Step 6. Bake for 15-20 minutes minutes until golden brown. Pull-apart biscuits will take closer to 20 minutes.

Step 7. On removing the cheddar bay drop biscuits brush melted butter on the tops of the biscuits.

brushing cheddar bay biscuits with melted butter

Step 8. Enjoy warm biscuits with your favorite topping or alongside your favorite breakfast mains or with a creamy soup!

Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days for optimal texture and flavor. Reheat in the oven to retain the crisp texture on the outside.