Vegan Biscuits

These vegan biscuits are fluffy, tender, and terrific with a smear of jam or swab of vegan butter. Our vegan biscuits recipe uses almond milk and coconut oil so they're delectably flaky and full of flavor.

By
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
Learn about Simply Recipes' Editorial Process
Updated April 22, 2022
Elise Bauer
Vegan Shortcake Biscuits recipe
Elise Bauer

Biscuits are usually rich with butter, eggs, and milk or cream, right? That's why we love them so and why they are so perfect for treats like strawberry shortcake. All that tender, flaky, buttery goodness.

Friends, I'm here to tell you that you don't need any of those things—butter, eggs, or milk—to make a tender and flavorful biscuit! Sacrilege? Maybe, but hear me out.

A Vegan Biscuit Recipe That's a Keeper

This vegan biscuit, made with coconut oil and almond milk, is every bit as good as the classic. In fact, when I offered a taste test to my butter-loving, meat-and-potatoes father, not only did he prefer the coconut oil biscuits, but he also asked for a batch to take home.

Fluffy vegan shortcake biscuits

Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

How to Make Fluffy, Tender Vegan Biscuits

The tricks to making these vegan biscuits tender?

  • Mix some coconut oil with the flour mixture before adding almond milk. The gluten in the flour will strengthen and bind when it comes in contact with liquid, so to help keep that from happening, we whisk some coconut oil into the flour mixture first, before adding the almond milk. This is similar to the way in which you would typically mix butter with flour first, before adding milk, for a standard biscuit recipe.
  • Use a light touch when making the dough. The less you handle the dough, the better. The more you handle it, the more opportunity you give the gluten in the flour to strengthen. The dough should be shaggy, not smooth.

How to Use This Recipe for Vegan Scones

You can easily turn these vegan biscuits into scones if you want, just by changing the shape. Instead of dropping six biscuit shapes onto the baking sheet, form one ball of dough, flatten it into a disk, and cut it into wedges like the pieces of a pie. You can even add raisins or dried sweetened cranberries to the dough.

How to Keep Vegan Biscuits Fresh

Like all biscuits, these are best when fresh out of the oven and served warm. That said, they will keep fine for a few hours, especially if you plan on serving them as the biscuit for strawberry shortcake.

How to Freeze and Thaw Vegan Biscuits

If you don't plan on serving the biscuits within a few hours, I recommend letting them cool completely, then freezing them. They can be kept frozen for up to a month.

To thaw, just put one on a paper towel and heat it in the microwave for 30 to 40 seconds, or until warm. Add more time if you are defrosting more than one at a time.

Tips for Using Coconut Oil

Use a neutral coconut oil for these biscuits so they don't taste coconut-y. We suggest refined coconut oil, which is more neutral in flavor and better used for cooking than extra virgin coconut oil.

 How to Melt Coconut Oil

There are three easy ways to melt coconut oil.

  • In the microwave, spoon the amount you want into a microwave-safe bowl covered with a paper towel (important to keep it from splattering). Heat the coconut oil at 50 percent power, 30 seconds at a time, until it's completely melted.
  • Spoon the amount you want into a saucepan on the stovetop and heat it slowly over medium heat. Keep an eye on it and stir or swirl the coconut oil from time to time until it's completely melted.
  • Or if the coconut oil is in a glass jar, place the entire jar in a saucepan of simmering water on the stovetop. Turn off the heat and wait for the coconut oil in the jar to melt, about 10 minutes or so.

Alternatives to Almond Milk

Use equal amounts of plain, unsweetened soy or coconut milk in place of the almond milk.

Making Vegan 'Buttermilk'

Adding vinegar to nondairy milk results in a buttermilk-like flavor similar to adding vinegar to dairy milk. This recipe calls for white vinegar, but you can also use apple cider vinegar for a little flavor boost or lemon juice.

What to Serve With Vegan Biscuits!

Give These Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes a Try!

From the Editors Of Simply Recipes

Vegan Biscuits

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 12 mins
Total Time 22 mins
Servings 6 biscuits

Gluten-Free Biscuits: You can make this recipe gluten free by subbing in an all-purpose gluten-free flour. The biscuits will be a little more crumbly but still taste great.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (270g) all-purpose flour

  • 3 tablespoons (40g) sugar

  • 1 tablespoon baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 5 tablespoons melted coconut oil, divided (use neutral tasting coconut oil)

  • 1/2 cup (120ml) unsweetened almond milk

  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar

  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

  1. Preheat the oven:

    Preheat the oven to 450°F.

  2. Whisk the dry ingredients:

    Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.

  3. Prime the flour with coconut oil:

    Add 2 tablespoons of the melted coconut oil to the flour mixture and whisk to distribute it evenly across the flour.

    Adding coconut oil to flour mixture

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer
  4. Add the wet ingredients:

    Stir together the almond milk, vinegar, and vanilla extract. Make a well in the center of the flour, and add the almond milk mixture and the remaining 3 tablespoons of melted coconut oil.

    Gently stir until the dough just comes together. Do not overmix! (If the dough is too dry, sprinkle a few drops of water over it.)

    Almond milk, vinegar, coconut oil in vegan biscuits

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer
    Vegan shortcake biscuit dough

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer
  5. Shape the biscuits:

    Divide the dough into 6 somewhat equal parts and drop by spoonfuls onto a greased parchment- or silicone-lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart.

    Dairy-free vegan biscuit

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer
  6. Bake the biscuits:

    Bake for 11 to 13 minutes at 450°F until the tops of the biscuits are lightly browned and the biscuits do not give when you press down on them.

  7. Cool:

    Let cool for 5 minutes before eating. Best eaten while warm.

    Color of perfect Dairy-Free Vegan shortcake biscuits

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    If you want to freeze, let cool to room temperature, then place in a freezer bag to freeze.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
296 Calories
12g Fat
42g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6
Amount per serving
Calories 296
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 12g 15%
Saturated Fat 9g 47%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 560mg 24%
Total Carbohydrate 42g 15%
Dietary Fiber 1g 5%
Total Sugars 7g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 144mg 11%
Iron 2mg 13%
Potassium 52mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.