Soda Biscuits
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a large bowl, mix the flour, shortening, salt, and baking powder until well combined.
Do not knead the dough.
Bake
Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto a baking sheet.
Bake for about 5 minutes or until golden brown.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the structure that holds the biscuits together as they bake.
- Shortening
- Adds fat that coats the flour and keeps the biscuits tender.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas as it reacts in the dough, lifting the biscuits as they bake.
The step that matters
Do not knead the dough.. Kneading develops gluten, the flour's protein network. Too much gluten makes biscuits tough and dense instead of light and tender.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipes