These Copycat Cheddar Bay Biscuits will be one of the best things to grace your dinner table! Made with homemade biscuit dough topped with garlic butter, these delicious biscuits are baked to perfection with a crisp outer while remaining soft and fluffy on the inside!
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Red Lobster is everyone’s favorite seafood restaurant, and Red Lobster’s Cheddar Bay Biscuits are the reason we go there, right? (Aside from the lobster, of course 😉)
The classic buttermilk biscuits are a perfect addition to any main course at home too, and you know how much I love my bread sides!
With this super easy copycat recipe, you can make delicious Red Lobster biscuits in your own kitchen in less than 30 minutes.
This is my own take on the popular cheese biscuits — but we are totally obsessed! I would love for you to try them and let me know how they compare.
Serve them with a big bowl of Easy Vegetarian Chili, White Chicken Chili or Instant Pot Chili — it’s one of the best comfort food combos!
Just love biscuits? Try this BBQ Chili Cheese Biscuit Casserole, these Chicken Pizziola Sliders on Garlic Herb Biscuits, and my creamy Chicken Pot Pie Casserole!
Ingredients Needed:
- Flour: I’ve used all-purpose flour for this recipe, but you can also use whole wheat or substitute half for whole wheat flour to get more fibre.
- Baking Powder: to help the dough to rise to give that classic fluffy inside!
- Seasoning: use a combination of salt, dried parsley, paprika, and garlic powder for the biscuits. You’ll need the garlic powder and dried parsley again for the garlic butter.
- Butter: use salted butter to enhance the flavor of the biscuits.
- Cheese: you can use almost any kind of cheese you like, and you can add up to 3 cups depending on your tastes.
- Buttermilk: buttermilk will give you the flakiest biscuits with the best flavor. If you don’t have any on hand, you can make your own buttermilk substitute very easily! Check out my instructions for How to Make Buttermilk here.
How to Make Cheddar Bay Biscuits
This easy recipe takes less than 30 minutes to make. Full instructions are included in the recipe card below.
- Mix flour and seasoning: In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt, parsley, paprika, and garlic powder.
- Cut in butter: Put the butter cubes on top of the flour mixture and cut them in using a pastry cutter. End up with pea-sized chunks of butter in the mixture.
- Add cheese: Add the cheese and stir until combined.
- Make the dough: Add the buttermilk and stir in until a sticky dough forms.
- Make dough balls: Divide the dough into disc-shaped, flattened, portions, placing them on the prepared baking sheet. (You can also drop them onto a baking sheet, but I find this way just as easy!)
- Brush with garlic butter and bake: Combine the ingredients for garlic butter, then brush the tops of the biscuits with it. Bake until light golden brown.
Cheddar Bay Biscuits FAQs
These biscuits were first introduced at Red Lobster as “freshly baked, hot cheese garlic bread,” but after some time the flavorful biscuits were renamed “Cheddar Bay Biscuits” to reflect the seaside atmosphere of Red Lobster restaurants.
These biscuits are easy to make fresh, but you can also prepare them ahead of time if you wish to save time on the day.
1 Day Ahead: Prepare the biscuits on the baking sheet, cover them, and refrigerate them for up to 1 day before baking them to enjoy them freshly baked with less fuss on the day. They may need a couple of extra minutes in the oven as you’re baking them from chilled; just keep an eye on them.
Up to 3 Months Ahead: You can also prep these and freeze them before baking. Simply freeze them flat on a baking sheet for 2 hours, then pop them into a freezer bag or freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Brush with garlic butter and bake right from frozen! Just add a few minutes of baking time to make sure they’re fully done.
Make these biscuits, bake them, let them cool, and then store them on the counter for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to a week. I recommend reheating them in the oven or air fryer for a few minutes to make them warm and crisp before serving them again.
Make these copycat biscuits, let them cool, then store them in a Ziploc bag or freezer-safe container and freeze them for up to 3 months. I recommend thawing frozen biscuits completely and reheating them in the oven or air fryer before serving.
I’m sure you can, but there’s nothing like homemade biscuits! I have not tested this recipe with biscuit mix so I can’t say for sure how it would change.
Tips and Notes
- Cookie Scoop. You can use a large cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop to divide the dough into even portions. You can even just drop the dough into the pan from the scoop!
- Butter. Unsalted butter will work just as well as salted butter; no additional salt is needed. If you like, you can increase the salt by ¼ teaspoon.
- Flour. Substitute up to half of the flour with whole wheat flour without much change in the flavor or texture. I haven’t tested this recipe with any other flour, though.
Cheddar Bay Biscuits Variations
- Change up the seasonings and herbs. Feel free to tweak the seasonings to your tastes! Add in different herbs or use fresh ones if it’s summer and they are plentiful.
- Add some heat. Add some cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to the flour mixture to add some heat!
- Want to take your Cheddar Bay biscuits to the next level? Try these Cheddar Bay Sausage Balls — the perfect bite for game day or the holidays!
- Looking for a foolproof recipe for a classic version? Try these Flaky Biscuits from my friend Amber!
Serving Suggestions
There are several ways to enjoy these biscuits. They’re great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner (or all-day brunch – no judgment here)!
They go wonderfully with eggs, for breakfast, brunch, or lunch. Pair them with my Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole, this 6 Ingredient Breakfast Skillet, or Sausage Egg Casserole.
Of course, these biscuits go well with seafood. Try them with my Honey Garlic Salmon in Foil or my Baked Tilapia. Alternatively, you can serve them with sausage gravy or any meal with sausage meat, like Baked Gnocchi with Sausage.
More Easy Bread Recipes You’ll Love
KW: cheddar bay biscuits, cheddar biscuits, red lobster biscuits
Cheddar Bay Biscuits
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
Biscuits
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ cup cold salted butter (cubed)
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (150 grams)
- 1 cup buttermilk
Garlic Butter
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt, parsley, paprika, and garlic powder.
- Add butter cubes and cut them in using a pastry cutter or a fork (you can also use your hands!). You want it crumbly, with pea-sized chunks of butter in the mixture.
- Add the cheese and stir until combined.
- Add buttermilk and stir until a sticky dough forms. Divide the dough into 10 large or 12 regular portions and use your hands to shape it into a rough disc, slightly flattened on top (it doesn’t have to be perfect!). Place them on the prepared baking sheet.
- Combine the ingredients for garlic butter (melted butter, garlic powder, and parsley) and brush the tops of the biscuits.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes until light golden brown. Let it cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Prep the biscuits on the baking sheet, cover them, and refrigerate them for up to 1 day before baking them to enjoy them freshly baked with less fuss on the day. They may need a couple of extra minutes in the oven as you’re baking them from chilled; just keep an eye on them.
- You can also prep these and freeze them before baking. Simply freeze them flat on a baking sheet for 2 hours, then pop them into a freezer bag or freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Brush with garlic butter and bake right from frozen! Just add a few minutes of baking time to make sure they’re fully done.
- Refrigerator: You can make these biscuits, bake them, and store them in the refrigerator for up to a week. I recommend reheating them in the oven or air fryer for a few minutes to make them warm and crisp before serving them again.
- Freezer: You can make these biscuits, cool them, and freeze them for up to 3 months. I recommend thawing completely and reheating in the oven or air fryer before serving.
Nutrition Information
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Leslie Risbrough says
Hello Ashley,
Delicious recipe! Can you divide the recipe in half?
Thank you,
Leslie
Irene Wilson says
Excellent recipe. I will always make these biscuits. Thank you for all your recipes. I gave this recipe to all my friends
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Irene! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!