WATCH: We Tried the Most Popular Biscuit Brands–and These are Our 4 Favorites
We know, we know, we wax poetic about biscuits like there's no other type of bread in the world—but it's because we love them. And we stand by the statements that we've made about the art of making homemade biscuits, but some days you don't have time to wait for the dough to chill, much less the time to measure out flour and butter and the rest. Since biscuit cravings supersede our timetables, we took to the grocery store to test several different store-bought biscuits and compare them to each other.
Mary B's Frozen Buttermilk Biscuits
These biscuits don't take as much color as the others when they bake, but they taste the most like a homemade buttermilk biscuit. The inside is exceptionally soft, while the outside has the crispy texture that comes from shortening in a biscuit—that's a good thing. This biscuit crisps and breaks when bitten into, but the interior is airy while not being too buttery or artificial tasting. Since the flavor is so good on its own, we recommend eating these biscuits with simple toppings like butter and honey.
Pillsbury Grands! Frozen Buttermilk Biscuits
Pillsbury's frozen biscuits are more bread like than any of the other biscuits. They have extra structure and brown beautifully in the oven. Because of their sturdiness, this is the kind of store-bought biscuit that's best suited for hearty toppings like fried eggs, bacon, and cheese.
Annie's Organic Flaky Biscuits
These biscuits come in a tube, and as they bake, they rise taller than the others. The top of the biscuit becomes crusty and somewhat firm which is a delicious contrast to the easily pulled apart layers of soft biscuit within. For a layered biscuit, these are not very buttery on their own, so we recommend eating them with a little butter and jelly.
Publix Big & Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits
Also in a tube, these biscuits have delicious flaky layers with a stronger butter flavor than the Annie's Organic Flaky Biscuits. The structure of these biscuits is very consistent throughout, meaning both the outside and inside are tender. Since the flavor is already buttery, we suggest eating them with bright and fruity jams or preserves.