
I’ve been meaning to create a Low Sodium Biscuit recipe for a while—but not just any biscuit. I wanted something light, fluffy, and actually kidney-friendly.
Oh, and no phosphorus-packed baking powder. That’s a big deal, since most low-sodium biscuit recipes still rely on it.
Honestly, I kept putting it off, thinking it’d take forever to get right. Turns out, I was wrong—and I’m so glad I finally gave it a shot!
Jump to:
- Low Sodium Biscuit Success!
- Why you’re gonna love this Low Sodium Biscuit Recipe
- What’s the big deal about the “no baking powder” part?
- Side-by-side comparison of Everyday Kidney Cook Low Sodium Biscuits & other biscuits
- Ingredients in our Low Sodium Biscuits
- Special tips on making the best Low Sodium Biscuits
- Variations to of low sodium biscuits
- Serving Suggestions for Low Sodium Biscuits
- Make them biscuits!
- Easy Low Sodium Biscuits (w/o Baking Powder!)
Low Sodium Biscuit Success!
Much to my surprise, and delight, this recipe was perfected after only two trials and the results were scrumptious! These low sodium biscuits are rich, buttery, moist and fluffy! In fact, my husband (one of my official “taste-testers”) told me they’re one of his favorite low sodium creations of mine!
Not only that, but at 100 mg of sodium and 51 mg of phosphorus (and no phosphate additives) per serving, these biscuits are perfect for anyone needing to follow a low sodium and/or kidney-friendly diet.
Why you’re gonna love this Low Sodium Biscuit Recipe
Here’s what makes this recipe a home run:
- It uses only 6 common ingredients. You probably have most of them in your kitchen now!
- It’s super simple. Following a few easy steps, the biscuits are simply dropped on a baking sheet and baked. No kneading the dough, letting it rise or cutting out.
- It’s quick. From start to finish, you can have these biscuits on your plate in about 20 minutes.
- They’re low sodium (obviously, as the name states!). As mentioned above, each hearty biscuit contains only 100 mg of sodium. That’s 73-84% less sodium than most other biscuits!
- They’re kidney-friendly. Most of us know that low sodium is a very important part of a kidney-friendly diet. In addition, if you have kidney problems and need to limit potassium and phosphorus too, we’ve got ya covered! Keep reading…
- Low potassium. Our low sodium biscuits are low in potassium at only 61 mg per serving.
- Low phosphorus and phosphate additive-free! This is a big one! Our low sodium biscuits are free from phosphate additives and contain only 51 mg of total phosphorus per biscuit (up to 83% less phosphorus than many biscuits!).
What’s the big deal about the “no baking powder” part?
If you do a quick on-line review of biscuit recipes, you’ll find that 99.9% of them use baking powder as the leavening agent. Baking powder is what makes them light and fluffy! But it also brings a few other undesirable traits “to the table”.
Baking powder contains sodium!
One teaspoon of baking powder contains 488 mg of sodium. Many homemade recipes that yield a similar amount as our low sodium biscuit recipe use 4-5 teaspoons of baking powder.
That comes out to 1952-2440 mg of sodium! Or 139-174 mg of sodium per biscuit (based on 14 biscuits/recipe), just from the baking powder! Store-bought biscuits in all its forms (frozen, in a can, or made from a mix) contain much more baking powder!
Side note: Keep in mind that almost all biscuits (homemade or storebought) include a significant amount of added salt as well.
Baking powder is LOADED with phosphate additives!
Remember the high phosphorus content of most biscuits that we mentioned? Baking powder is the culprit! But I’d like to emphasize that it’s not even the total amount of phosphorus that’s the real problem. It’s the fact that this phosphorus comes from the phosphate additives in the baking powder.
Why are phosphate additives a problem?
You can find phosphate additives in many processed foods, fast foods and in many baked goods (like biscuits!).
When you consume phosphate additives (called inorganic phosphorus), almost 90% of the phosphorus is absorbed by the body. In contrast, organic phosphorus, or phosphorus found naturally in food, is absorbed at a lower rate. This is especially true for plant sources of phosphorus.
The issue is that many people with kidney problems are unable to process all that extra phosphorus. The result is that that their blood phosphorus levels could become too high!
This can lead to a whole list of complications! According to the National Kidney Foundation®️, these complications range from problems with the heart, high blood pressure, bone disease and more!
In addition, even in people without kidney disease, studies have found a possible link between a high intake of phosphate additives and heart and bone disease. This is definitely an area to keep an eye on as more research is conducted.
What about sodium-free baking powder?
You may be wondering about sodium-free baking powder. Well, there’s a couple problems with this:
- No longer manufactured. The most important reason that sodium-free baking powder is not an option is that, to my knowledge, there are no longer companies that are currently making it! Time will tell if this is permanent or temporary. This means that all of the low sodium biscuit recipes out there that use sodium-free baking powder are no longer relevant!
- Very expensive. If you are able to get your hands on some sodium-free baking powder still on the shelves or in stock, it tends to be super-expensive!
- Most still contain phosphate additives and are therefore not a good choice for many with kidney problems. (Example: Hain Featherweight®️ baking powder listed monosodium phosphate as the active ingredient.)
I do want to mention that Hains®️ does make a reduced sodium baking powder that is significantly lower in sodium than regular. However, like the sodium-free version, this is also loaded with phosphate additives!
If not sodium-free baking powder, then what?
We use baking soda for leavening in our low sodium biscuits recipe. While it’s true that baking soda is high in sodium at 1260 mg per teaspoon, the amount used in this recipe is limited to 1 teaspoon. It’s the main source of sodium in our biscuits.
Our recipe relies on the reaction between baking soda and an acid (soured milk, or milk + vinegar). This reaction creates air bubbles resulting in a surprisingly light and fluffy biscuit!
Check out these two other recipes from The Everyday Kidney Cook that utilize baking soda and soured milk for leavening with great results:
Another Alternative: Homemade “Baking Powder”
Another option to consider as a replacement for phosphate-laden baking powder is to make a baking powder substitute with a mixture of baking soda and cream of tartar! The baking soda (the base) reacts with the cream of tartar (the acid) to create leavening. Here’s how to use it:
- Combine 2 parts cream of tartar to 1 part baking soda
- Substitute this mixture with the same amount of baking powder that the recipe calls for.
However, there are a couple of drawbacks to using this substitute:
- Not everyone stocks cream of tartar in their kitchen.
- Cream of tartar is a source of potassium , containing 495 mg of potassium per teaspoon. In most biscuit recipes, if you were to use this homemade baking powder in place of the baking powder called for in the recipe, it would add approximately 100 mg of potassium per biscuit. Not a crazy amount, but something to consider!
Side-by-side comparison of Everyday Kidney Cook Low Sodium Biscuits & other biscuits
Here’s a comparison of the sodium, potassium and phosphorus in our low sodium, phosphate-additive free biscuits vs biscuits prepared four other ways. As you can see, our biscuits are lower in all three areas and are the only kind that does not contain phosphate additives.
Ingredients in our Low Sodium Biscuits
Here are the simple ingredients you’ll use for your low sodium biscuits:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Sugar
- Milk + Vinegar
- Butter
Special tips on making the best Low Sodium Biscuits
You can find the complete directions on how to make our Low Sodium Biscuits in the recipe below. However, I’d like to mention a few important things you’ll want to do to make biscuits that are tender, light and fluffy:
- Make sure your butter is very cold. The cold butter will create steam when baked, which will help your biscuits be light and airy!
- Be careful not to overmix to ensure your biscuits are nice and tender! Once you add the soured milk to the dry ingredients, you’ll want to mix just until combined.
- Get the biscuits in the oven right away after mixing to maximize leavening. Once you add the soured milk to the dry ingredients, the acid will immediately start reacting with the baking soda to create bubbles (leavening).
- Bake at a high temperature (425 ℉) as directed. This ensures that your biscuits will be fully baked before the leavening reaction subsides.
Variations to of low sodium biscuits
Below are some low sodium variations you can try for your biscuits:
- Adjust the sweetness: Use more or less sugar based on your taste preferences and whether you’ll be making savory or sweet biscuits.
- Garlic Butter: Brush with biscuit tops with a mixture of melted butter and garlic powder after the biscuits come out of the oven.
- Garlic and Herb: Add garlic powder and your favorite herbs such as chives, dill, rosemary and thyme to the dry ingredients.
- Cracked Pepper: Top your biscuits with cracked pepper before baking. For a little more kick, add some to the dry ingredients, too!
- Cinnamon Sugar: Add ½-1 teaspoon of cinnamon to the dry ingredients and sprinkle the biscuit tops with a cinnamon-sugar mixture before baking.
- Cinnamon Raisin: Add ¾ cup of raisins and ½-1 teaspoon of cinnamon to the dry ingredients. For a little extra touch, drizzle the partially cooled biscuits with a glaze made from a mixture of 1 cup powdered sugar, 3-4 Tbsp. milk and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- Berry: Add 1 cup of your favorite berries to the batter.
- Cranberry Orange: Add ¾ cup of dried, sweetened cranberries and the zest of one orange to the dry ingredients.
- Pumpkin: Add ⅓ cup canned pumpkin, ½ c raisins and ½ teaspoon of cinnamon. You may need to add a few additional tablespoons of flour if the dough is too sticky.
Serving Suggestions for Low Sodium Biscuits
- Serve with butter and jelly, jam or honey. They’re especially delicious if they’re still warm, allowing the butter to melt! You can use sugar-free jelly or no sugar added jam to cut the sugar/carbs, if desired.
- Serve alongside eggs and our Easy Low Sodium Sausage, or make a breakfast sandwich with these ingredients!
- With a Low Sodium, Low Potassium Soup using our guide
- With our Simple Salmon Stew
- With our Easy Roasted Red Pepper & Gouda Soup.
- For a hearty comfort meal, have a biscuit with our Low Sodium Chicken & Noodles (Slow-Cooker).
Make them biscuits!
Whether you're cutting back on sodium or managing kidney health, these low sodium biscuits offer a delicious twist on the classic. Uniquely made without baking powder—a rare find in the biscuit world—they’re naturally low in phosphorus and are a great kidney-friendly option.
Conveniently, you can whip them up with ingredients you probably already have. And you can decide to dress them sweet or savory. Try them out and let me know your favorite way to make them your own in the comments!
Easy Low Sodium Biscuits (w/o Baking Powder!)
Ingredients
- 3 ¼ cups All-purpose flour
- ¼-1/2 cup Granulated sugar (adjust amount according to desired sweetness)
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ cup Butter (very cold, cut in chunks)
- 4 teaspoons White Vinegar
- 1 ¼ cups Milk, any kind. I used 2% (minus 4 teaspoons) * see directions below
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or coat in cooking spray.
- Add the 4 teaspoons of vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Then add the milk and fill to the 1 ¼ cup line. Set aside, allowing the milk to sour.
- In a medium-size mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients (flour, sugar and baking soda) and thoroughly mix. Using a whisk works well.
- Add the cold butter cubes to dry ingredients and cut the butter in using 2 knives, a pastry cutter or your fingers. Mix until little balls form. It will be dry and crumbly Don't overmix.
- Make a well in the mixture. Add the milk.
- Mix with a spatula or your hands just until the dry ingredients are mixed in. The dough will look slightly lumpy (not smooth). It should be slightly sticky, but not so gooey that it can't be handled. If it's too wet, add an additional Tablespoon of flour.
- Drop the biscuits on a cookie sheet. A medium size cookie scoop works well.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes until the biscuits are slightly brown. Be careful not to overbake or they may be too dry.
- ENJOY!
Sonja
That was great information about baking powder I really didn't know before!
And the biscuits came out so satisfyingly fluffy with so little effort. Love it!
Ashley
Great, easy recipe! I had buttermilk so I used that instead of making it with the milk and vinegar.
Lora
Really great biscuits and I like that they are lower sodium. Still can enjoy one of my favorite treats with less sodium!
Leslie
These turned out great and were so easy to throw together! Loving your kidney friendly recipes!!!
Claudia
Just made these low sodium biscuits and they turned out so soft and fluffy—even without baking powder! Super simple and perfect with a bit of jam or butter.
Lisa Porter
This recipe was great, and so needed and appreciated. I'm so thankful to find a blog for people with kidney issues!
Nicole
These low sodium biscuits are such a great recipe! I love that they are baking powder free, and still delicious.
Jean
Brushed these with garlic butter. Divine! Thanks for all the extra info too.
Jaleah Kendrick
These biscuits are very delicious! I love that they are low sodium and made without baking powder.
Swathi
Easy low-sodium biscuits are so delicious that I have them for breakfast. My family enjoyed them.