Cooking guides / Kitchen basics
Buttermilk Substitute (5 Swaps and When to Skip Them)
Nobody in this family has ever finished a carton of buttermilk. We buy a quart for one batch of biscuits, and the rest sits in the back of the fridge until Aunt Linda asks what died in there.
The short version
For 1 cup of buttermilk, stir 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar into enough milk to make 1 cup and let it sit 10 minutes. For thicker batters and biscuits, use 3/4 cup plain yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup milk instead. Kefir swaps in cup for cup.
What buttermilk does in a recipe
Today's buttermilk is low-fat milk cultured with friendly bacteria, a lot like thin, pourable yogurt. It brings three things to a recipe: acid, thickness and tang. The acid reacts with baking soda to make bubbles, which is why buttermilk pancakes are fluffy. The acid also softens gluten, so biscuits and cakes come out tender. The thickness keeps batters from running and helps coatings cling to chicken.
A good substitute needs the acid at minimum. The best ones also bring the body, and that's why yogurt usually beats soured milk.
The substitutes, ranked
| Substitute | For 1 cup buttermilk | Best for | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yogurt and milk | 3/4 cup plain yogurt + 1/4 cup milk (or 1/2 cup Greek yogurt + 1/2 cup milk) | Biscuits, cornbread, cakes, marinades | Closest match. Slightly richer. |
| Kefir | 1 cup plain kefir | Everything, including dressings | Almost identical. A little more tang. |
| Sour cream and milk | 3/4 cup sour cream + 1/4 cup milk or water | Cakes, scones, quick breads | More fat, so a softer, richer crumb. |
| Soured milk | 1 tbsp lemon juice or white vinegar, plus milk to the 1-cup line, rested 10 minutes | Pancakes, waffles, muffins, quick breads | Thinner, milder. Batters run more. |
| Cream of tartar and milk | 1 cup milk + 1 3/4 tsp cream of tartar (whisked into the dry ingredients) | Pancakes and quick breads | No tang, but the acid still works. |
| Buttermilk powder | About 1/4 cup powder + 1 cup water (check the label) | Baking of any kind | Very close. Add the powder to the dry ingredients and the water to the wet. |
| Nondairy milk and acid | 1 tbsp lemon juice + unsweetened soy or oat milk to make 1 cup | Pancakes and quick breads | Soy curdles best. Almond milk stays thin. |
How to make soured milk, step by step
- Put 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or plain white vinegar in a liquid measuring cup.
- Pour in milk until it reaches the 1-cup line. Whole milk gives the thickest result; skim barely changes at all.
- Stir once and leave it for 5 to 10 minutes. Room-temperature milk sours faster, so give cold milk the full 10.
- It will look a little curdled at the edges and thicken slightly. That's what you want. Stir and use it all, curds included.
Why yogurt is the better bet
Soured milk has the acid but not the body. Side-by-side tests in home kitchens keep coming to the same answer: pancakes and cakes made with lemon-and-milk turn out flatter and a bit gummier than the real thing, while thinned yogurt rises and browns almost exactly like buttermilk. If you have plain yogurt in the fridge, reach for it first.
For biscuits like our flaky buttermilk biscuits, that difference matters more. A thin liquid makes a slack, sticky dough, and you end up adding flour, which makes tough biscuits. With yogurt, the dough comes together the way it should. Same story for buttermilk skillet cornbread and buttermilk drop biscuits.
When a swap won't work
- Ranch and other cold dressings. Soured milk makes a watery dressing. Use kefir, or half sour cream and half yogurt thinned with milk, for homemade buttermilk ranch dressing with fresh herbs.
- Drinking it or making butter or cheese. Nothing stands in for the real cultures here.
- Recipes that use 2 cups or more. With that much liquid, the thin texture of soured milk shows. Use yogurt, kefir or the real thing.
- Fried chicken brine. Soured milk works, but it runs off. Thinned yogurt clings better and gives buttermilk-brined fried chicken a craggier crust.
Common mistakes
- Adding the acid to a full cup of milk. Put the acid in first and fill to the line, or you'll end up with too much liquid.
- Using flavored or sweetened yogurt. Vanilla pancakes sound nice until they're vanilla cornbread. Plain only.
- Skipping the rest. The milk needs a few minutes to thicken. Use the time to measure your flour.
- Swapping soda for powder at the same time. Keep the leavening as written. The acid in every substitute here is enough for the baking soda the recipe already calls for.
Using up the real thing
If you do buy a carton, it keeps about 2 weeks past opening in the fridge. Freeze the rest in 1/2-cup portions in small containers or a muffin tin; it keeps about 3 months. It separates when thawed, so whisk it smooth and use it for baking, not for dressings. Leftovers go into fluffy buttermilk pancakes, crisp buttermilk waffles, red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and mashed potatoes.
Questions, answered
How do I make buttermilk with vinegar?
Put 1 tablespoon of white vinegar in a measuring cup, add milk to the 1-cup line, stir, and let it stand 10 minutes before using.
Can I use Greek yogurt instead of buttermilk?
Yes. Thin it first, using 1/2 cup Greek yogurt and 1/2 cup milk for each cup of buttermilk. Straight Greek yogurt is too thick for most batters.
Can I use regular milk instead of buttermilk?
Not plain. Without acid, the baking soda can't do its job and the bake comes out flat and soapy. Add lemon juice or vinegar first.
Can you freeze buttermilk?
Yes, for about 3 months. It separates when thawed, so whisk it well and use it for baking.
Published November 9, 2026.