Now that I have your attention (EVERYONE loves Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits—to the tune of 395 million every year, or 1.1 million every day), I confess that the biscuits here are not exact replicas of their famous cousins. 
In my admittedly biased taste tests comparing the original with the wannabe, these Cheddar Bay Biscuits win by a mile. 
For one thing, in my first test, I couldn’t get past the stale taste of garlic powder, which is in the original. So I swapped it for fresh garlic on test #2. 
And then in a quick dash to Red Lobster to refresh my memory, I was surprised by how minimal the cheese flavor actually is in the original.
Related: The Best Scones in the Entire Universe
I wanted full-on, premium aged cheddar cheesiness. Hello Special Reserve Extra Sharp Tillamook Cheddar Cheese! 
So I predict that after one bite of these biscuits, you are unlikely to pine after Red Lobster’s Cheddar Bay Biscuits any longer. Oh sure, they are addictively delicious and you should order them if you happen to be at Red Lobster.
Related: The Best Scones in the Entire Universe
But my cheddar bay biscuits are even more fabulous, and you can have them hot from the oven any time you like. 
NOTE Before you jump into the recipe, be sure and review these biscuit making basics: The Best Scones in the Entire Universe. Fabulous biscuits are hugely dependent on correct technique. 
My Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits
These light, FLUFFY, flavorful, cheesy, moist cheddar bay biscuits are in a class of their own. They are actually significantly cheesier than their Red Lobster namesake. You won’t be able to eat only one.
Equipment Note This recipe is scaled for a 10-inch cast iron skillet, but you can also bake them on an edged baking sheet.
Technique Note To make sure these biscuits are extra light and moist, I handle them hardly at all. The dough is wet and scooped (as for drop biscuits), rather than shaped with your hands.
Technique Note To dry fresh parsley, mince it finely, spread out on a flat plate, and microwave in 10-second bursts until shrunken but still bright green. In my microwave this process takes 40 seconds total.
Biscuits
6 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese (3 cups loosely packed)
3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour (13½ ounces)
2½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning or cayenne powder
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced or pressed (about 2 teaspoons)
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 16-32 pieces
1 large egg, chilled
1 cup low-fat buttermilk, chilled
Baking (for skillet only)
¼ cup melted unsalted butter, if baking biscuits in a skillet
Finishing
¼ cup melted unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh flat-leaf parsley, dried (1 teaspoon dried)
Serving
unsalted butter, optional
- In a processor fitted with the steel knife. Pulse the cheese and 1 cup of the flour to finely chop the cheese. Don’t over process.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the cheese and flour mixture, remaining flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, Old Bay Seasoning, and garlic.
- Using either a pastry blender or the tips of your fingers, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture is evenly textured and resembles coarse sand.
- Whisk the egg lightly and blend in the milk.
- Pour the egg-milk mixture over the dry ingredients. Fold quickly and lightly with a flexible silicon spatula. The dough will be quite wet.
- If making skillet biscuits, melt ¼ cup butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet.
- If making regular biscuits, line an edged baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Scoop out twelve portions of dough using an oiled 1/3-cup measuring cup. Arrange biscuits side-by-side in prepared skillet or 1-inch apart on prepared baking sheet. Flatten biscuits slightly with your hand if you like. (It’s fine to leave biscuits at room temperature for the few minutes it takes to heat the oven. They can be refrigerated for longer periods of time if needed.)
- Set a small ovenproof container filled with 1 cup of hot water into the oven. (The steam keeps the biscuit tops from setting too quickly and results in extra light biscuits.)
- Heat oven to 425° F. Bake biscuits for 12-14 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown.
- While still warm, brush the cooked biscuits with melted butter and sprinkle with parsley.
- If there are any leftovers, let them cool, seal tightly, and store at room temperature for up to three days. It’s highly unlikely that they will last beyond day one, but if they do, rewarm very briefly in a microwave.
Makes 12 biscuits.
More Fabulous Biscuit, Scone & Shortcake Recipes from LunaCafe
- The Best Scones in the Entire Universe
- Grandma Mary’s Heavenly Light Buttermilk Skillet Biscuits
- Chocolate Shortcake with White Chocolate Crema, Strawberry Lime Sauce & Strawberry Lime Salsa
Cookin’ with Gas (inspiration from around the web)
- A Bountiful Kitchen: Skillet Biscuits
- Brown Eyed Baker: Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice: Homemade Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Food Fanatic: Homemade Bisquick Mix
- Portuguese Girl Cooks: Scratch Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Rasa Malaysia: Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Seeded at the Table: Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Simply Plate: Grandma’s Skillet Biscuits
- TasteSpotting: Red Lobster’s Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- The Baker Mama: Cheddar-Bacon Skillet Biscuits
Happy Cooking!
Copyright 2013 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.
My favorite part of working at Red Lobster were these dang biscuits!!!! Can’t wait to make these.
Those look really good! I don’t often make my own bread or biscuits, but these sound so good, I think I’m going to have to try it! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
My husband would probably expire from happiness if I made him these lol….
Laura, maybe for Valentine’s Day then? 🙂
How about for Valentine’s Day then? 🙂
Those cheddar bay biscuits are sooooo carbilicious!! I am going to take a nice long walk and then make your recipe, looks amazing. Thanks!
Sharon, they have no calories though. Heh heh 🙂
Sharon, they have no calories. Heh heh…
I want to try this, as all your recipes I’ve made have turned out really well. Can you confirm that you don’t preheat the oven until after you’ve shaped the biscuits? If so, do you refrigerate them while the oven is heating? Thanks!
Stacey, yes the biscuits can remain out at room temperature while you preheat the oven For longer periods of time, lightly cover and refrigerate the biscuits. Added this to the instructions. Thanks! 🙂
Stacey, yes, it’s fine to leave the biscuits at room temperature for the few minutes it takes to heat the oven. Fr longer period of time, lightly cover and refrigerate.
Oh my I love their biscuits!
AAARGH! I thought 2 1/2 Tbsp baking powder was too much (looked on your other biscuit recipe & it said 2 1/2 tsp…good thing that’s what I used). I couldn’t figure out where the pressed garlic went in, so I mixed it with the wet ingredients. My final mixture was not wet by any means…hope they turn out ok when I bake them off one & a half hours from now.
Kate, holy cow, my editing was really off on the day I posted these. Mea culpa! Thank goodness you trusted yourself. Yes, it should be 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and the garlic can go in anywhere. Corrected now. Did you weigh the flour and use a cup of buttermilk? The mixture should be quite sticky (wet). Hope they turn out well for you in any case.
Thanks for getting back to me…no, I hardly ever weigh flour (I use KAF & fluff it up before filling the cup & leveling)…my buttermilk was full fat, so maybe that was it. Also, I froze my butter cubes & they were so hard I said forget it and gently processed the flour with the already processed cheese/flour in the food processor. I only added a little over 1 tsp. pressed garlic because now I was getting a little scared of the recipe…cloves vary by size…how much garlic do you use?
The biscuits turned out fine…maybe a little denser than I would like but totally yummy. This morning I cut one in half & broiled it with plain butter…it was ok. Then, I broiled the next one plain and added some compound butter I had (rosemary, thyme, s&p and a little lemon) after they came out and it was amazing. Thanks again…p.s., I love your cookbook, especially the marinated and grilled shrimp!!!
Kate, thanks for all the details. Sounds like you got good results even with a number of variables in play. Way to go! Next time, try making the dough a little wetter. That will make a lighter biscuit. Rule of Thumb: One medium clove of garlic equals 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic. Happy New Year! 🙂
I’m confused…how much shortening is to be added in Step 3? Thanks.
Kate, good catch, thanks! It now says “butter.” Happy Holidays! 🙂
Great recipe and terrific round up as well. Your recipes always inspire, Susan, and the list of similar inspirations at the end are always well thought-out. Thanks!
Ahhh… so nice, thank you Victoria! 🙂
If not using a skillet, what do you do with the melted butter and parsley?
JB, the melted butter and parsley go on the baked biscuits and are not mandatory, especially if you used the extra 1/4 cup butter specified for the skillet biscuits. I revised the recipe to make that more clear. Thanks, good catch! 🙂
Could you mix up these biscuits a day ahead of time and then bake them the morning you are serving brunch?
Kate, YES, that works very well. 🙂