Cat Head Biscuits
Quick Bite
Cat head biscuits are giant Southern biscuits roughly the size of a cat’s head. They are fluffy, craggy, buttery, and built for gravy, jam, fried chicken, or the kind of breakfast that does not apologize.
History
Cat head biscuits are part of the broader Southern biscuit tradition, but North Carolina has embraced them with particular pride. The name is wonderfully literal: these biscuits are big enough to be compared to a cat’s head. No cats involved, thankfully.
Unlike neat little cut biscuits, cat head biscuits are often shaped by hand or dropped from a softer dough. That softer touch helps make them tender and irregular, with craggy edges that catch butter, honey, sorghum, gravy, or jam beautifully.
They are closely tied to rural Southern cooking, where biscuits were a practical daily bread. Flour, buttermilk, fat, and a hot oven could turn into a filling side for breakfast, supper, or anything in between. Making them large meant fewer biscuits to shape and more biscuit to split.
Today, cat head biscuits show up in mountain breakfast spots, farm-to-table restaurants, bakeries, and biscuit shops across North Carolina. Biscuit Head in Asheville has helped make the phrase famous with massive biscuits and a jam bar, but the spirit is older than any one restaurant.
Fun Facts
- The name refers to the biscuit’s size, not the ingredients.
- Cat head biscuits are often softer and more rustic than neatly cut biscuits.
- They are excellent with sausage gravy, fried chicken, apple butter, or sorghum.
Where to Try
A biscuit-focused Asheville favorite known for giant cat head biscuits, gravy flights, and a jam-and-butter bar.
A beloved drive-through biscuit stop known for big Southern breakfast biscuits and fried chicken biscuits.
A classic Southern breakfast spot where biscuits, country ham, grits, and old-school North Carolina breakfast energy all belong together.
About the Game
This recipe is part of Van Life Challenge, a travel-themed board game from Gray Dog Games where players explore the United States, discover regional foods, and collect memorable experiences along the way.
Each featured food celebrates a real place, a local flavor, and the kind of delicious roadside discovery that makes every trip feel like an adventure.
Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
- Heat the oven: Heat the oven to 425°F.
- Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and sugar if using.
- Cut in the fat: Cut in the cold butter, lard, or shortening until the mixture has pea-size bits of fat.
- Add buttermilk: Add buttermilk and stir gently until a soft, shaggy dough forms.
- Shape gently: Turn the dough onto a floured surface and pat it together lightly. Do not overwork it.
- Make large biscuits: Divide into 6 large portions and gently shape each into a rough biscuit.
- Arrange: Place biscuits close together in a cast-iron skillet or on a baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until golden and tall.
- Finish: Brush with melted butter and serve hot.
