How many times have you started to whip up some buttermilk biscuits for breakfast, only to find you don’t have the key ingredient: buttermilk? It happens to all of us at one point or another. Buttermilk is such a great ingredient, making everything from blueberry cake to tacos, banana cake to chicken taste better. It’s also a more versatile ingredient than so many of us realize, and it actually keeps in the refrigerator for as much as two to three weeks after it’s opened, so why do we all have so much trouble keeping it in the house— and what can we do about it? The answer is easy: make our own!

Yes, rather than trying to unravel the weird buttermilk mystery, OWN’s Pace Webb is helping us figure out an easy, practical solution. So when you have the biscuit craving but don’t have the buttermilk on hand, all you have to do is make your own like THIS.

HOMEMADE BUTTERMILK

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup (8 ounces) whole milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar

DIRECTIONS

1. Measure out the milk.
   
2. Add the lemon juice or vinegar to the milk.
   
3. Mix together.
   

Food Network and the kitchn both recommend letting the mixture sit at room temperature for about 5 to 15 minutes. It will curdle and fizz, and you’ll notice curdled bits in that mixture. That’s good!

That. Is. It. Swap it in wherever the recipe calls for buttermilk, and you are all set. No last minute trips to the store required.

This homemade buttermilk works best for baking recipes, in things like biscuits and cakes. For things like salad dressings, however, Pace recommends planning ahead and using more traditional buttermilk. Otherwise, you’ve got your go-to substitute to fulfill any craving.

Have you ever made your own buttermilk before? What are your favorite things to make with it?