This easy recipe for buttermilk muffins comes together all in one bowl! These muffins are sweet, a bit tangy, and so, so tender! You can make these delicious muffins as-is, or with added mix-ins, such as berries, nuts, or chocolate chips.
Note: This post was originally published in 2022 and updated in 2025, with new photos and improved instructions. The recipe was also improved, including making the berries an optional add-in.
Buttermilk is one of my favorite ingredients to bake with. It adds a nice tang that enhances the flavor of pancakes, muffins, or almost any baked good! And, because it's acidic, buttermilk helps to break down the gluten in baked goods, creating a tender crumb that you just can't get without it.
Even better, this buttermilk muffin recipe is so easy, you can make it with only one bowl, using mostly basic pantry ingredients. Even though it's a simple recipe, these muffins are far from boring. They are sweet, but not overly sweet, and the creamy, tangy flavor of the buttermilk shines through.
These buttermilk muffins remind me of the fluffiest, most tender buttermilk pancake in muffin form!
Hey there friend, if you need something sweet, but don't even have the time (or energy) to turn on the oven, try one of my mug cake recipes! My favorites are strawberry shortcake mug cake, apple mug cake, and snickerdoodle mug cake.
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Recipe ingredients
Ingredient notes
- Oil: you can use any neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil.
- Buttermilk: if you don't have buttermilk, I will talk about how to make an easy substitute in the Tips and tricks section below.
- Coarse sugar crystals: this is an optional ingredient for the muffin tops. I also use coarse sugar crystals in my vanilla muffins recipe, they are perfect for creating a beautiful crunchy muffin top.
Step by step photos
1. First, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Then, line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners.
2. Next, add the dry ingredients to a large bowl. Stir them together with a whisk.
3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture with your clean hands or a spoon (or, the back of the whisk like I did here!).
4. Add the wet ingredients into the well: eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla.
5. Within the well, break the yolks with a whisk, and gently stir the liquids to start them combining (they don't have to be fully mixed at this point).
6. Gently incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Don't overmix, the batter should still be lumpy.
7. Scoop the muffin batter into the prepared muffin tin.
8. If you want, now sprinkle on the coarse sugar. Bake the buttermilk muffins in the preheated oven for 20 - 22 minutes.
9. The buttermilk muffins are done when the tops are a light golden brown and set. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with no wet batter (some moist crumbs are ok though!).
Let the buttermilk muffins cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
How to make buttermilk substitute
If you don't have buttermilk, you can still make the recipe! With only 2 ingredients, you can easily whip up a decent buttermilk substitute.
Just add 4 teaspoons of lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Then, add low fat or whole milk up to the 1 ¼ cup line. Stir the mixture and let it sit for about 5 - 10 minutes, or until the milk looks slightly thickened and curdled.
Tips and tricks
- To make sure your buttermilk muffins are nice and tender, stop mixing the batter when all the flour is moistened. There should still be lumps in the batter.
- When I added the coarse sugar on top of the muffin batter, I got a little sloppy and spilled some on the muffin tin. This made the muffin tops stick to the tin a little when they expanded over the cups. So, just brush away any loose sugar crystals from the tin before baking!
- If your muffin tops stick to the tin a little like mine did, you can slide a thin plastic or silicone spatula underneath the muffin edges to loosen them (plastic or silicone is preferred so as not to scratch up the muffin tin).
Butter vs. Oil in Muffins?
- This muffin recipe uses oil instead of butter. I personally like using oil because it creates a very moist texture. And, with oil, you don't have to bring the buttermilk and eggs up to room temperature, saving time. (When the melted butter combines with cold milk and eggs, it solidifies, creating texture issues in the batter.)
- But, if you prefer the flavor of butter, you can replace half or all of the oil with melted and cooled butter. In that case, use room-temperature eggs and buttermilk in the batter.
Buttermilk Muffin add-ins
Here are some ideas for add-ins that will take your buttermilk muffins to the next level! If you want to include one of these optional mix-ins, stir them in gently after you have made the batter.
- Try adding 1 cup blackberries, blueberries, or raspberries, or a combo of these. You can use either fresh or frozen berries. If using frozen, add them to the batter straight from the freezer.
- For a little crunch, try adding in ½ - 1 cup roughly-chopped almonds or pistachios (or your favorite nut!).
- For extra sweetness, add in ½ - 1 cup chocolate chips.
- You can also try adding in 1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest for a subtle citrus flavor.
Storage and reheating
- The muffins will last at room temperature for 2 - 4 days in a sealed container. Add a paper towel to the container to help absorb moisture.
- If you added fruit, the muffins will keep at room temperature for about 1 - 2 days.
- For longer storage, keep the buttermilk muffins in the freezer for up to 3 months. I find the easiest way to store them in the freezer is in a gallon zip top bag (try to remove most of the air from the bag before sealing).
- To enjoy these muffins from the freezer, you can leave them out on the counter for about 1 hour to thaw. Or, even better, peel the paper from the muffins, split them in half (while still frozen), then bake them in the oven for 7 - 8 minutes at 350 degrees F (177 degrees C).
Recipe FAQs
No, you can use the eggs and buttermilk straight from the fridge. This recipe uses oil, rather than melted butter, so there is no risk that the cold eggs and/or buttermilk will cause the butter to seize up.
You don't have to, but I recommend using cupcake liners. I tested the recipe both ways, and I had a little trouble with the delicate muffins getting stuck when just using oil to grease the tin.
If you don't have cupcake liners, just spray the muffin tin generously with cooking spray, including the top surface of the tin (in case the muffins puff up and spill over the tin a little).
In addition to using buttermilk, which helps tenderize the muffins, here are a few additional ways to ensure moist and tender muffins:
First, use oil in the batter. According to this article on the pros of baking with oil, baked goods made with butter can be more dense and not as tender as when made with oil.
Next, measure the flour accurately. Too much flour will make the muffins dry. Spoon the flour from the container into the measuring cup, and sweep off the excess flour with a knife. Or, better yet, use the weight measurement.
And, do not to overmix the batter. Only stir the batter until the flour is combined - it's good if there are some lumps left over.
Finally, do not overbake the muffins. If you keep them in the oven for longer than they need, they will dry out. Along these lines, be sure to remove them from the muffin tin after a few minutes, to finish cooling on a rack. If you leave them in the hot tin too long, they can overbake.
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Print📖 Recipe
Buttermilk Muffins
Buttermilk provides a delicious tang and tender crumb to these moist muffins. You can make these muffins all in one bowl, making prep a snap!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: breakfast, snacks
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled, or use weight measurement)
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cup (300 ml) buttermilk
- ½ cup (118 ml) neutral oil (vegetable oil, canola oil, etc.)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- coarse sugar crystals (optional, for the tops of the muffins)
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Place cupcake liners in each cup of a 12-cup muffin tin (preferred), or, generously spray the muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir with a whisk to combine. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture with your clean hands or a spoon.
- Add the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla into the well. Break the yolks with the whisk, and gently stir the liquids together within the well.
- With the whisk, begin to incorporate the flour mixture into the liquids. Whisk slowly until all the flour has been moistened, then stop. Do not overmix; the batter should be lumpy.
- Scoop the muffin batter into the prepared muffin tin. If desired, sprinkle coarse sugar on top of each muffin (I used about 1 teaspoon per muffin but you can add as much or little as you like).
- Bake the muffins in the preheated oven for 20 - 22 minutes, or until the tops are light golden brown and firm, and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean (meaning, there is no wet batter on the toothpick - moist crumbs are ok).
- Let the muffins cool in the muffin tin for about 10 minutes, then move the muffins to a wire rack to finish cooling to room temperature.
Notes
(1) If desired, you can add one of these additional ingredients/flavorings to the muffins. Gently stir the additional ingredients into the muffin batter after it's been mixed:
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blackberries, blueberries, or raspberries (or a combo of these). If using frozen, add them to the batter straight from the freezer.
- ½ - 1 cup roughly-chopped almonds or pistachios (or your favorite nut!)
- ½ - 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest for a subtle citrus flavor (zest can be added in addition to any one of the above mix-ins).
(2) The muffins will keep in a storage container at room temperature for 2 - 4 days (or 1 - 2 days with fruit added). For longer storage, the muffins can be frozen for up to 3 months.
The nutrition information below is an estimate only, provided by an online nutrition calculator. It includes low-fat buttermilk, and without the optional coarse sugar. The nutrition counts of your dish will vary based on the brand, type, and exact amounts of ingredients used. This nutrition estimate should not be considered a substitute for professional medical, health, or nutritional advice. See our full disclosure policy.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/12 recipe
- Calories: 237
- Sugar: 14 g
- Sodium: 197 mg
- Fat: 10.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 31.6 g
- Fiber: 0.6 g
- Protein: 4.3 g
- Cholesterol: 32 mg
K viscusi says
My favorite breakfast treat. Thank you
Kate says
So glad you enjoyed the muffins 🙂