Buttermilk Powder substitute

Best substitute

Liquid Buttermilk, With the Water Removed

Replace ¼ cup powder plus 1 cup water with 1 cup liquid buttermilk

Best for biscuits

Close match

If your recipe also calls for water, the cleanest fix is liquid buttermilk: swap 1/4 cup of powder plus 1 cup of the recipe's water for 1 cup of liquid buttermilk and delete that water. If you need it to stay dry, whisk 4 tablespoons of dry milk powder with 1 3/4 teaspoons of cream of tartar for every 4 tablespoons of buttermilk powder, which gives you both the tang and the acid that activates baking soda. Sour cream powder is the closest match of all if you happen to have it.

Other buttermilk powder substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Dry Milk Powder Plus Cream of Tartar
Different taste
Use 4 tablespoons dry milk powder plus 1 ¾ teaspoons cream of tartar for every 4 tablespoons buttermilk powder
The practical dry pantry answer, giving milk solids plus real acid.
What changes
Best for
dry baking mixes, biscuits, scones, pancake mix, muffins
This rebuilds the two things buttermilk powder actually provides: milk solids for tenderness and browning, and acid to react with baking soda so the crumb lifts. What you do not get is the cultured, slightly yogurt-like depth of real buttermilk. Baked goods come out tender and well risen but a shade flatter in flavor, which most people would not notice in a spiced muffin and would notice in a plain biscuit.
3Dry Milk Powder Plus Citric Acid
Different taste
Use 4 tablespoons dry milk powder plus ¼ teaspoon citric acid for every 4 tablespoons buttermilk powder
Sharper and cleaner-tasting than the cream of tartar version, with the same function.
What changes
Best for
dry mixes, ranch seasoning, seasoning blends, crackers
Citric acid is much stronger than cream of tartar, so measure carefully and taste before committing a whole batch. The sourness reads bright and lemony rather than the softer dairy tang of cultured buttermilk, which is actually an advantage in a savory seasoning blend and a slight mismatch in a cake. Start at the low end and adjust.
4Sour Cream Powder or Yogurt Powder
Close match
Use the same amount
The closest flavor match, because it is also a dried cultured dairy product.
What changes
Best for
ranch seasoning, dry dip mixes, biscuit mix, seasoning rubs
This is the honest best answer for flavor and the reason is simple: it was cultured before it was dried, so you get the same lactic complexity rather than a single flat acid note. Sour cream powder is higher in fat, so a dry dip mix made with it comes out richer, and a biscuit dough a touch more tender. It is a little less acidic than buttermilk powder, so if the recipe leans on baking soda add an eighth of a teaspoon of cream of tartar per half teaspoon of soda.
5Plain Dry Milk Powder Alone
Different taste
Use the same amount plus ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar per ½ teaspoon baking soda in the recipe
Right texture and browning, no tang at all.
What changes
Best for
bread dough, sourdough enrichment, dinner rolls, muffins
In an enriched bread or a roll, buttermilk powder is mostly there for the milk solids that soften crumb and deepen crust color, and plain milk powder does that job identically. The dish will taste noticeably less bright and less tangy. The important catch is baking soda: without the acid, soda has nothing to react with and leaves a soapy metallic taste, so add the cream of tartar or the result will be worse than a flavor difference.
6Skip the Powder and Build the Dish Wet
Different texture
Use 1 cup liquid buttermilk, or ¾ cup sour cream thinned with ¼ cup milk, in place of the powder plus water
The right move for a dip or dressing you are making right now rather than a mix.
What changes
Best for
ranch dressing, ranch dip, buttermilk dressing, marinades
Most people meet buttermilk powder inside a ranch seasoning recipe, and if you are eating the ranch today there is no reason to dry anything. Real buttermilk gives you a thinner, tangier dressing; sour cream thinned with milk gives you a thicker, richer dip. Both taste better than the reconstituted powder version. This only fails if the point was a shelf-stable jar of seasoning.

What is Buttermilk Powder?

Buttermilk Powder is dried cultured buttermilk, also sold as powdered buttermilk, a fine cream-colored powder of milk solids and lactic acid that gives a batter tang, a tender crumb and the acidity baking soda needs in order to rise.

Cooking tips

Buttermilk powder is doing three jobs at once, and knowing which one your recipe needs decides the substitute. It brings tang from lactic acid, milk solids that tenderize the crumb and brown the crust, and acid that activates baking soda. A pancake mix needs all three. A dinner roll mostly needs the milk solids. A ranch seasoning needs only the tang.
Whisk it into the dry ingredients, never into liquid on its own. Dropped straight into water it clumps into stubborn lumps that will not break up, whereas distributed through flour it hydrates evenly. This is the single most common complaint about it.
Store it in the refrigerator or freezer once opened. It still contains milk fat, which goes rancid, and a stale can tastes faintly of crayons and will taint a whole batch. It keeps well over a year cold and only a few months in a warm cupboard.
Do not reconstitute it and keep the recipe's water. If you swap in liquid buttermilk you must subtract the corresponding water, or the batter will be far too wet. This is the mistake that ruins biscuits.
In sourdough and enriched breads it does more than add flavor. The extra milk solids feed browning, so a loaf with buttermilk powder in it colors faster. Check it ten minutes earlier than usual, or tent it with foil.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just use liquid buttermilk instead of buttermilk powder?

Yes, as long as the recipe contains water or milk you can delete. Use 1 cup of liquid buttermilk for every 1/4 cup of powder, and remove 1 cup of the recipe's water. If the recipe is a dry mix with no liquid, like a ranch seasoning packet or a shelf-stable pancake mix, liquid buttermilk will not work at all and you need one of the dry options.

Can I leave the buttermilk powder out?

In an enriched bread or a savory rub, yes, and you will lose some tenderness and tang but nothing will fail. In anything leavened with baking soda, no. The powder is supplying the acid that makes the soda work, and without it you get poor rise and a distinct soapy, metallic aftertaste. At minimum replace it with an eighth of a teaspoon of cream of tartar per half teaspoon of baking soda.

What is the ratio for reconstituting buttermilk powder?

About 4 tablespoons of powder whisked into 1 cup of cold water gives you roughly 1 cup of buttermilk. Brands differ slightly, so check the can, and let it sit five minutes before using it so the powder hydrates fully and any lumps soften.

Is buttermilk powder the same as dry milk powder?

No, and the difference is acid. Dry milk powder is plain milk with the water removed and it is not sour. Buttermilk powder was cultured first, so it carries lactic acid, which is why it both tastes tangy and reacts with baking soda. You can turn one into the other by adding cream of tartar or citric acid, which is exactly what the substitutions above do.

Why does my dry ranch seasoning taste flat compared to the store packet?

Usually because plain milk powder was used instead of buttermilk powder, so the sour note is missing, or because the powder is old and has lost its brightness. Add a quarter teaspoon of citric acid per quarter cup of milk powder, and a little extra salt and onion powder. Commercial packets also carry a lot more salt and MSG than most homemade versions.

Related substitutes

More dairy substitutes

Buttermilk Powder substitute

Other buttermilk powder substitutes

2Dry Milk Powder Plus Cream of Tartar

3Dry Milk Powder Plus Citric Acid

4Sour Cream Powder or Yogurt Powder

5Plain Dry Milk Powder Alone

6Skip the Powder and Build the Dish Wet