Put 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar in a measuring cup, add milk to the 1 cup line, and let it stand 5 to 10 minutes. Or use 1 cup of plain yogurt.
Pick an ingredient and the swaps appear here, with amounts. The full chart is below.
Can I use milk instead of buttermilk?
Yes, once you sour it. Plain milk alone isn’t enough. Buttermilk’s tang is acid, and in pancakes, biscuits and quick breads that acid reacts with the baking soda to make them rise. A spoonful of lemon juice or vinegar gives regular milk the same acid. Whole, 2% or skim milk all work; whole gives the richest result.
The three swaps, for 1 cup of buttermilk
| Swap | How |
|---|---|
| Soured milk | 1 tbsp lemon juice or white vinegar, plus milk to make 1 cup. Let it stand 5 to 10 minutes. |
| Plain yogurt | 1 cup, cup for cup. |
| Cream of tartar | 1 cup milk with 1¾ tsp cream of tartar stirred in. |
Where it works, and where it shows
Soured milk and yogurt both work well in pancakes, waffles, biscuits, cornbread, muffins, quick breads and marinades. The more a recipe leans on buttermilk’s own flavor, such as buttermilk pie or ranch-style dressing, the more you’ll taste the difference. Yogurt is thicker than buttermilk, so a batter may come out a little stiffer; that’s normal.
How much do I need?
Use the finder above: choose ¼ cup to 3 cups and the lemon juice and milk amounts change with it. For half a cup, it’s 1½ teaspoons of lemon juice plus milk to the ½ cup line.
Ratios from Colorado State University Extension, Ingredient Substitutions (reviewed August 2025), and New Mexico State University Extension, In a Pinch Ingredient Substitution. Checked on October 30, 2026. More swaps: ingredient substitutions.