The Best Classic South African Buttermilk Rusks
Sep 01, 2025 08:20 AM
There’s nothing quite like the comforting taste of a classic South African buttermilk rusk, a beloved staple for us at home and abroad. These crunchy, golden-brown biscuits are perfect for dipping into a steaming cup of coffee or tea. My recipe combines all the traditional ingredients plus a special ingredient that gives these rusks the distinctive taste of the Ouma rusks we grew up with. You could say that this is my copycat recipe for Ouma rusks and it’s my best recipe.
I have spent a lot of time developing and tweaking this recipe to be my perfect version of buttermilk rusks. I even tested this recipe in an Air Fryer with perfect results. I have perfected classic buttermilk rusks with bran, I then did a version with raisins and seeds and I have also made more robust muesli rusks if you prefer.
The secret ingredient that makes these rusks taste just like Ouma Rusks is the toasted milk powder. It’s a magical ingredient that adds a rich caramel flavour to your baking.
To make toasted milk powder, you simply pan fry milk powder until it’s a rich caramel colour. Store this for any future baking projects.
Ingredients:
- 500 grams of cake flour
- 180 grams sugar
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 45 grams / 5 Tbsp toasted milk powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 250 grams of salted butter
- 250 ml buttermilk
- 1 large free-range egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Prep Time:
10 minutes
Cook Time:
40 minutes
Total Time:
50 minutes
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