British people famously call cookies 'biscuits.' Here's how they define 'American biscuits.'
"It’s like asking an American what we call Haggis."
British people call cookies "biscuits," which are different from what Americans call biscuits.
Although we both speak English, British people and American people have different words for certain things. One major difference is the word "biscuit."
For British people, "biscuit" is used to describe what Americans call "cookies." One curious American on Reddit posed the question: "what do British people call biscuits?"
The simple question led to an entire discourse on British baked goods, and Brits offered their best explanation on how they define them.
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First things first: the Brits on Reddit made it clear that they also have cookies.
"All cookies are biscuits, but not all biscuits are cookies. To British people, a cookie is a specific type of biscuit," one Redditor explained.
Another Brit broke down the difference between what they consider a "biscuit" and "cookie": "We have shaped, mostly flatter, slightly harder biscuits (like nice biscuits, tea biscuits, and things like custard creams that are two biscuits with a sweet filling), but we do also have cookies that are what comes to mind when you think of cookies," they shared. "The softer, not form shaped, irregular circular cookies with chocolate chips etc."
@british_ash_ Cookie vs Biscuit 🍪 In the UK a cookie is a particular type of biscuit with a high butter and sugar content so the dough melts during cooking giving a crispy edge with a softer centre. All cookies are biscuits BUT not all biscuits are cookies 🍪 In America, biscuits are sinilar to UK scones 🍪 #learnenglish #englishteacher #studyenglish #visituk #london #biscuit #cookie
British 'biscuits' vs. American 'biscuits'
So, what do Brits call those flaky biscuits Americans douse with gravy? Unfortunately, these type of biscuits don't really exist in Great Britain.
"We actually don't have a version of the American biscuits here, nor (as far as I am aware) the white gravy with the sausage meat. We have some white sauces, but we don't do white gravy as a standard, nationwide thing," one British Redditor explained. Another added, "American biscuits are unknown outside of North America. Most Britons have likely never eaten one."
However, British scones are very close to American biscuits. "People are saying scones and the biggest difference between the two is texture and ratio of ingredients. Scones have less butter and are usually more dense. Biscuits have more butter and have buttermilk creating more levity," one Redditor explained.
Another added, "I had a classmate who came from Britain and he once called them 'butter/cheese scones'. And I was like these things are nothing like scones. And he was like, 'It's a quick bread using baking powder as the leavening. The difference is it's savory'. And I was like........ Okay fine."
However, another Brit argued that American biscuits are more like British dumplings.
"The nearest thing to the US biscuits are savoury British dumplings which are often made from suet and used in casseroles," they shared.
@seasonedbf It’s been years and we still can’t get “IT’S BISCUITS” out of our head @VICTOR KUNDA #seasoned #ukvsusa #popeyes #onthisday
So what do British people call biscuits?
It may be underwhelming, but the consensus is: "American biscuits."
"'American biscuits' … 'they really eat them with gravy?' Most Brits who have heard of American style biscuits are aware that they aren’t scones but unless they’ve actually tasted them tend to have difficulty conceptualizing the difference," one British Redditor explained.
Another added, "I lived in England for 13 years. They have no idea what an American biscuit is. It simply does not exist over there. I looked. It’s like asking an American what we call Haggis."
This commenter clarified: "We probably call American biscuits - 'American biscuits' because we don’t have an equivalent here. Like how we do with American football."