The Traditional Irish
Soda Bread Recipe

You'll find for each Irish cook there is an Irish soda bread recipe. They all seem to have their own version for soda bread. Here I'll give you the most basic recipe. It's good crusty wholesome bread.

The baking tradition is one of the richest for Irish cooks. If someone says you have a "light hand in baking", this is considered a high compliment to an Irish baker. Bread baking was part of daily life in Ireland. For centuries they made oatcakes on a stone or griddle over a turf fire. Later, breads were made with sourdough or fermented potato juice. It wasn't until the nineteenth century that baking soda was introduced, making it possible to bake the Irish soda bread recipe. There are many varieties of soda bread. Here you will find just a few.

You'll find the following recipes easy to make. You likely have most, if not all, the ingredients in your kitchen right now.

The first recipe, I think, is "the" Irish soda bread recipe. It's simple and basic. I have all I can do to wait about a half hour after it comes out of the oven to slice into it. This is a nice crusty bread. I like it warm with the butter melting as I eat it. I think you will too.

White Soda Bread

• 4 cups white flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups buttermilk

Makes one loaf.

Preheat oven to 450°

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Make a well in the center and add 1 1/2 cups of buttermilk. Stir from the outside of the bowl, mixing inward to blend together. The dough should be soft, but not sticky. Add more buttermilk if necessary. When all is blended, put onto a floured board or countertop. Knead very lightly until all is smoothed over. This only takes a few seconds. Pat into a round loaf about 2" high. Cut a cross pattern all the way along the top. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Then turn it down to 400° and bake for 20 to 30 minutes longer. Test for doneness by tapping on the bottom of the loaf. If it sounds hollow it's done.

Cool on a wire rack. If you don't like your bread so crusty, wrap it in a towel while cooling.

This next Irish soda bread recipe uses stone-ground whole wheat. It gives it a different texture than the above recipe. There are also other ingredients to make it richer.

Brown Soda bread

• 2 cups brown whole-wheat flour (stone ground preferred)
• 2 cups white flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 3/4 to 2 cups buttermilk

Makes one loaf.

Preheat oven to 375°

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Make a well in the center and add 1 3/4 cups of buttermilk and the beaten egg. Stir from the outside of the bowl, mixing inward to blend together. The dough should be soft, but not sticky. Add more buttermilk if necessary or a little more flour if it seems too moist. When all is blended, put onto a floured board or countertop. Knead very lightly until all is smoothed over. This only takes a few seconds. Pat into a round loaf about 2" high. Cut a cross pattern all the way along the top. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Test for doneness by tapping on the bottom of the loaf. If it sounds hollow it's done.

Cool on a wire rack.

Before wheat flour, oats were a mainstay in the Irish diet. The next Irish soda bread recipe uses this historically important grain.

Oatmeal Soda Bread

• 2 1/2 cups fine stone-ground oatmeal
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 1/2 cups white flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar or honey

Makes one loaf.

Soak the oatmeal in the buttermilk overnight or for at least 12 hours.

The next day preheat the oven to 350°.

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Stir in the oatmeal and buttermilk mixture. Add more buttermilk if necessary. Don't make the dough too moist. Place into a greased 5 1/2" x 9 1/2" loaf pan. Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours until done. Like the above recipes it will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Remove from pan and let it cool on a wire rack.

There are many, many more Irish soda bread recipes. The samples above will get you started in the Irish tradition of bread baking. I think once you try these you'll look for others to try. These are so much quicker than yeast bread.

Happy Baking.

These recipes will make a good accompaniment to my other Irish food recipes and Corned Beef and Cabbage recipe .

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