Make Irish Soda Bread

Soda bread is quick and easy way of bringing traditional Irish cooking into your home. As you might be able to guess from the name, it uses baking soda instead of yeast. It became popular in Ireland because the climate there makes it difficult to grow hard wheat, and hard wheat is the source for flour that rises easily with yeast. The ingredients are readily available and the techniques are not difficult to do yourself.

Ingredients

  • 7/8 cup (200 grams) flour
  • 5/8 cup (150 grams) whole wheat flour, extra for dusting
  • 2 tablespoons (25 g) sugar
  • ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoon (7.5 ml) baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) baking soda
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup (250 ml) buttermilk
  • 1/4 stick (30 grams) butter

Steps

Pre-Baking Routine

  1. Preheat the oven to 190ºC (375ºF or gas mark 5).
  2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. This makes general clean up infinitely easier. If you don't have parchment paper, cooking spray will do, but you still run the risk of the bottom of your loaf sticking.
  3. Gather your ingredients and cooking supplies. This recipe goes fairly quickly -- the dry and wet ingredients can be combined in a matter of seconds. Measure everything out, crack the egg, and grab your mixer.
    • The butter will cooperate more if it's been left out for a bit. Don't melt it -- just take it out first thing so it's near room temperature when you go to add it to your mixture.

Making Your Dough

  1. Pour the dry ingredients into the mixer. That's code for the flour, whole wheat flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Once those are in, add the butter. Lower the hook of the mixer and mix for 1 minute.
    • If the butter is still cold, zap it in the microwave briefly. You want it soft, not melted.
  2. Whilst still mixing, add the egg and the buttermilk. Continue mixing until it blends together. When fully blended, dust your hands and the dough with a little wheat flour and remove.
  3. Shape the dough into a ball and place it onto the pre-lined baking tray. This should take seconds; the dough will be very malleable. Sprinkle the top with a dusting of flour and make an "X" on the top of the dough with a knife.
  4. Place the tray into the centre of the preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes.
    • If you know that your oven runs hot or bakes unevenly, adjust accordingly. Keep an eye on it or flip it around halfway through.
  5. After 40 minutes, remove the bread from the oven. Let it cool by placing it on top of an inverted fork - it will cool quicker this way.
    • Soda bread should be golden brown when done, and should sound hollow if tapped at the bottom.
    • Some people also enjoy eating soda bread while it's still a little warm.
  6. Cut it in slices or along the "X" into four equal parts to serve.
  7. Finished.

Tips

  • For a simpler recipe, try the same approach using just 3 2/3 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 3/4 cup buttermilk. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes.
  • Variation: Embellish with 3/4 cup raisins and a teaspoon of caraway seeds
  • For a fun St. Patrick's Day variation, add green food coloring and serve with green beer. Just assure your guests that it is not mold!
  • Buttermilk is critical because its acidity reacts with the baking soda. If you're really in a pinch, though, you can make a substitute as described in How to Substitute Commonly Used Ingredients. Just add 1 tablespoon of vinegar to make the milk acidic.
  • A very nice cake version can be created, if you take about 40-50 g sugar and 100 g of raisins or chopped nuts of choice. When the half of the flour amount will be replaced by full grain flour You will obtain slow-carb food. When having two slices for breakfast You will not be very hungry until lunchtime. It is a good way to downsize bodyweight. It tastes very well with cheese or as a snack for a wine /beer (better than crips or pretzels). This cake can be upgraded by an icing.

Things You'll Need

  • Mixer with hook attachment
  • Knife
  • Baking tray lined with parchment paper
  • Spoon
  • Fork

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Sources and Citations

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