Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (2024)

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By Kristie Sawicki 19 Comments

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This authentic quick bread recipe is the best Irish Soda Bread you’ll serve at your kitchen table!

It’s the perfect addition to your Corned Beef or Irish Beef Stew dinner this St. Patrick’s Day.

This soda bread is SO EASY to make and requires no yeast, making it the perfect bread to serve with all of your dinner meals.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (1)

When you’re looking for an authentic Irish Soda Bread recipe, make sure you choose one that doesn’t have a lot of special ingredients or complicated steps.

This is one of my favorite bread recipes, you’ll find lots more homemade bread recipes here.

Irish Soda Bread Recipe

The best recipes are tried and true and often the most simple to make.

And because this recipe is easy to put together, you’ll not want to skimp on the buttermilk.

This homemade soda bread is one of the top recipes for St. Patrick’s Day.

The buttermilk is an important ingredient. You don’t want to choose a recipe for Irish Soda Bread without buttermilk or it just won’t taste like the traditional bread everyone loves.

You can add raisins or even chocolate chips to this moist bread if you’d like to, however a lot of people from Ireland prefer to eat it without any extras added in.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (2)

The best soda bread in my opinion, is just a moist Irish Soda Bread traditional recipe like the one below.

Soda Bread Ingredients

  • Flour
  • Sugar
  • Baking Soda
  • Baking Powder
  • Salt
  • Butter
  • Butter
  • Buttermilk
  • Egg

How to Make Soda Bread

The full measurements for the ingredients are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

This is a visual walk through on how to make this bread.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (3)

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Step 2: Grease a baking sheet.

Step 3: Stir together all purpose flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (4)

Step 4: Add 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup buttermilk and egg to the flour mixture and mix until combined.

Step 5: Flour work surface, turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly.

Step 6: Shape dough into a round shape and place on prepared sheet.

Step 7: Whisk together 1/4 cup melted butter with 1/4 cup buttermilk.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (5)

Step 8: Place on a prepared baking sheet or in a cast iron skillet and brush loaf with buttermilk mixture.

Step 9: Cut an X in the top of the loaf with a sharp knife.

Step 10: Bake 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Expert Tip: Brush the crust with buttermilk mixture every 15 minutes or so while baking.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (6)

Step 11: Your finished bread will have a lovely golden brown crust. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Soda Bread Add-Ins

  • Raisins
  • Chocolate Chips
  • Dried Fruit
  • Nuts
  • Orange Zest
  • Currants
  • Caraway Seeds

More Recipes for St. Patrick’s Day

  • Irish Beef Stew – Tender and juicy seasoned beef loaded with a rich and decadent sauce that surrounds the tender beef and all the vegetables.
  • Homemade Shamrock Shakes – Delicious homemade green minty milkshake.
  • Irish Potato Candy – Contrary to the name, these little bite sized sweet treats have no mashed potato in them. That’s right! They get their name because they look like little potatoes.
  • Guinness Bread – This Guinness Bread is the perfect way to start your festivities this year.
  • Green Velvet Cupcakes – If you are looking for a fun St. Patrick’s Day recipe, try these Green Velvet Cupcakes with Baileys Cream Cheese Frosting!
  • Guinness Cupcakes with Bailey’s Buttercream – These are a delicious treat to add to your festivities.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (8)

Irish Soda Bread

Kristie Sawicki

Traditional Irish Soda Bread recipe.

4.06 from 320 votes

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Course Bread

Cuisine irish

Servings 6

Calories 580 kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 cup Flour
  • 4 tbsp Sugar
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1 tbsp Baking Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 cup softened Butter
  • 1/4 cup melted Butter
  • 1 1/4 cup Buttermilk
  • 1 Egg

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375.

  • Grease a baking sheet.

  • Mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

  • Add 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup buttermilk and egg to dry ingredients and mix until combined.

  • Flour work surface.

  • Turn out dough and knead briefly.

  • Shape dough into a round shape and place on prepared sheet.

  • Whisk together 1/4 cup melted butter with 1/4 cup buttermilk.

  • Brush loaf with buttermilk mixture.

  • Cut an X in the top of the loaf.

  • Bake 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

  • Brush with buttermilk mixture every 15 minutes or so while baking.

Video

Notes

This is the best authentic Irish recipe for traditional soda bread.

Nutrition

Calories: 580kcalCarbohydrates: 75gProtein: 11gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 94mgSodium: 883mgPotassium: 167mgFiber: 2gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 831IUCalcium: 198mgIron: 4mg

Nutritional information is automatically calculated with ingredients and serving size and may not be accurate. Please always double check with your own nutritional apps as well.

Did you make this recipe? Please leave me a comment below, I would love to hear how you liked it (or not lol) Share a photo with me @KRISTIESAWICKI or tag #SAVINGDOLLARS!

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About Kristie Sawicki

I'm the blogger behind Saving Dollars & Sense. I started this website over ten years ago, to share my journey out of debt, while living a simple, frugal lifestyle. You'll find lots of great MONEY SAVING TIPS, DIY PROJECTS, HOMEMADE RECIPES, SIMPLE LIVING IDEAS and MORE!! I'm so glad you're here.

Original Irish Soda Bread Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is traditional Irish soda bread made of? ›

Containing just four ingredients — all-purpose wheat flour, salt, baking soda, and buttermilk — this Irish soda bread recipe is very much in line with what's eaten in Ireland. In addition to this version made with white flour, the Irish do make a whole wheat (aka wholemeal) variety as well.

What's the difference between Irish bread and Irish soda bread? ›

However, the two loaves differ pretty significantly from there. Irish brown bread has a deep, nutty flavor because of its wheat flour and wheat bran while soda bread uses only white flour. Soda bread is slightly sweet and more scone-like while Irish brown bread is more savory with a tender interior.

What is the myth behind Irish soda bread? ›

Contrary to a common misconceptions, the Irish did not import the Soda Bread recipe from the American Indians. This misconception is my fault because 30+ years ago on the original site I happened to mention Native Americans using Potash to make bread.

Why does Irish soda bread not need yeast? ›

The baking soda does the job of yeast and makes the bread rise. Since it's not as powerful as yeast, the bread is dense rather than fluffy. It's beautiful and delicious!

Do they eat Irish soda bread in Ireland? ›

Each country has its “national” bread with recipes dating back to their forefathers. Ireland, for one, has embraced it's kind of bread – the soda bread. It is a basic staple among the Irish that they call it Irish Soda Bread. It's common to see the locals pair this famous bread with a bottle of Guinness too.

What country is most associated with Irish soda bread? ›

A unique cooking method that gave soda bread its dense texture, hard crust, and slight sourness. Despite its humble beginnings, Irish soda bread has become a large part of the typical St. Patrick's Day feast and plays a major role in Ireland's culinary history.

Is Irish soda bread good for you? ›

Nutrition Notes

Whole-wheat soda bread is a healthy addition to your plate! One serving—a 1/2-inch-thick slice—provides complex carbohydrates for sustained energy, protein, fiber, and vitamins and minerals.

Why is my Irish soda bread so dry? ›

It's important to remember no to overmix your ingredients. Irish Soda Bread is a dense bread, similar to a scone, but can easily become dry if overmixed. Quickly add the wet ingredients to a well you've made in the dry ingredients, and mix with your hands or a dough hook until it just comes together.

Why cut a cross in Irish soda bread? ›

I was always told that the cross on the top of Irish Soda Bread was to symbolize the Catholic faith of Ireland, and the Gaelic Cross. Some say it kept the Devil out, but that is what a cross is supposed to do also. Turns out that is true but more importantly, it helps in the baking of the bread.

Why is Irish soda bread so heavy? ›

Soda bread typically is very dense and heavy, which will fill you up quickly. In Ireland, soda bread is better known as brown bread and uses a combination of whole wheat and unbleached white flour. You can do a simply 50/50 split between the flours or a 25/75 of whole wheat to white flour, which is what I did.

Is soda bread Irish or Scottish? ›

Its origins date back to Native Americans before European colonization. Native Americans made “soda bread” using ash (a forerunner to baking soda) instead of traditional leavening agents like yeast. Soda bread was adopted in Ireland in the 1800s due to increased poverty and hunger after the potato famine.

Why is my Irish soda bread gummy? ›

And finally, don't immediately cut into the Fast Irish Soda bread when you pull it out of the oven. Although this bread is best served warm, cutting into it too quickly will turn the bread gummy.

How to tell if Irish soda bread is done? ›

The most traditional doneness test calls for thumping the hot bread in the center to hear if it's hollow-sounding. A more foolproof indication is temperature; the loaf will register 200°F to 205°F when an instant-read thermometer is inserted in the center of the bread. Let the bread cool.

Why is my Irish soda bread raw in the middle? ›

If your soda bread is coming out crusty on the outside but raw in the middle it's most likely because you are not cutting deep enough into the bread. Solution: Shape into a circle and make sure to flatten out the circle some before cutting a cross between 2/3 to 3/4 of the way down in the dough.

Why does American Irish soda bread have raisins? ›

The caraway seeds, raisins, currants that some recipes call for are all American variations and would not have been served in Ireland way-back-when, and the table bread would have been an everyday staple, and not just served on a special day, alongside corned beef and cabbage and green beer. So there you go.

Why is Irish soda bread so dry? ›

You might have added too much baking soda or baking powder or used self-rising flour. If your bread's texture is dry: You might have added too much baking soda, too little liquid or not baked it at high enough temperature.

Is Irish soda bread the same as sourdough bread? ›

The main difference between sourdough bread and soda bread is in its leavening agent – sourdough bread rises due to the gasses released from yeast and bacteria fermentation, while soda bread rises from the gasses produced during the chemical interaction between baking soda and acids in the dough.

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