How long does Irish soda bread take to make?

It takes about 78 minutes in total.

Which allergens does Irish soda bread contain?

It contains cereals containing gluten and milk. Always check the labels of the products you use.

How long does Irish soda bread keep in the fridge?

Up to 2 days in the fridge, in a closed container. It can also be frozen.

How many calories does Irish soda bread have?

About 225 kcal per serving, with 7 g of protein, 45 g of carbohydrates and 1 g of fat. This is an estimate worked out from its ingredients.

Irish soda bread

Name: Irish soda bread
Cook time: 78 min
Total time: 78 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Irish
Ingredients: 450 g Wheat flour; 1 teaspoon Salt; 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate Of Soda; 400 ml Buttermilk

Pan de soda irlandés

Easy

Contains allergens

Cereals containing glutenMilk

Author: Equipo Cocinoa
Preparation time: 78 min
Servings: 8

Summary

An easy recipe for 8 servings. It takes about 78 minutes to make. Each serving has about 225 kcal. It is vegetarian, nut-free and sugar-free.

Ireland's quick bread, made without yeast: flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and buttermilk, mixed in a minute, marked with a deep cross and baked until the crust is hard and the crumb soft and close. From idea to oven in a quarter of an hour.

Ingredients

8 servings

450 g Wheat flour (plain, plus extra for dusting)
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Bicarbonate Of Soda (level (5 g))
400 ml Buttermilk (or 400 ml whole milk with 1.5 tablespoons lemon juice)

Instructions

Heat the oven to 220 °C conventional (200 °C fan) and dust a baking tray with flour. If you have no buttermilk, mix the milk with the lemon juice and leave for 10 minutes until it thickens and curdles slightly.
10 min
Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl and mix very well with a whisk: the soda must be evenly spread or it will leave yellow specks and a soapy taste.
3 min
Make a well in the centre and pour in most of the buttermilk in one go. Mix quickly with one hand held like a claw, or with a spatula, working from the centre outwards, just until there is no dry flour left. The dough should be soft and sticky; if there is dry flour at the bottom, add the rest of the buttermilk. Do not knead.
2 min
Tip it onto the floured worktop and, with floured hands, shape it into a round in a few seconds, tucking the edges underneath. Flatten it slightly to about 4 cm high and move it to the tray.
2 min
With a large floured knife, cut a deep cross two thirds of the way through the loaf and prick each quarter with the tip of the knife.
1 min
Bake for 15 minutes, then lower the oven to 200 °C (180 °C fan) and keep baking until deep golden and the base sounds hollow when tapped with your knuckles.
40 min
Leave to cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before cutting. For a soft crust, wrap it in a clean tea towel as it cools; for a crisp one, leave it uncovered.
20 min

Notes

Soda bread spread across Ireland in the mid-19th century, when bicarbonate of soda reached home kitchens: Irish wheat, soft and low in gluten, did not make good yeasted bread, and with flour, soda, salt and buttermilk a loaf could be baked every day in an iron pot beside the turf fire. Today it is eaten at breakfast with salted butter and jam, or alongside a stew or soup. The acid in the buttermilk reacts with the soda to produce the gas that makes the bread rise, and that reaction starts as soon as they are mixed: have the oven hot before you begin and do not knead, as the dough toughens and loses its gas. In Spain buttermilk is sold in some supermarkets as "buttermilk" or suero de mantequilla; if you cannot find it, mix 400 ml of whole milk with 1.5 tablespoons of lemon juice and wait 10 minutes for it to thicken, or use half plain yoghurt and half milk. Brown soda bread, very popular, swaps half the flour for wholemeal and needs a little more liquid; the sweet version with raisins, known in Ireland as spotted dog or railway cake, also has a good handful of raisins (about 100 g) and a tablespoon of sugar stirred into the flour. The cross helps the centre bake through and, according to tradition, lets the fairies out. It is best on the day it is made; the next day, toast it. It freezes well, whole or sliced, for up to three months.

More information

Nutrition facts225 kcal per serving

Nutrition facts

Protein13 %7 g
Carbs83 %45 g
Fat4 %1 g

The percentage shows how much of the calories each macronutrient provides.

Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g
Calories	225 kcal	206 kcal
Protein	7 g	6.4 g
Carbs	45 g	41.3 g
Fat	1 g	0.9 g

One serving is about 109 g of raw ingredients; values per 100 g are based on that weight.

Estimated from the ingredient list · Values may vary depending on cooking method and product brand.

Guide indicatorsDifficulty, quality and data reliability

Guide indicators

Estimated difficulty36/100
Recipe completeness65/100
Nutrition reliability: High

Calculated automatically from the ingredients, steps, time and community feedback. They are not a guarantee.

StorageKeeps 2 days in the fridge

Cuisine: IrishKeeps 2 days in the fridgeFreezer friendly

Frequently asked questions

How long does Irish soda bread take to make?: It takes about 78 minutes in total.
Which allergens does Irish soda bread contain?: It contains cereals containing gluten and milk. Always check the labels of the products you use.
How long does Irish soda bread keep in the fridge?: Up to 2 days in the fridge, in a closed container. It can also be frozen.
How many calories does Irish soda bread have?: About 225 kcal per serving, with 7 g of protein, 45 g of carbohydrates and 1 g of fat. This is an estimate worked out from its ingredients.
Which diets is this recipe suitable for?: It is vegetarian, nut-free and sugar-free.