Traditional Irish Soda Bread Recipe – No Yeast And Only 5 Minutes To Prepare!

With St. Patrick’s Day just a few days away, I thought it was a perfect time to share one of our favorite bread recipes – Traditional Irish Soda Bread.

Irish soda bread baked and ready to eat!

When you think of soda bread, you may think of a round loaf with raisins scattered throughout the middle.  This is the “Americanized” version made with egg and butter which makes a much sweeter tasting bread.  The original Irish soda bread is just as tasty, and originated out of necessity.

Due to the climate in Ireland, it is difficult to make yeast-leavened bread. Therefore, they used baking soda to make their every day table bread.  The best part about making this bread – it takes only 5 minutes to prepare! There are only 5 ingredients, and they can easily be adapted to make it vegan friendly or to accommodate milk allergies.

This bread is perfect for dipping in soups and stews!

Hands down, this is the best bread for dipping in soups and stews, and my personal favorite – a delicious breakfast bread with your favorite jelly or jam.  With less than an hour from start to finish, it is no wonder why it is the ‘go to’ bread in Ireland.  So as you decide how to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day this year, make sure you include this easy to make bread with your meal. Who knows, maybe you will be lucky enough to have a little extra to eat in the morning.

Traditional Irish Soda Bread Recipe

Ingredients:
3½ cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1½–2 cup buttermilk or soured milk (regular, soy or rice milk)

***Hint — To make your own soured milk, gently heat milk until warm. Remove from the heat, add the juice of 1/2 lemon and leave at room temperature overnight.

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 450°F

Sift the dry ingredients – then add the buttermilk. That’s it! Ready to bake.

1. Sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl.

2. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in most of the buttermilk, leaving about ¼ cup to use as needed. Using your fingers, bring the flour and liquid together, adding more buttermilk, if necessary. ***Don’t knead the mixture, or it will become heavy. The dough should be soft, but not too wet or sticky.

After mixing dough together, form it into a flattened circle on a baking sheet.

3. When the dough begins to stick together and form a ball, remove it from the bowl and place it onto a floured work surface.  Continue to bring it together a little more until it is able to be formed into a ball.  Pat the dough down into a circle, about 1½ inches thick and cut a deep cross in it. Place on a baking sheet.

Bread baking in the oven.

4. Bake for 15 minutes. Turn down the heat to 400° for an additional 30 minutes. When done, the loaf will sound slightly hollow when tapped on the bottom and be golden in color.

5. Allow to cool on a wire rack until you are ready to eat.

Enjoy!

http://oldworldgardenfarms.com/2014/03/14/traditional-irish-soda-bread-recipe-no-yeast-or-kneading-required-and-only-5-minutes-to-prepare/