Celebrate St. Patrick's Day the right way with this easy, traditional Irish Soda Bread recipe! Soda bread uses just 4 ingredients and is the world's best no yeast bread. This is a fun recipe to bake with kids because it's really quick to make.
Course Bread
Cuisine American, Irish
Keyword irish soda bread, no yeast bread, soda bread recipe, traditional bread, traditional irish soda bread, traditional soda bread
Mix together all your dry ingredients: white flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
Create a well in the middle of the flour mixture. Pour into it the buttermilk or whole milk mixed with vinegar or lime juice.
Mix the Irish soda bread dough using your hands or a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.
Sprinkle flour over your work surface and transfer the dough onto it.
Knead the dough lightly. Don't over-knead your dough. Overkneading will result in a very dense loaf.
Shape the dough into a ball and flatten the top.
Let the divel (devil) out by cutting a deep cross onto the top of the bread. The cut should be 1 inch deep and it ensures the bread bakes evenly inside.
Poke the bread a few times with the tip of your knife for good luck and also to let the fairies out of the bread.
Transfer the loaf onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and then bake in the middle rack for 40-45 Minutes. The parchment paper keeps the bread from sticking to the baking sheet.If your soda bread looks like it's browning too fast in the oven, cover it loosely with aluminum foil and then lower the heat to 350 degrees.
Check on your loaf about 30 minutes into the bake, just to make sure it doesn't over-brown.
Your soda bread is ready when you pierce it with a toothpick and it comes out clean. You can also tap the bottom of the loaf. If you hear a hollow sound, then that's a good sign that it’s ready.Let the homemade bread cool completely before serving.
Notes
Serving suggestions: Serve your traditional Irish Soda Bread with a bowl of Irish stew or slather its tender crumb with a slice of Irish butter.For extra flavor: Add whisky-soaked raisins, caraway seeds, jalapenos, rosemary, cheese, dried cherries, sultanas, dates, butter, or sugar.Buttermilk subsitution: Mix milk with white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice. You can also use plain yogurt mixed with regular milk.