Irish soda bread with buttermilk and raisins
Easy Irish soda bread with buttermilk, a crisp crust and a soft, tender crumb. No yeast, no kneading, about an hour from bowl to cooling rack.
13% of it needs you at the counter
- Hands-on
- 10 min
- Cooking
- 40 min
- Resting
- 30 min
- Serves
- 10
- Calories
- 270
- Protein
- 7 g
- Per serving
- $0.32
Why this recipe works
Soda bread is the quickest real loaf you can bake: flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk, shaped by hand and in the oven within 10 minutes. This is the slightly sweet, raisin-studded American-style loaf; leave out the sugar, butter and raisins for the plain everyday bread made in Ireland.
- Buttermilk's acid reacts with baking soda the moment they meet, so the dough goes straight into a hot oven while the lift is strongest.
- Mixing only until the flour is just absorbed keeps the crumb tender; kneading it like a yeast dough makes soda bread dense and tough.
- A deep cross cut into the top lets heat reach the center of the thick round, so it bakes through before the crust overbrowns.
Ingredients
You will need
- Large mixing bowl
- Cast-iron skillet or baking sheet lined with parchment
- Instant-read thermometer
Method
Tap a step number to mark it done.
Heat the oven
Heat the oven to 425°F with a rack in the middle. Lightly flour a cast-iron skillet or line a baking sheet with parchment.
Rub in the butter
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until no pieces bigger than a pea remain, then stir in the raisins.
Add the buttermilk
Make a well in the center, pour in the buttermilk and stir with a fork or your hand just until a shaggy, sticky dough forms and no dry flour is left. Don't knead.
Shape and score
Turn the dough onto a floured counter, pat it gently into a 7-inch round about 2 inches high and set it in the skillet. Cut a deep cross across the top, about 1 inch deep, with a sharp floured knife.
Bake
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until deep golden brown, the bottom sounds hollow when tapped and the center reads 190°F. Tent with foil after 25 minutes if the top darkens quickly.
Cool
Cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing so the crumb sets. Wrap it in a clean towel while it cools for a softer crust.
Cook's notes
- Have the oven fully hot before you add the buttermilk; the baking soda starts working right away and the lift fades if the dough sits.
- The dough should be sticky. Adding lots of flour to make it easy to handle gives a dry, crumbly loaf. Flour your hands instead.
- Soda bread is best the day it's baked. After that, toast slices and butter them.
Nutrition per serving
270 calories
$0.32 estimated cost per serving
Where the calories come from
| Protein | 10% of calories | 7 g |
|---|---|---|
| Carbs | 76% of calories | 51 g |
| Fat | 13% of calories | 4 g |
| Fiber | 2 g | |
| Sodium | 340 mg |
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for the listed ingredients and amounts; not lab-tested. Cost estimated from average US retail prices.
Questions people ask
Can I make Irish soda bread without buttermilk?
Yes. Stir 1½ tablespoons of lemon juice or white vinegar into 1¾ cups of milk, let it stand for 5 minutes until slightly thickened, and use it in place of the buttermilk.
Why is my soda bread dense?
Usually the dough was kneaded or overmixed, had too much extra flour, or sat too long before baking. Mix just until combined and get it straight into a hot oven.
Is traditional Irish soda bread made with raisins?
The plain everyday loaf in Ireland is just flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk. A version with dried fruit and sugar is often called 'spotted dog' and is the style most Americans know.
