Irish Soda Bread comes together in minutes with no rising time needed—just mix and bake! Add raisins or sunflower seeds for a fun twist or enjoy it plain for a classic loaf.
Irish Soda Bread Recipe
When we put up a poll on Instagram asking how you all feel about raisins in bread, the majority was against the addition. While I don’t like raisins anywhere near my Oatmeal Cookies, they are ridiculously tasty in a good bread! And while I’d love to convince you all to give it a go, I respect that it’s a deal breaker for so many people. But with that said, don’t discount this Irish Soda Bread recipe just yet, because there are loads of different options you can use in place of the raisins!
Variations
- Leave out the raisins and prepare the bread as is (plain white no-yeast bread!).
- Add some seeds — mix through about 1/3 up to 1/2 cup of poppy seeds, sunflower seeds, or sesame seeds into the dough and then sprinkle another tablespoon on top before baking.
- Brush the top of the bread with buttermilk and sprinkle with old-fashioned oats.
How To Make Irish Soda Bread
Remember the “secret” preparation method for creating these amazing Drop Biscuits?
Quick re-cap: Most drop biscuits use cold cubed butter and a food processor or pastry blender to cut the butter into the biscuits. But instead, we actually melt the butter. This would normally be bad for the texture, but we form new butter clumps by mixing in cold buttermilk. When the cold buttermilk hits the melted butter, it forms small clumps (see the photo above). Those clumps will imbue the wonderful texture that results from pockets of butter without the extra work. (Thanks to Cooks Illustrated for teaching me this cool trick!)
We use this method again in this Irish Soda Bread Recipe — we mix hot melted butter with cold buttermilk and get perfect clumps of butter. This not only helps the bread rise, but it will also give it a great texture. And, it’s SO much easier than cutting in cold butter!
Irish Soda Bread Recipe Tips
- Adding flour to the dough: Humidity, altitude, and temperature can all affect how much flour you’ll need. Aim to add only enough flour to be able to manage the dough, because the wetter/stickier the dough the more moist (and tasty!) the bread will be. On the flip side, if it is too wet and sticky to manage, it will spread too much/not have enough structure.
- Cut an “X” in the loaf before baking. This helps to ensure the middle is cooked through. In southern Irish regions, the cross was added for superstitious reasons — families believed the cross would let the fairies out or ward off evil and protect their homes! (PS: That’s how the term ‘hot cross buns’ originated: from the superstitious cross put on the loaves!)
- Let baked bread stand. Once you remove it from the oven, allow time for the bread to stand on the sheet pan for about 5-10 minutes and then on a wire cooling rack for at least 30 minutes. The residual heat and steam ensure the inside is fully baked through. As tempting as it is to cut in, don’t rush it because you’ll likely end up with a slightly doughy center.
How To Serve Irish Soda Bread
Irish Soda Bread has a delicious flavor and is unbeatable served warm! That said, it really comes to life with the toppings. Here are our favorite ways to enjoy this bread:
- Slice a piece while the bread is still hot and spread on a thick layer of room temperature butter. If the butter is unsalted, add a pinch of salt on top.
- Add a citrus marmalade or berry jam. If the bread isn’t fresh out of the oven, toast a slice first.
- Make a sandwich with it! Add your favorite cheese and meat or prepare an open-faced sandwich with toasted bread and cheese!
- Use for French toast. Top with plenty of vanilla sauce, pancake syrup or blueberry syrup.
- Dunk in some soup or a hearty stew — here’s a list of 30 or our favorite soup recipes. We especially love this Irish Soda Bread dunked in this Minestrone Soup, Instant Pot Beef Stew, or this gnocchi-filled Crockpot Beef Stew.,
Storage
Storing Irish Soda Bread
- This bread is best eaten fresh, but it keeps for up to 3 days at room temp in a cool, dry place. Don’t refrigerate it to avoid it getting stale.
- After 2-3 days, freeze slices for up to 3 months. Toast slices straight from the freezer or let them thaw at room temp.
Quick Tip
Irish Soda Bread is notoriously crumbly, so cut long slices in half down the middle and then toast the bread first for more stability.
Use Leftover Buttermilk In One Of These:
Side Dishes
Corn Casserole
Breakfast
Buttermilk Syrup
Breakfast
Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Muffins And Quick Breads
Red Lobster Biscuits
Irish Soda Bread
Equipment
- Large sheet pan (15″ x 21″) or a 5-quart cast-iron pot
- Parchment paper or a silicone baking mat
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/2 cup, melted
- 1-3/4 cups buttermilk divided, see note 1
- 1 large egg
- 4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting, see note 2
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 cup raisins soft and fresh
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone liner, or line a 5-quart cast-iron pot with parchment paper. Set aside. Melt butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl.
- Take the butter from the microwave and pour in 1 cup (237g) cold buttermilk. Stir with a fork and set aside for about 5 minutes. In another medium bowl, add the remaining 3/4 cup (176g) buttermilk and the large egg. Whisk together until smooth and set aside.
- Add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and raisins to a very large bowl. Whisk together until combined. Make a well in the middle of the bowl and pour in the buttermilk + egg mixture.Stir the butter and buttermilk mixture again, stirring until small clumps form (you want this mixture as clumpy as possible!). Use a spatula to scrape every bit of this mixture on top.
- Use a strong spatula or wooden spoon to mix ingredients until just combined and no streaks of flour remain. Be careful to not overmix or overwork the dough. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons extra flour onto a clean work surface. Scrape out all the dough right onto the flour and sprinkle with 2 more tablespoons of flour. Gently knead the bread, about 6–8 times to bring everything together into a wide, smooth ball.
- Gently transfer ball to the prepared sheet pan or pot and pat it down to about 1-1/2 inches in height. Use a sharp serrated knife to cut an “X” across the surface about 1/4-inch deep. Bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, do not open the oven, but reduce heat to 400°F and bake another 20–30 minutes or until the base sounds hollow when tapped in the middle (25 mins in my oven).
- Remove tray from oven and let stand 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire cooling rack. Let bread cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing into it (the steam is still cooking the bread!)—see note 3.
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
