Irish Soda Bread is the easiest bread you’ll make – no proofing or kneading required and the dough comes together in 5 minutes. Soda bread has a soft and tender crumb with a Biscuit-like texture.
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We love freshly baked bread, from Banana Bread to Homemade Focaccia and Cornbread. If you are a fan of easy bread recipes, this Irish Soda Bread is a must-try!
You’ll Love this Soda Bread!
I fell in love with Soda Bread the first time I tried it. Its lightly sweet crumb reminded me of our Paska Easter Bread and Hot Cross Buns, but it’s amazing how fast and easy it was to make a traditional Soda Bread.
What is Irish Soda Bread?
This Irish-American Soda Bread is traditionally baked for St. Patrick’s Day. It is a quick bread that uses Baking Soda (a.k.a. Sodium Bicarbonate) as the leavening to make it rise. Unlike traditional yeast bread, there is no proofing or rising time. Once the dough comes together, you score the top and bake right away.
Ingredients
We love adding raisins for the holidays, but the raisins are optional. If you want to make it without buttermilk, then kefir works just as well to activate the baking soda.
- Flour – all-purpose flour works best
- Sugar – 1/4 cup makes it a lightly sweet bread
- Salt – every good bread needs a fair amount
- Baking soda – leavening which makes the bread rise
- Butter – gives the bread a scone-like texture (use cold, unsalted)
- Buttermilk – activates the soda (use cold, low-fat)
- Egg – for a finer, richer crumb
- Raisins – optional and can be substituted for dried cranberries
Tips for the Best Soda Bread
- Do not over-mix – as with scones, the dough really just has to come together before baking.
- Sticky dough – the dough will feel sticky. Dust your work surface and hands with just enough flour to handle the dough.
- Cold ingredients – there’s no reason to bring ingredients to room temperature. Keep buttermilk, egg, and butter chilled.
- Generously grease the pan – buttering your cast-iron skillet before baking allows the bread to rise without sticking to the pan.
- Cool on a rack – Once out of the oven, transfer the soda bread to a rack to cool so it doesn’t steam and soften on the bottom.
How to Make Soda Bread
You’ll be amazed how fast and easy it is to form a loaf of this Irish-American Soda Bread.
- Prep – Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 10″ cast-iron pan with butter.
- Whisk dry ingredients – in a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda.
- Add butter and raisins – cut butter into dice then work it into the flour mixture with clean dry fingertips until crumbs form. Stir in raisins.
- Buttermilk – In a large measuring cup, beat together buttermilk and 1 egg and pour into dry ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until moistened and the dough starts to come together.
- Form the loaf – transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, dust hands with flour, and form dough into a round loaf. If too sticky to handle, dust with flour.
- Bake – transfer dough to the buttered pan and score the top with a deep “X”. Bake at 375˚F for 50-55 minutes.
How to know when Soda Bread is done baking? We bake for 50-55 minutes. When you tap the loaf it should sound hollow inside.
Common Questions:
You can omit the raisins, or even substitute them for dried cranberries or other bits of dried fruit like chopped apricots.
The buttermilk activates the baking soda, making the bread rise. You can substitute the buttermilk with a low fat plain Kefir.
It tastes similar to scones or biscuits but is very lightly sweet.
We love to serve soda bread is delicious served as a side with Irish butter and honey, or jam. It’s a lightly sweet bread so it pairs well with coffee or tea.
Scoring the top gives it extra surface area to brown and crisp.
Over-mixing or over-kneading the dough can make it tough. The less you handle it, the softer the bread will be.
Soda bread freezes really well. If you freeze it the day it’s baked (be sure it’s cooled to room temperature first), it will taste great thawed and toasted.
This Irish Soda Bread recipe is sure to become a holiday favorite for you. It’s so easy and you’ll impress everyone.
More St Patrick’s Day Recipes
If you love this Soda Bread, then you won’t want to miss these St. Patrick’s Day-inspired recipes.
- Green Smoothie Bowl – perfect for a St. Patty’s breakfast
- Zeppole – a special treat loved by all
- Spinach Artichoke Dip – your new favorite dip
- Guacamole Stuffed Deviled Eggs – you’ll love the green
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts – crispy with bacon
- Broccoli Apple Salad – with creamy dressing
Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus 1/4 cup more for dusting
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, plus 1/2 Tbsp to grease pan
- 1 3/4 cups cold lowfat buttermilk or kefir
- 1 large egg, cold
- 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 375˚F. Generously grease a 10” cast-iron skillet with 1/2 Tbsp butter.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda. Cut butter into small pieces and use your fingers to work the butter into the flour until crumbs form stir in the raisins, breaking up any clumps of raisins. Make a well in the center.
- In a large measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk and egg then add this mixture into the flour mixture. Use a wooden spoon and mix just until lightly moistened and dough barely starts to come together.
- Transfer to a floured surface and use floured hands to shape the dough just until it forms into a round loaf. It should be shaggy. If it’s too sticky to handle, dust lightly with flour. Do not over-mix or bread will be tough.
- Transfer to the buttered pan, use a knife to score the top with a large and deep “X”. Bake in the center of your preheated oven at 375 for 50-55min. When you tap on the bread, it should sound hollow inside. Transfer bread to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy within 2 days of making it and refrigerate leftovers up to a week.
Nutrition Per Serving
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I just made this recipe and it’s baking as we speak. My dough was more like a thick batter. I hope it turns out ok.
Same! Mine is in the oven and not rising much- getting nervous
I only have 2%milk no buttermilk is it ok
Hi Eileen! That will be fine to use too.
I am planning to bake this tonight. I am going to use the Dutch oven. I looked at your Dutch oven cooking instructions found in the comments below. That bread recipe has you preheating the Dutch oven and then baking for 30 min. Should I follow those instructions or bake for the 50-55 min as per the Soda Bread recipe? Thanks!
Hi Laura, you should not need to pre-heat the dutch oven for this recipe. I would follow the recipe as written and be sure to not cover the dutch oven, that will trap steam and impact the outcome.
You can add plain white vinegar to milk to make sour milk which is a substitute for buttermilk.
Hi Lori! Yes, that will work.
Fantastic! Easiest and tastiest ever in my Irish repertoire Thanks Natasha.
You can spoon a wet soda bread mixture in a well grease or lined 2lb loaf tin60 mins @160 wrap in a tea towel can add 3 tablespoons treacle 2off brown sugar maybe sultanas warm treacle spoon in a cup off hot water from N Ireland
Made this read tonight. My husband and I really enjoyed it.
Your loaf is beautiful! I have made a few changes in this recipe over the years: I added a tablespoon of baking powder and use room temperature Eggs and buttermilk, which gives it a better rise in the oven. I also sent you an email about this. I hope you got it.❤️
Awesome! Thank you for sharing that with us.
Can you use almond flour or non-white or wheat-flour for soda bread?
I have not tested that to advise. Let us know how it goes if you do an experiment!
Is it possible to use regular buttermilk…low fat may not be available here? Or… perhaps just decrease butter? Thank you.
A
Hi Alexandria! Yes, that will work fine to use it in place of low fat. No changes needed.
This recipe is similar to mine, which i have been making for 50 years.
I do not have a cast iron pan. I use round cake pans to bake. After making the dough, i divide the dough into 2 or 3 equal rounds. I use 8” cake pans if i want 3 smaller breads. I use 10” cake pans if i want 2 medium breads. I keep one and gift the other 1 or 2 breads to friends, wrapped in a cute tea towel tied with ribbon.
Be sure to cut a cross in the top of each bread before baking, to ensure even baking, and “to keep the demons out”, according to my Irish grandmother 😊
Can you use regular butter milk in place of low fat
Yes, that will work fine.
I’m using the Dutch Oven. Do I bake at 375 for 50-55 min, or 450 for 30 min? Help please!
Sounds delicious- I do t have a cast iron skillet. Can you use a Dutch oven or other type of pan?
Hi Gloria! Yes, you can reference my Easy Dutch Oven Bread Recipe for instructions.
Hi! I am so excited to make this! I’m making it for a huge crowd for a work event tomorrow and I’m wondering if I could double this recipe and use a giant 16 inch cast-iron skillet instead?
I have not tested that but one of our readers shared this “I made this last year around St. Patrick’s Day and I plan to make it again this year. It was so good! I doubled the recipe so I had some to enjoy for a while with my coffee in the morning. I had it with butter or cream cheese. Can’t wait to do it again.” Hope that helps!
Easy recipe! However, I’ve followed the recipe to a T and at 58 mins, the middle still seems raw. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Gabriella! Be sure to fully preheats your oven before baking. I like to use an Internal oven thermometer (Amazon affiliate link) to verify my ovens temperature accuracy.
I made your recipe and followed your exact instructions and the Irish soda bread came out perfect. Has a nice taste and the bread was soft on the inside with the outside having that little crunch. Thank You!
That’s wonderful, Roberta! So glad it turned out great for you.
I made this last year around St. Patrick’s Day and I plan to make it again this year. It was so good! I doubled the recipe so I had some to enjoy for a while with my coffee in the morning. I had it with butter or cream cheese. Can’t wait to do it again.
That sounds wonderful, Katie! Thanks for sharing.
I’ve made this recipe several times-always turns out great! Wonderful texture, yummy flavor. So easy—And I love leftovers to toast for breakfast 💕
Ugghhhh have been making Irish Soda bread for years…was recommended this recipe…very disappointed! Didn’t rise texture an issue…ended up not bringing to dinner party. Possibly baking powder needs to be added…expensive to have made and not eaten.
HI Letitia, I”m sorry to hear it didn’t rise but I’m happy to help troubleshoot. Did you change anything in the recipe? Was your baking soda expired (does it fizz vigorously when you pour a little vinegar on it? that’s the test) Also, did you make sure to use buttermilk which activates the baking soda. 1 tsp of baking soda is equal to 3 tsp of baking powder so there is ample leavening in this recipe for it to rise.
I don’t have an iron skillet. Do you think I can bake it on a baking sheet with a silicone mat?
Hi Connie, it can be made in a regular loaf pan, you can experiment with different pans. Some of my viewers have even reported making this in a regular bread loaf pans. I assume it would work, but you’ll have to experiment with the size. I imagine a silicone pan may work to help keep its shape.
I discovered putting some orange zest into soda bread to improve a pretty boring taste otherwise.
Can you use powdered cultured buttermilk blend and 1 3/4c water in place of fresh buttermilk?
Hi Trish. I think that would be fine. Let us know if you test it.