Irish Soda Bread
Irish Soda Bread is a classic quick bread featuring flour, salt, buttermilk, and baking soda. This buttery take adds sugar, butter, and egg to the mix for some added richness. Serve it hot out of the oven with your favorite condiments.
Equipment
- 1 Large Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour **
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1¼ tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¼ cup cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
- 1 large egg
- 1½ cups buttermilk
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 375°F. Place a large cast-iron skillet in the oven. The skillet will heat up alongside the oven.
- Pour the flour into a fine-mesh strainer place over a large bowl. To the flour add the sugar, kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk to combine.
- In a separate bowl whisk to combine the egg and buttermilk. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the buttermilk mixture to the center. Start working the dry ingredients into the wet using a wooden spoon. Once a loose dough forms, turn it onto the counter and lightly knead it into a cohesive dough. It should be smooth though. It should be lumpy, resist the urge to over mix and/or over knead.
- Take the cast iron skillet out of the oven and carefully line it with a piece of parchment paper. Place the loaf on top of the parchment paper. Score the top of your soda bread with a large X. Make sure it’s at least 1/2 an inch deep. It helps to use a serrated knife for this.
- Place the soda bread in the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden. Transfer the soda bread to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Serve warm with your favorite condiments.
Notes
** You can sub 2 cups of the flour for whole wheat if you wish. I find if you add more than this, the bread does get overly dense, though.