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Some of you reached out after I shared the No Knead Bread recipe saying you didn’t have yeast on hand...or a Dutch Oven. Here’s a four ingredient bread that does not require either and BONUS! does not need any rising time at all!
The humble Irish Soda Bread is made up of only flour, salt, soda, and buttermilk. If you see a soda bread recipe that calls for raisins, cream, butter or sugar, it will be delicious, but it wouldn’t be the authentic Soda Bread which fed hungry Irish farmers for generations.
This recipe is from charming Avoca Café (I went to Avoca almost weekly while living in Dublin). It’s honest. It’s simple. And it has an amazing crust!
If you don’t have buttermilk (I never do), you can direct substitute with kefir (which I try to always have in my fridge). You can also doctor the regular milk in your fridge with a little lemon/vinegar/yogurt to make buttermilk on the fly.
Makes 1 large loaf
AUTHENTIC IRISH SODA BREAD
🥖 3 cups of flour
🥖 1 tsp baking soda
🥖 1 tsp sugar
🥖 1/2 tsp salt
🥖 400 ml Buttermilk
🥖 3 cups of flour
🥖 1 tsp baking soda
🥖 1 tsp sugar
🥖 1/2 tsp salt
🥖 400 ml Buttermilk
Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Gradually mix in the buttermilk. The dough will be moist and sticky.
Bake 30 min at 450°. Let cool, but serve warm and with good butter.
You can bake this in a loaf pan, but I usually just bake mine shaped into a dome on a silicon mat.
I did say at the beginning that sugar is not one of the classic ingredients, but this is just a very little bit and I do think it helps the crust brown beautifully. Personally I increase the salt to 1 tsp but I’m a salt fiend!
This bread is especially good with a rustic soup but it’s also a staple at traditional Irish breakfasts 😋