Irish Soda Bread without Buttermilk

A wooden board with slices of Irish soda bread with the other half of the loaf and a bowl of butter.

5 from 2 votes

Irish Soda Bread without Buttermilk

Irish soda bread is a classic recipe that we often associate with Saint Patricks Day. It's one of the easiest types of bread to make, uses basic ingredients, and has a soft crumbly texture. When paired with Irish butter, it will melt in your mouth! It's a bread everyone can make.

Prep Time15

Cook Time40

Total Time55

Course: Bread

Cuisine: Irish

Servings: Slices

Calories: 239kcal

Author: Kristin

Equipment

Ingredients

1 & ¾ Cup Milk
2 Tablespoons White Distilled Vinegar
4 & ¼ Cup Bread Flour
2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter Cubed and slightly softened.
1 Large Egg

Optional

4 Tablespoon Butter 1 Tablespoon for the skillet and rest for spreading.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If using a cast iron skillet, place it in the oven at this time to start warming it up.
In a 2 cup liquid measuring cup, combine the milk and vinegar, whisk, and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, add flour and whisk in the baking soda and salt.
Using a pastry cutter or your hands, incorporate the cubed butter into the flour mix. The butter should be the size of peas or smaller.
Whisk the egg into the milk mixture.
Slowly add in the milk mixture with a fork or danish dough whisk. Make sure to whisk ingredients together as you combine them.
Mix until everything is fully combined and starts to form a ball. Soda bread is a very sticky dough so make sure your hands and work surface are lightly floured. Add a little bit of flour at a time if it is difficult to handle.
On a floured surface, remove dough from the bowl and using your hands, form the dough into a round loaf.
Remove skillet from the oven and add in 1 tablespoon of butter. This helps the bread from sticking and gives it a nice crispy crust.
Add dough to the skillet and with a serrated knife cut a deep cross in the top of the bread. about ½-3/4" deep.
Return to the oven and bake for 40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. If the bread starts getting too brown you can cover with foil to prevent it from burning.
Remove from oven and place bread on a wire rack and allow to cool.
Slice, then spread on some Irish butter and serve.

Notes

Notes and Tips

This particular recipe calls for bread flour and it really does make a difference. I have made a lot of soda bread with both all-purpose flour and bread flour and with a side-by-side taste comparison, the bread flour came out on top. With that said, if all-purpose is all you have it will also work great.

Substitutions

Buttermilk: If you do have buttermilk and want to make a more traditional loaf, just substitute the vinegar and milk for the same amount of buttermilk.

Variations

A traditional Irish recipe will include raisins and caraway seeds. I have chosen to leave those out of this particular loaf. My family does not like either in our bread and I want to make bread they will love to eat. So if you want a true traditional soda bread go ahead and add these things. About a cup of raisins and 1 tablespoon of caraway seeds.

If you do not have a cast-iron skillet, this bread can still be baked on a prepared sheet pan.

Storage

Irish soda bread will last 2-3 days at room temperature. It will start to become dry each day so it's best eaten right away. Wrap it well in aluminum foil to help keep some of that moisture in.

Soda bread can be frozen for up to 2 months. Although, it will not be as fresh if stored this way.

Nutrition