Irish Soda Bread is the ultimate quick bread to use as a side for soups, stews, and all sorts of meals. There’s no yeast so there’s no waiting. Just mix and bake! This traditional recipe delivers a crispy, golden crust with a soft, tender inside that’s just begging for a smear of butter.
Why Our Recipe
- Super easy, no yeast, and ready in under an hour. Just mix, shape, and bake!
- Crispy crust, soft inside which is perfect for slathering with butter.
- Keep it plain or add raisins and/or caraway for extra flavor.
This bread is a go-to for me for a lot of reasons. It uses pantry staples I always have on hand and I can have warm, fresh bread on the table in under an hour. Adding raisins is traditional, and so is caraway, but you can always leave it plain. We particularly love this bread with caraway for extra flavor.
Ingredient Notes
- All-Purpose Flour: You start with 2 ½ cups and then add more as needed. Too much flour will make the bread dense, so add gradually.
- Salt: This bread is salty and savory. If you prefer less, you can reduce it to 1 teaspoon.
- Baking Soda: Make sure that baking soda is fresh because this is where the rise comes in without yeast.
- Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk, mix 1 ½ cups milk with 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar and let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Raisins: Traditional in Irish soda bread! Use regular or golden raisins, or swap them for currants. Or leave them out entirely.
- Caraway Seeds: These add a slightly nutty, anise-like flavor which we love.
How Much Flour to Add
Flour amounts in bread recipes always vary a little because things like humidity and altitude can affect how much you’ll need. That’s why it’s best to start with the lower amount. In this case, we start with 2 ½ cups while you are still stirring, and add more flour while kneading.
The dough should be soft, slightly sticky, and easy to work with. If it’s too wet and sticks heavily to your hands or the counter, sprinkle in more flour a little at a time until it firms up. You want it tacky but not overly sticky. Be careful not to add too much, though! Extra flour can make the bread dense and dry.
Since Irish soda bread is a quick bread with no yeast, the dough will feel softer than traditional bread dough, and that’s okay. A little stickiness is normal, but it shouldn’t be dry or crumbly.
Raisins and Caraway: Optional
Raisins and caraway seeds are both traditional in Irish soda bread, but whether you add them is totally up to you! You can add both, just one, or skip them entirely—either way, this bread will turn out delicious!
Raisins add pops of sweetness that balances out the saltiness of the bread. Regular or golden raisins both work, or you can swap them for currants, which are slightly smaller and a little tangier. Not a fan of raisins? Feel free to leave them out.
Caraway Seeds bring a nutty, slightly anise-like flavor that gives the bread a more distinctive taste. They aren’t overpowering, but they do add noticeable flavor. If you’ve ever had rye bread, you’ll recognize the subtle hint of caraway. If you’re unsure, try adding just a little and see what you think!
What to Bake it On
You don’t need any fancy equipment to bake Irish soda bread, but different pans can change the crust and texture a bit.
Baking Sheet: The easiest and most common choice! A simple baking sheet lets the bread cook evenly and develop a crisp crust all around.
Cast-Iron Skillet: Want to go old-school? A cast-iron skillet holds heat really well, which helps create a beautifully golden, crisp crust—similar to how it was traditionally baked.
Dutch Oven: If you like a softer crust, baking in a Dutch oven with the lid on traps steam, which makes the bread extra tender. This mimics the Irish “bastible” method.
Storage Instructions
Irish soda bread is best enjoyed fresh. Store leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container, plastic bag, or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. It will stay fresh for 2 to 3 days.
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Thank you very much for such a easy recipe for a novice like me who could succeed in making fresh bread in lockdown situation.
2 1/4 teaspoons of salt seems like a lot! Did anyone adjust this?
I just made it as listed and it was reeeeeally salty. I used course sea salt but a tbsp was way too much. I’ll make it again but with less salt.
It called for 2 teaspoons NOT tablespoons. I can imagine how salty it was. 🙂
Should have! Next time I’ll cut it in half.
Yeah, I went with 1 tea spoon of table salt.
We followed the recipe and our bread came out waaaaay too salty!
I only used 1 and it was ok
I am not an experienced baker at all, and during the coronavirus social distancing decided to try making your soda bread, since I had all the ingredients on hand (and no yeast!)
I followed your instructions exactly and the bread came out great. I’m planning to make this again, and again. I’ll make it even still whenever things get back to normal, if they ever do. I did use your lemon juice and milk trick instead of buttermilk, since I didn’t have that. I used 2% milk.
One thing I’ll say for the other people trying this: the bread rose way more than I thought it would. I made this in my little convection oven and I’ll have to lower the rack next time so the very top of the bread doesn’t get singed.
Great recipe, thanks for sharing!
Great recipe. I tried it with raisins and a little molasses and substituted quick oatmeal for some of the flour on another batch. Both excellent.
Just made this recipe for a 2nd time. The first time I added raisins, this time I did not. Delicious either way. I think I need to make two loaves next time, my family loves this bread. So quick and easy! I’ve been using a powdered buttermilk that I add water to, and it turns out great! I’ve written this recipe down so I don’t forget it! Happy Baking during the Quarantine.
Coco. How many raisins did you add to your mix ? Would like to try this. Thanks
Easy to make, but because I live in Japan I had to opt out for yogurt seeing how there is no buttermilk here. The oven temp is another challenge because we don’t have real ovens in Japan, but otherwise it came out perfect.
You can add lemon juice to regular milk to make buttermilk. Let sit ten mins. Or use vinegar. White vinegar.
To make buttermilk, add 1 tbsp vinegar to 1 cup milk.
Didd the yogurts make anything different instead of buttermilk?
So dang good!! And sooo easy.
Thank you ?
Delicious with a little butter and jam
This was very hard to get a “smooth” dough while kneading. I used unbleached flour instead of all purpose. I’m wondering if that makes a difference?
Can depend on the brand of flour even.. with all the quarantine silliness I recently used a brand of flour that I normally don’t use and several of my recipes were Meh at best… poor texture, etc. etc.
Was able to get back to King Arthur Flour (No, not sponsored..I wish!!) and recipes started coming out good again
I bake quite a bit.. so yes…there are differences in flours even from brand to brand of the same type.
Cheers!
Great, traditional recipe!
I recommend baking in a preheated cast iron pan and if desired, adding raisins.
I always made my version of Soda bread and would soak raisins in rum for about 1 week..then drain the amount I am using and toss into the dough. Excellent all the time! I am going to try this recipe tomorrow.
I LOOOOOVVVEEE this!! Thank you SO much for sharing. Will be using these in everything. What a great simple twist of a timeless classic comfort treat. Warms the tummy and the soul.