Real Traditional Irish Soda Bread

50 Ratings
  • 5 Rating Star 39
  • 3 Rating Star 4
  • 4 Rating Star 4
  • 1 Rating Star 2
  • 2 Rating Star 1
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A recipe passed down through an Irish family for many generations contains none of the modern supplements like yeast or sugar. This is a simple, very effective recipe.

By barry
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Ingredients

Directions

  • Heat a heavy skillet, griddle, or cast-iron frying pan over medium-low heat.

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  • Stir the flour and salt together in a bowl, and sift in the baking soda. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, and pour in the buttermilk. Stir the mixture quickly together into a dough, and turn out onto a floured work surface. Knead the dough a few times, just until it comes together. Gently form the dough into a flattened, round cake about 1/2 inch thick, and cut the round into quarters with a floured knife.

  • Sprinkle a little bit of flour into the bottom of the hot skillet, and cook the wedges 6 to 8 minutes per side, until golden brown.

Tip

Aluminum foil helps keep food moist, ensures it cooks evenly, keeps leftovers fresh, and makes clean-up easy.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:
252 calories; 8.48 g protein; 50.63 g carbohydrates; 1.15 g fat; 2.45 mg cholesterol; 380.2 mg sodium.Full Nutrition

Reviews (41)

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Most helpful positive review

JoeCook
01/03/2011
I was a bit uncertain about this recipe even while it was baking. I had never baked a bread on the stove top. Well I followed the recipe exactly. I did need to add a lot of flour to the surface. The dough was a bit too moist for kneading. However it turned out really well and it was very easy to make. It's definitely a classic. Variations in the future may include currants or maybe some whole grain alternatives.
Helpful
(40)

Most helpful critical review

Anonymous
10/29/2011
Not much taste. I won't make again.
Helpful
(4)
50 Ratings
  • 5 Rating Star 39
  • 3 Rating Star 4
  • 4 Rating Star 4
  • 1 Rating Star 2
  • 2 Rating Star 1
Reviews:
Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest
JoeCook
01/03/2011
I was a bit uncertain about this recipe even while it was baking. I had never baked a bread on the stove top. Well I followed the recipe exactly. I did need to add a lot of flour to the surface. The dough was a bit too moist for kneading. However it turned out really well and it was very easy to make. It's definitely a classic. Variations in the future may include currants or maybe some whole grain alternatives.
Helpful
(40)
Anonymous
02/16/2011
finally someone actually knows trad Irish bread does NOT contain raisins or caraway or butter perfect recipe though I do 1 cup white unbleached flour 1 cup brown flour thanks for the recipe.
Helpful
(37)
CINJOY4
03/18/2011
Wonderful flavor and texture for such a simple recipe. I've tried several Irish soda bread recipes and this has trumped them all. I did not have actual buttermilk so I used the old milk with vinegar trick. I always feel like I'm cheating when I do that. laugh One note: I followed the instructions to add some flour to the cast iron griddle. I found this not only unnecessary but rather unpleasant. The flour burns which is unsightly and doesn't taste very good. After the first batch I wiped my pan clean wiped it lightly with oil and much preferred those results. My pan is seasoned enough that it's probably fine without doing any of that so I will skip it altogether in the future. Great recipe!
Helpful
(28)
publicprivacy
03/16/2011
Thank you so much for posting the un-Americanized version of soda bread. I'd been trying to find a real recipe for several days and managed to stumble upon this one. Such a relief!
Helpful
(22)
Anonymous
03/18/2010
Wow! Got rave reviews for this one. I added a tsp of Splenda brown sugar for sweetness. I used a george Forman grilling machine with the pizza plate in and cooked it on medium for 30 min.
Helpful
(20)
Joanna Anderson
03/18/2011
OMG a REAL soda bread recipe! I bake mine in the oven though. Make sure to put a cross on top!
Helpful
(18)
deeen
03/21/2011
This is very delicious. I made no changes and would make exactly the same again which i plan to do very soon. Everyone in my family liked it also. I liked the fact that it was very moist although I covered it while it was still warm to make sure that it stayed moist and also softened the crust somewhat since that was what I was looking for that particular day... This bread would be wonderful toasted for breakfast with jam but ours did not make it long enough for that!
Helpful
(17)
JANNABANNA
04/13/2010
This was a good recipe. I didn't change anything!
Helpful
(14)
jessicalyn98
01/19/2011
This is very simple to make. It's a fine bread maybe something to go good with a soup or something like that. I just found it very plain. I used some honey butter and that was a good addition but on its own I found it rather bland.
Helpful
(13)
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