Soda bread
Buttermilk and bicarbonate — a loaf you can have on the table in an hour, scored with a cross.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Cheap nightUnder $8 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Irish soda bread is soft wheat, buttermilk, baking soda, a little salt, barely mixed, baked as a round with a deep cross. Brown soda uses wholemeal. Raisins make it a tea bread some houses refuse to call soda bread. This is the plain one.
What you'll need
5 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
Ingredients
- Wheat flour450 g
- Milk, buttermilk, or milk plus 1 tbsp vinegar400 ml
- Baking soda4.9 ml
- Salt4.9 ml
- Sugar (optional)4.9 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Heat oven to 200°C. Mix flour, salt and baking soda. Buttermilk, a light mix into a shaggy ball.
8 min
Step 2
Round on a tray, deep cross. Bake 35–40 minutes until the bottom sounds hollow.
40 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 238 kcal
- Protein
- 7.3 g
- Carbs
- 45.7 g
- Fat
- 2.2 g
- Saturated fat
- 1.1 g
- Fibre
- 1.5 g
- Sugar
- 3.2 g
- Sodium
- 265 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Milk
- Vegetarian
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.
Substitutions
White flour → Half wholemeal
Brown soda. A little more buttermilk.
Tips
- Overmixing makes a bullet. Shaggy is correct.
- Eat the same day. It stales like soda bread.
History & culture
The loaf next to stew and smoked fish. Soft wheat and a pot oven made chemical leavening the habit.
19th-century bicarbonate plus buttermilk. Faster than yeast when fuel was dear.
Traditional
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Soda bread take?
55 min all in — 15 min prep, 40 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 8 loaves. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Easy.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Vegetarian.
7 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Cheap night — about Under $8 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Oven.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
How much sugar?
1 tsp (optional) of Sugar.
What can I use instead?
White flour → Half wholemeal. Brown soda. A little more buttermilk.
Any tips from this recipe?
Overmixing makes a bullet. Shaggy is correct. Eat the same day. It stales like soda bread.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
Similar dishes
Scones
A quick British tea bread — cold fat, a light hand, and the jam-or-cream argument we will not settle.
Easy
Cornbread
A skillet bread — cornmeal, buttermilk, a hot pan. Sugar is a regional fight we will not pretend is settled.
Easy
Focaccia
Olive-oil bread with a dimpled top — Ligurian if you are strict, a very good tray if you are hungry.
Medium