Simple, rustic, and tasty, traditional Irish soda bread has a rich history and is easy to make. Made without yeast, soda bread is a type of quick bread that can be made in less than an hour from start to finish. This makes it an ideal choice for a daily table bread, and an inexpensive choice with only 4 base ingredients.
While I say traditional, this version of Irish soda bread is technically a white Irish soda bread. White soda bread is eaten in Ireland as well but the brown, or wheaten version, is more common. In Ireland their wholemeal or whole wheat flour is made from soft wheat, whereas in the US, most of the whole wheat flour you can find commercially is made from hard red wheat. This may not seem like a big deal, but it does change the protein content of the flour, which in turn changes the amount of gluten formation and how the bread will turn out. Keeping things simple, this recipe uses all-purpose flour for a white soda bread.

Irish soda bread’s history comes from the need for nourishment for people that couldn’t afford a lot, when most people didn’t have an oven either. While normally cooked in an oven these days, the ability to make a hearty bread without yeast or an oven led to this quick bread booming in popularity. The bread comes together in minutes and cooks up quickly as well, with a tight crumb and perfectly crunchy crust. Its also the perfect vehicle for some salted Irish butter or jams.
History of Irish Soda Bread
While similar breads were made long before Irish soda bread became a thing, Ireland usually gets the claim to fame because of the various needs at the time that made this bread so popular. Native Americans and other cultures had made similar breads made with potash for a long time, but the invention and commercialization of bread soda (baking soda) in the early 1800s made for a cheap and less perishable alternative to yeast.
As mentioned earlier, Irish whole wheat flour was made with soft wheat, which made it less effective with yeast for making bread. For a proper bake, yeasted bread also did best when cooked in an oven, which most Irish people didn’t own in the 1800s. Baking soda remedied both of these limitations by giving the dough a quick rise and the ability to be cooked in pots over a fire.
Another contribution to the rise of soda bread in Ireland came from the Great Famine in the mid-1800s. By the early 1800s, the potato had become a staple in the Irish diet, and when the potato blight happened, it led to mass starvation. As an alternative for nourishment, soda bread was a great option since baking soda was cheap and most farmers had access to buttermilk from making butter and flour from wheat crops.
Ingredients for Traditional Irish Soda Bread
While some recipes can get fancy or more enriched with mix-ins or additions like sugar, butter, eggs, raisins, carraway seeds, etc., traditional soda bread is made with just 4 ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, and buttermilk.
Flour – Keeping things simple, this recipe uses regular all-purpose flour. You can also find soft wheat flour online if you wish, from sources like King Arthur.
Baking Soda – The main rising agent instead of yeast for soda bread.
Salt
Buttermilk – Buttermilk provides flavor and moisture but is also important because this is the ingredient that activates the baking soda. Because the reaction begins as soon as you add the buttermilk, you want to work quickly and get the bread into the oven within a few minutes.
How to Make Irish Soda Bread
Start by preheating your oven to 425°F/220°C.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
Make a small well in the flour and pour in the buttermilk. Using a wooden spoon or Danish dough whisk, combine the ingredients until a shaggy dough forms. Just mix until you no longer see pockets of dry flour, you don’t want to overmix the dough, or the bread will come out dense.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and push the dough together into a boule shape. It should be roughly an 8-9” domed, round ball. Transfer to a parchment or silicone lined baking sheet (I use a silicone bread mat here) and using a sharp knife or bread lame, cut a deep X across the bread.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the bread has a deep golden-brown crust and is cooked through. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Storing Irish Soda Bread
Soda bread will start drying out quickly, and is best eaten the day it is made, but should last 2-3 days stored at room temperature.
You can also wrap the cooled bread in plastic wrap and again in aluminum foil and freeze for 2-3 months.
📋 Recipe
Traditional Irish Soda Bread
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 2 cups buttermilk
Directions
- Start by preheating your oven to 425°F/220°C.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon table salt, and 1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda.
- Make a small well in the flour and pour in the 2 cups of buttermilk. Using a wooden spoon or Danish dough whisk, combine the ingredients until a shaggy dough forms. Just mix until you no longer see pockets of dry flour, you don’t want to overmix the dough, or the bread will come out dense.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and push the dough together into a boule shape. It should be roughly an 8-9” domed, round ball. Transfer to a parchment or silicone lined baking sheet (I use a silicone bread mat here) and using a sharp knife or bread lame, cut a deep X across the bread.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the bread has a deep golden-brown crust and is cooked through. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
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