Easy Irish soda bread
Try this easy soda bread recipe for when you want bread in a hurry – it's ready in less than an hour with no kneading, proving (or yeast). This makes a small loaf, but you can easily double the recipe and make two.
Each serving provides 215kcal, 8g protein, 43g carbohydrate (of which 3g sugars), 1g fat (of which 0.3g saturates), 1g fibre and 1g salt.
Ingredients
- 170g/6oz wholemeal flour
- 170g/6oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 290ml/10fl oz buttermilk
Method
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Tip the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl and stir. Make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk, mixing quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. (Depending upon the absorbency of the flour, you may need to add a little milk if the dough seems too stiff but it should not be too wet or sticky.)
Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. Form into a round and flatten the dough slightly before placing on a lightly floured baking sheet.
Cut a cross on the top and bake for about 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.
Recipe Tips
If you don't have buttermilk for the soda bread recipe, you can use half-and-half plain yoghurt mixed with milk. You can also use milk that has been soured by stirring in a tablespoon of lemon juice and allowing it to stand for 10 minutes.