Irish Soda Bread is a quick bread that does not require any yeast. Instead, all of its leavening comes from baking soda and buttermilk. This Irish soda bread recipe is my grandmother’s and has been cherished in my family for years. It’s dense, yet soft and has the most incredible crusty exterior. Buttermilk and cold butter are the secret to its delicious success!
Welcome to my favorite Irish Soda Bread recipe. I shared this no yeast bread recipe on my blog a few years ago and decided to revisit with fresh new pictures and a video tutorial. This recipe is my grandmother’s. She passed away in 2011, 2 weeks before I started this food blog. I dedicated my 1st cookbook to her. Full of energy and the creator of the best homemade pie crust on earth, she would be in her 90s today. St. Patrick’s Day is her birthday.
Irish Soda Bread is a Quick Bread
Does the thought of homemade bread send you running for the hills? Sometimes homemade bread feels daunting, but you’re in luck today. Irish soda bread is a quick bread made with baking soda, not yeast. Like my easy no yeast bread, this is a shortcut bread that doesn’t skimp on flavor. (If you want a yeast bread, I recommend my sandwich bread recipe!)
- What’s the texture like? The best Irish soda bread, like this recipe, has a golden brown crust with a dense, tight crumb. The bread isn’t heavy, it’s actually quite tender and soft inside. The crust is nice and crisp when it comes out of the oven and becomes a little chewy on day 2 and 3. It’s so good.
My grandmother’s Irish soda bread contains some sugar, but it’s not overly sweet. It’s a wonderful companion for savory dinners like hearty stew or you can serve it with butter, honey butter, jam, and/or cheese. The raisins are optional, but Grandma would never let you skip them.
Video Tutorial: Homemade Irish Soda Bread
Overview: How to Make Irish Soda Bread
The full printable recipe is below. Irish soda bread dough comes together in about 10 minutes. You need buttermilk, egg, flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and butter.
- Whisk buttermilk and 1 egg together. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in another bowl.
- Cut cold butter into the flour mixture. Like scones and pie crust, cutting cold butter into the flour is a key step. Coating the flour in cold butter guarantees a lovely flaky texture. You can use a fork, your hands, or a pastry cutter. Add the wet ingredients.
- Bring the dough together with your hands. Using a very sharp knife, score the dough. This allows the center to bake.
- Bake until golden brown.
Buttermilk is the Secret
Irish soda bread only requires a few ingredients, including buttermilk. Buttermilk reacts with the baking soda to provide the bread’s leavening. It also adds wonderful flavor! We use buttermilk for the same reasons in my regular no yeast bread, too. If you’re interested, I have plenty more on this topic in my Baking with Buttermilk post (including a DIY buttermilk substitute recipe).
Feel free to Skip the Egg
Irish soda bread can be made with or without an egg. 1 egg adds richness and density. Feel free to skip it to make a slightly lighter loaf. No other changes necessary, simply leave out the egg.
3 Success Tips
- Don’t over-work the dough. It’s supposed to look a little shaggy.
- Score the top of the dough with an “X” before baking. This helps the center bake through.
- You can bake Irish soda bread on a baking sheet, in a baking pan, or in a cast iron skillet. I recommend a cast iron skillet because it helps guarantee a super crispy crust. Here’s how to keep your cast iron cookware seasoned.
If you’re baking for St. Patrick’s Day, you’ll love my Guinness Brownies, Baileys and Coffee Cupcakes, Guinness Chocolate Cake, Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes, Lucky Charms Treats, and shamrock St. Patrick’s Day Cookies, too.
Print
Grandma’s Irish Soda Bread
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Irish
Description
Irish Soda Bread is a quick bread that does not require any yeast. Instead, all of its leavening comes from baking soda and buttermilk. This Irish Soda Bread recipe is my grandmother’s and has been cherished in my family for years. It’s dense, yet soft and has the most incredible crusty exterior.
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (420ml) buttermilk*
- 1 large egg (optional, see note)
- 4 and 1/4 cups (531g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for your hands and counter
- 3 Tablespoons (38g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 Tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed*
- optional: 1 cup (150g) raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven & pan options: Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). There are options for the baking pan. Use a regular baking sheet and line with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (bread spreads a bit more on a baking sheet), or use a seasoned 10-12 inch cast iron skillet (no need to preheat the cast iron unless you want to), or grease a 9-10 inch cake pan or pie dish. You can also use a 5 quart (or higher) dutch oven. Grease or line with parchment paper. If using a dutch oven, bake the bread with the lid off.
- Whisk the buttermilk and egg together. Set aside. Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter, a fork, or your fingers. Mixture is very heavy on the flour, but do your best to cut in the butter until the butter is pea-sized crumbs. Stir in the raisins. Pour in the buttermilk/egg mixture. Gently fold the dough together until dough it is too stiff to stir. Pour crumbly dough onto a lightly floured work surface. With floured hands, work the dough into a ball as best you can, then knead for about 30 seconds or until all the flour is moistened. If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour.
- Transfer the dough to the prepared skillet/pan. Using a very sharp knife or bread lame, score the dough with a slash or X about 1/2 inch deep. (“Score” = shallow cut.)
- Bake until the bread is golden brown and center appears cooked through, about 45-55 minutes. Loosely tent the bread with aluminum foil if you notice heavy browning on top. For a more accurate test, the bread is done when an instant-read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195°F (90°C).
- Remove from the oven and allow bread to cool for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm, at room temperature, or toasted with desired toppings/spreads.
- Cover and store leftover bread at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. We usually wrap it tightly in aluminum foil for storing.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Baked and cooled bread freezes well up to 3 months. Freeze the whole loaf or individual slices. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature, then reheat as desired.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Cast Iron Skillet, 9-inch Round Cake Pan, 9-inch Pie Dish, Dutch Oven, or Baking Sheet with Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Pastry Cutter | Bread Lame | Instant-Read Thermometer
- Baking Pan: There are options for the baking pan (see Special Tools Note above). You can use a lined large baking sheet (with or without a rim), a seasoned 10-12 inch cast iron skillet, or a greased or lined 9-10 inch cake pan or pie dish. I don’t recommend a loaf pan because the loaf may not bake evenly inside. This dough is best as a flatter loaf.
- Buttermilk: Using cold buttermilk is best. Buttermilk is key to the bread’s flavor, texture, and rise. The bread will not rise without it. If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, you can make a homemade buttermilk substitute. Whole milk or 2% milk is best, though lower fat or nondairy milks work in a pinch. Add 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Add enough cold milk to make 1 and 3/4 cups. Whisk together, then let sit for 5 minutes before using in the recipe.
- Egg: 1 egg adds richness and density. Feel free to skip it to make a slightly lighter loaf. No other changes necessary, simply leave out the egg.
- Cold Butter: The colder the butter, the less sticky the dough will be. Make sure it’s very cold, even frozen cubed butter is great.
- Smaller Loaves: You can divide this dough up to make smaller loaves. The bake time will be shorter, depending how large the loaves are. An instant read thermometer will be especially helpful. Bake the loaves until an instant-read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195°F (90°C).
Reader Comments and Reviews
I made this last year and it was wonderful and I want to make it again. My husband brought home fat-free buttermilk though. Will that work ok or do I need to add some fat back into it somehow?
Hi Sandy, fat-free buttermilk will work in a pinch. So glad you enjoyed it!
This bread is absolutely delicious (and addictive!). Very easy to make and makes the kitchen smell divine while baking! Great recipe! I plan to put this recipe on repeat- thank you!
This recipe was great! Huge hit with my family, and I’ll definitely be making it again! For those who can’t get buttermilk, I used a yogurt-water mixture as a substitute and it work brilliantly!
Excellent! I used Craisins instead of raisins. How about dark chocolate chips too? I also loved baking it in a cast iron fry pan.
Hi Christine, you can use chocolate chips instead of raisins! Same amount.
Wonder if anyone tried chopped walnuts as an add-on?
Yum! Any idea if it would work to sub 1:1 with GF flour?
We haven’t tested this recipe with a gluten free flour blend, so we’re unsure of the results. Let us know if you do decide to try it.
I just tried this! I used KA 1:1. I added an extra 2-3 tablespoons of buttermilk as the dough was a bit dry, which makes sense since GF flour absorbs liquids more. I divided the dough into two and made 2 smaller loaves, but I still needed to bake it for 55 min to get to the recommended inside temp of 195 degrees. It’s pretty good! It has a “GF flour taste” and a slightly grainier texture, which is typical. I will try this again with Cup 4 Cup flour (I prefer this one but was all out), but overall I’d say the substitution was successful!
Everyone in my family really enjoyed this bread. They suggested that I give it a 5-star rating, and I agree. I especially like the crunchy crust.
I will be in a “rustic” setting for St Patrick’s Day. Do you think I could prepare the soda bread dough UP to the point of baking at home and the refrigerate for a few days and then bake just before eating it? I like the idea of it being fresh baked.
Hi Ann, the baking soda is activated once mixed with the wet ingredients, so it’s best to make the bread right after.
I’m trying this recipe for the first time tonight. Just happened to find soda bread in my Walmart last year about this time and have not found it since. I’m thinking this is going to be my favorite bread to make. Sounds easy and delicious!❤️❤️
Just made this ISB, hopefully it works out. Wondering why no caraway seeds?
Hi Tanya, you can definitely add caraway seeds!
Oh my. My bread looks like a mushroom! The top raised up and the sides kind of caved in. I have no idea what I did wrong. The dough was really sticky and I had to add more flour. Other than that, I thought I did ok. Haven’t tasted it yet. Smells delicious. I’d send a photo if I could. Any ideas?
Hi Becky, what type of pan did you use? I wonder if the bottom spread so much that it reached the sides of the pan you used and then the top sort of rose up too much? (Like if you used a round pan.) If you try the recipe again, you can slightly reduce the buttermilk or add more flour again. And try baking it on a large baking sheet.
Love this Irish Soda Bread recipe! For a flavorful twist, try adding our bakery essential oils.
Wondering if dried currants would work in this in place of the raisins?
Hi Suz, absolutely! We make that substitution often!
I made this exactly as written with the addition of 1/2 C. Craisins. Bread turned out wonderfully!
I made the Irish Soda Bread, baking it in a parchment lined dutch oven. I was very pleased with the results. The only thing I did not accomplish was the X mark on the top of the loaf as my knives are not sharp enough! Love the taste, not too sweet and it is soft and slices nicely with a serrated knife. Thank you so much for the inspiration!
I’m planning to make this for my family St. Patrick’s Day get-together. What are your thoughts on baking it on a pizza stone? Also, we do love the store-bought Irish Soda bread by Katie you-know-who, which tends to be on the sweet side. To make your recipe a bit sweeter, how much total sugar would you recommend?
Hi K, we haven’t tested it on a pizza stone, but a few readers have reported success doing so. Make sure to preheat your pizza stone before placing the bread dough on top for baking. This loaf is lightly sweet, but you can try adding a bit more sugar to your tastes, keeping in mind that the overall texture and structure can change depending on how much you add. We’d start small (adding just another Tablespoon or so), and then adjusting for future batches. Or, the finished bread is lovely paired with a sweet jam on top. We hope it’s a hit!
My youth team is planning a trip to Ireland and have a fundraiser of Irish stew, Shamrock cookies and Irish soda bread meal on St Patrick’s day. I have been asked if I could make enough Irish soda bread for 200 people. I know you didn’t mention earlier how many people one love serves but if you could give me any idea it would be greatly helpful! Thank you!
Hi Sunny, about 8-10 large slices, depending on how thin/thick you slice the bread. Hope it’s a hit!
Can you use salted butter instead of unsalted butter?
Hi Rochelle, if you use salted butter you may wish to slightly reduce the amount of added salt in the recipe.
Can you make this cinnamon raisin bread?
Hi Linda, you can absolutely add cinnamon to this bread!
How many people does this serve?
Hi Dana, it really depends on how large/small you slice the bread. It yields one loaf.
I would really like to try this recipe for St. Patrick’s Day, but we are trying to be a little more heart-healthy. Is it possible to use wheat flour or a combination of wheat/white flours and still get a good result? If so, what would you recommend? I always enjoy your recipes! Thank you for sharing them!
Hi Teresa, We don’t recommend whole wheat flour, the bread will be extremely heavy. Feel free to use half whole wheat and half all-purpose, but the bread will still be quite dense. Let us know what you decide to try!
A member of out Irish ( Celtic) club advised white flour. BUT she experimented with whole wheat a few times. For whole wheat, she said WHITE whole wheat worked best BUT use HALF wheat and Half all purpose for best results.. White Whole wheat is NOT bleachd No wheat germ or bran is removed . She stressed baking by weight….using the gram wt of the brand of flour you buy. Example she uses King Arthur. All purpose flour is 120g per cup. Whole wheat and white whole wheat weigh 113g per cup
Also pay close attention to Sally’s notes about Buttermilk and COLD butter. Hope this helps
This recipe is almost identical to one that was given to me years ago from a friend whose mother was born in Ireland. That recipe included 2 tablespoons of caraway seeds. Some like seeds, some don’t. I love caraway seeds. One of my best friend’s mother, now deeased, was also born in Ireland, and I made my soda bread recipe for her to try. She laughed, and said, my recipe was from the Rich Irish, hers was Poor Irish. Hers used whole wheat flour and no egg. I can attest that Sally’s recipe recipe will be absolutely delicious!
Can I use bread flour instead? I have so much on hand.
Hi Bonnie, bread flour is OK to use. The bread may taste chewier and even a bit denser.
Your Grandma’s Irish soda bread just earned me “First Prize Glorified” from the All Things Irish store contest March 2, 2024. The grand prize in the Soda Bread and Scone contest. My scone entry using your base scone recipe with the addition of your recommended add in of lemon rind and food grade lavender you suggest online… the other 1st place winner for that category. Your site has moist wonderful well thought out recipe. I recommend you site to family, friends and neighbors all the time.
Thank you so much for your sweet comment, Mary Jane!
Great soda bread. Loved it
Question, baked it in cast iron pan, took it out of oven when temp was a little below 190 deg and bottom was burnt, rest of bread was perfect
Also happen with no need brea in Dutch oven
Hi Rick, I’m sorry to hear you’re having trouble with this bread. Are you using a darker-colored pan? Those can often cause baked goods to bake faster on the bottom and can give you a darker crust. Something I personally tried recently for another recipe was to place a baking sheet on the rack beneath the rack the pan was on, which seemed to help shield the bottom of the crust from the bottom heating element. You can also try decreasing the oven temperature, or moving the pan away from the heating element. Thank you again for making this Irish soda bread!
I have mini loaf pans. Each pan measures 5 1/2″ x 3″ x 2 1/4″ high and states 1 1/4 cup capacity. I am wondering how much soda bread dough per pan? Or would you recommend better to make one loaf instead? Thank you for your help.
Hi Pat, we don’t recommend a loaf pan or mini loaf pans because the loaf may not bake evenly inside. This dough is best as a flatter loaf. You can use your mini loaf pan for many of our other quick bread recipes, though.
I was taught to use the golden raisins
Some folks don’t like raisins
The golden one are plumper and less visible
You certainly use golden raisins here instead!
This recipe was so good and delicious! Just like grandma’s! We use real brown raisins because we LOVE them and do not like the yellow ones.
I am definitely making this bread in March. I love all your recipes. I made your pizza dough and my husband loved it. Thanks for all the great recipes.
This recipe sounds so easy to make.
Perfect for my 4th grade son’s heritage feastival. We made this together and loved it! He got many compliments about it at school!
this is my go-to every St. Patrick’s day! it’s so delicious. This year – SCANDAL – my local Sprouts has discontinued selling currants!! My soda bread will not be thwarted – i ordered them online and they just arrived – ready for me to make Sally’s bread!!
I am going to try the Irish soda bread for the first time, wish me luck!