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.
Recipe by Sally on March 11, 2019
Prep time: PT10M
Cook time: PT45M
Total time: PT55M
Rating
4.8 stars ( reviews)
Keywords
Irish soda bread
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
Categories
Bread
Cuisine
Irish
Steps
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.
Reviews
Vita on 2025-03-30 (5 stars): Absolutely perfect, it was the star at dinner, everyone loved it.
I followed all the steps to the letter, including chopping up butter into small dice and putting it into the freezer for 20 mins.
Thank you for this fantastic recipe.
Jamie on 2025-04-08 (2 stars): Easy and quick to put together, but I agree with another comment that said this bread was too dry. (Everything was weighed and the internal temp was taken.) It was just way too dry and hard crust. Wouldn’t make it again unfortunately.
Glenn on 2025-04-11 (5 stars): Have made this several times because it's now by favorite bread recipe. Add grated cheese and sun dried tomatoes for added kick.
MKM on 2025-04-20 (5 stars): Wow! This is the best Irish soda bread recipe yet! I added dried cranberries instead of raisins and chopped pecans. Next time I will add some cinnamon and orange zest. I did have a time trying to make a ball but I got it into a Dutch oven and had a beautiful perfect loaf in 43 minutes!
Matt on 2025-06-19 (5 stars): We signed up to make Irish soda bread for my daughters graduation despite having never done so, and with very little baking experience on my end. I found this recipe and made it twice in 2 days and both times it turned out awesome. Followed the steps and the measurements and it was super easy. Thanks!
Shannon on 2025-06-27 (5 stars): I absolutely LOVE this soda bread and always make it with the raisins and egg -- but I find that no matter which brand of bread flour I use, I never need all of the buttermilk. I start with less buttermilk before whisking in the egg, figuring I can always add more if needed. Just mentioning it in response to several comments about the dough being too sticky and needing to add so much more flour. Thank you for sharing such a treasured recipe.
Soda bread fan on 2025-07-03 (5 stars): I like this recipe a lot! The flavor and texture are really good. Do you have any tips for not burning the raisins? It seems like every time I make it there will be a few raisins on the edge that are touching the bottom of the pan and wind up very acrid.
