Irish Soda Bread (no yeast & no rising)

An easy Irish Soda bread full of flavor without the use of buttermilk or yeast. Easy to make!

Irish soda bread doesn’t require yeast or any loaf pan. It might be the BEST bread for beginning bread bakers. Heck, it is one of my personal faves to make because it is so darn easy!

Fair warning, the dough for soda bread is WET when you turn it out to knead. That is perfectly normal. You are going to get messy fingers…embrace it!

Why is there an X in the top of Irish Soda bread?

It depends on who you ask. Legend says that it is to allow all the fairies to escape. Truthfully, it is to allow the bread to properly expand and bake the interior.

I like the fairy reason best, though.

Full disclosure…I forgot to add the X to this loaf until about 1/2 way through the baking. FAILURE! I’ll for sure be baking this bread again, properly, and changing out the pictures of the finished loaf. Did it still taste good? You BET it did! This is a bread recipe that can’t be screwed up very easily!

Can I add raisins to this recipe?

Of course! I recommend putting 1 cup of raisin in a bowl and covering with water right when you start the bread. Drain and add the raisins to the dough after you have starting kneading it and it just starts to come together and no be super sticky.

Irish Soda Bread (without buttermilk)

| 12 slices

Prep Time | 15 minutes mins

Cook Time | 30 minutes mins

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An easy and tasty Irish Soda bread without the use of buttermilk, yeast, or specific pans.

Ingredients

 

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• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Check out our Kitchen Reference Guide for help with unfamiliar terms.

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Grease a baking sheet, set aside.
• Mix the milk and vinegar together, set aside to curdle while you continue.
• In a large bowl add the flour, sugar, salt, and soda together. Stir gently.
• When the milk has curdled (about 8-10 minutes) slowly add it to the flour mixture, stir gently to work it in.
• Stop mixing just when the milk has been worked in (the dough will be wet) and turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface.
• Knead the dough until a soft dough has formed and can be shaped into a large ball-shaped loaf. (reminder…the dough will be very wet and hard to work, at first!)
• Keeping a sharp knife floured, cut a X shape into the top of your dough.
• Place the dough ball on to your greased baking sheet.
• Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 93kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 3gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 152mgPotassium: 49mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 33IUCalcium: 26mgIron: 1mg