Easy Irish Soda Bread Recipe + Tips for the Perfect Loaf! (2024)

FAQs

How do you make Irish Soda Bread less dense? ›

If you feel like you have to knead the dough together, don't knead more than 5-6 times, max. Too much kneading will create a hard dense crumb on the bread. Rule of thumb with no yeast breads, the less kneading the softer the crumb.

But almost as good as a proofing box is taking a Mason jar filled halfway up with water, microwaving it for two minutes, then putting your bowl of dough into the microwave with the jar to rise. The other thing you can do is place your lidded container or bowl of dough into a second, larger bowl of warm water.

Reasons for an improperly leavened loaf include: You used too little sodium bicarbonate. This translates into too little CO2. Your baking soda was too old.

Note that the dough will be a little sticky, and quite shaggy (a little like a shortcake biscuit dough). You want to work it just enough so the flour is just moistened and the dough just barely comes together. Shaggy is good. If you over-work the dough the bread will end up tough.

All it takes is a small amount of dough enhancer per loaf to create a much lighter and fluffier result. Using a dough enhancer like Vital Wheat Gluten works to improve the texture and elasticity of the dough and elongate the strands of gluten. Doing so allows more room for the gas in the dough to develop and rise.

Because soda bread is not yeasted bread, kneading it just makes it dense and hard. To develop its trademark soft crumb, you touch the dough as little as possible while shaping it. If you prefer a chewier kneaded bread texture but don't want to put in all that work, try our easy No-Knead Bread recipe.

Consider vitamin C

Vitamin C strengthens the gluten in flour, which can give a better rise, and help dough to rise more quickly. You probably won't need it if you're making white bread, but if you make wholemeal bread and it doesn't rise as well as you hoped, you could try a little vitamin C next time.

The more yeast, the more gas is produced and the more quickly your dough rises. You may therefore think it best to add more yeast if you'd like to get your dough to rise as quickly as possible. However, whilst your dough may rise quickly, the dough will likely have less flavour and may even taste slightly of yeast.

These dry patches won't stretch during rising to develop an elastic dough, resulting in a dense, squat loaf – not something you want! For best results, use a non-porous, tight fitting cover such as a saucepan lid, bowl cover or even a sheet pan laid on top of the bowl, weighted down with something.

Use a sharp knife to score the top of the dough into an "X" shape about an inch deep. This is to help heat get into the dough as it bakes. Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake for 35 to 45 minutes. To check if the bread is done, when you tap the bottom of the bread it should sound hollow.

How do you know when Irish soda bread is done? ›

Bake until an instant-read thermometer registers about 200ºF when inserted into the center of the loaf, or it sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom, 30 to 45 minutes. Transfer the bread onto a wire rack and let cool for 1 to 2 hours before slicing.

Your oven is too hot if it is uncooked in the center. Try lowering the temp on your oven by 25F and extending the bake time. Don't put anything on the top of the bread to aid in browning until the last few min. of cooking, and use an instant read thermometer (target temp to pull is 190F).

This versatile bread works for any meal, but Irish soda bread is a natural for breakfast, whether simply spread with (Irish) butter and jam or alongside that hearty fry-up known as a full Irish breakfast. It's also wonderful with a cup of tea in the afternoon or as a late-night snack.

And finally, don't immediately cut into the Fast Irish Soda bread when you pull it out of the oven. Although this bread is best served warm, cutting into it too quickly will turn the bread gummy.

You don't have to wait hours or overnight for a rise, either. In fact, you don't even need to wait at all: Dough for Irish soda bread can go right into the oven after making.

Irish soda bread is an easy quick bread that has a soft, dense interior with a perfect crusty exterior. It pairs well with a nice hearty meal or as a side to a traditional Irish celebration.

Getting the amount of flour right is vital due to the high flour ratio to the other bread ingredients. Measuring one or two tablespoons too much per cup (easy to do) can cause your bread to be dense.

Chances are good that the bread you ate suffered from one of three common problems: improper amount of baking soda (a gross, salty-bitter taste), over cooking (a dry, chalky texture), or undercooking (a soggy, doughy center).

Irish soda bread is simple to prepare bread that uses baking soda as a leavening agent to help it rise. It has few ingredients and bakes in under 45 minutes for an incredibly flavorful loaf. Soda bread typically is very dense and heavy, which will fill you up quickly.