Dutch Oven Irish Soda Bread
Dutch Oven Irish Soda Bread is an easy way to make quick bread without yeast or eggs. A cast iron dutch oven bakes this homemade bread perfectly, with a crispy crust on the outside and tender crumb on the inside.
Servings: 8
Calories: 208kcal
Equipment
- pastry cutter (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons cold butter
- 1 cup cold buttermilk
Instructions
Mix Ingredients
- Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk together.
- Grate cold or frozen butter into the flour mixture. Use your hands or a pastry cutter to crumble butter into flour until it resembles large peas.
- Make an indention in the flour mixture. Add buttermilk and mix until just blended. The dough should be sticky, but not too wet. If it's too dry, the loaf will fall apart. If needed, add a little more buttermilk or flour depending on the texture.
Make a Mound
- Pat dough into a ball and knead a few times to bring the dough together. You don't need to do much kneading. Just use your hands to shape it into a small mound.
- Lightly flour your work surface. Place mound of dough onto surface and pat with flour until it is in a shape that will fit into your pot.
- Grease and flour dutch oven. Place mound of dough inside. Score a deep X in the center of the dough with a sharp knife.
Bake Bread
- Bake bread in an UNCOVERED dutch oven at 425ºF for 30 minutes, or until dough reaches 190ºF with an instant-read thermometer.
- The top of the loaf should be golden brown. If not, spray loaf with cooking spray or brush with a little butter, and broil for a few minutes until the top of the bread is golden.
- Transfer loaf to a cooling rack for 5 minutes. It should pop out of the pot easily.
- Slice loaf with a serrated knife and enjoy with a dollop of butter such as Kerrygold.
Notes
- Freeze butter, or make sure it's very cold, so it will be easier to grate by hand.
- Buttermilk is a necessary ingredient to make the bread rise. If you don't have buttermilk, make a substitution by mixing 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar with 1 cup of whole milk.
- Store leftover loaves at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Baked loaves will also keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Freeze baked and cooled loaves for up to 3 months in an airtight container after wrapping well with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Thaw frozen loaves in the refrigerator overnight for best results.
- This recipe makes a smaller loaf of bread that yields 8 thin slices. It is made in a 3 quart dutch oven. (ad) If you need to make a larger loaf, double the recipe and bake bread in a 6 quart dutch oven. (ad)
- If you don't have a dutch oven, you can bake this bread on a sheet pan, in a baking pan, or in a 10 inch cast iron skillet. (ad)
- View the Google Web Story for Irish Soda Bread!
Nutrition
Calories: 208kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Sodium: 313mg | Potassium: 76mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 1mg