Soda Bread: heat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas 6
6oz/170g self-raising wholemeal flour.
6oz/170g plain flour.
half a teaspoon of salt.
half a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda.
290 ml/ half a pint of buttermilk.
1. Tip the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl and mix together.
2. Make a well in the centre and pour in the buttermilk, mixing quickly with a large fork to form a soft dough. Depending on the absorbency of the flour you may have to add a wee bit more ordinary milk, if the dough seems a bit stiff, but it shouldn’t be too wet or sticky.
3. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly.
4. Form into a round and flatten the dough slightly before placing on a lightly floured baking tray.
5. Cut a cross on the top and bake for 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow.
I really liked the flavour of this bread but I think I need to fine tune the recipe a wee bit for my oven. The next time I’ll try baking it at Gas 5 for a longer time because the centre of my loaf was too doughy and obviously needed a bit more baking. I think my ovens are quite fierce, the thermostats don’t seem to be quite right so I often have to adjust baking times. I’m also going to try baking it in a bread tin as I prefer rectangular bread.
I’ve always loved soda bread, it’s very popular in the west of Scotland but for some reason the bakers in the east of Scotland didn’t sell it when we first moved here. They might sell it now, I gave up looking for it. I’ve been meaning to make it myself for years and only got around to it for the first time last week. I want to make more bread but my previous attempts have been dismal failures – doorstops spring to mind!
So I was interested in what Paul Hollywood was saying about bread making on the Great British Bake Off and I think I’ve been using the wrong sort of yeast. Different yeast has been purchased so I’ll be having another go later in the week. Fingers crossed that the poor birds don’t have to bounce their beaks off another disaster!
Following Paul Hollywood’s video I’m going to try making this bread later in the week.
I love soda bread! First encountered in Ireland, when I was a wee thing, I took an immediate liking to it! When I did B&B in Peebles, I often made soda bread for the guests. I used to use berrymeal but you can’t get that now. Pity! It was lovely. One overseas guest wrote in my guest book – …..The cake was very nice.
I must try your recipe!
Evee,
That makes me think that it was sold in the west because of the high number of people who moved there from Ireland. I haven’t even heard of berrymeal!! I’m reading Priorsford now so I’m an inhabitant of Peebles at the moment.
I’m on a bread jag right now! I will try this too. My last soda bread went into the trash. It was a recipe from Jason O’Mara an Irish actor who has immigrated here to the US. Thought it would be good. Oh well. I made it once and it was really good but can’t remember which recipe now that I used. Have way too many!
Peggy Ann,
I hope it works out for you. I’ve taken to marking recipes in pencil now because sometimes I can’t remember what they were like after a while, if I’ve only used them once. Sometimes I wonder if the recipes are really tried and tested – or are just something to fill up a book!
I have to admit I do not think I have ever eaten Soda Bread. I ave yet to make any sort of bread but inspired by The Great British Bake Off programme to make all sorts of things!
Jo,
I would love to be able to make good bread, maybe the answer is to buy one of those breadmaker things. I’m going to give it another go with the different yeast first. The GBBO makes me think I should try baking more ‘classic’ things, like they did, rather than trying out all sorts of different random recipes!