Last weekend I made my first ever soda bread. And it was a disaster!
Turns out there's a difference between baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Basically it barely rose and was very dense.
Forever wanting to learn from my mistakes I found a different recipe and the right ingredients and tried again yesterday morning. And I nailed it! I don't often feel too homesick for Ireland, but this really took me back to my grandfathers table for breakfast. It tastes very different to anything I've found outside of Ireland so I'm glad I can now make it for myself in not much time at all!
As a scientist, I know I have to reference my sources. This protocol is adapted from the BBC Goodfoods Irish Soda Bread recipe and Bigger Bolder Baking with some small changes.
Preheat your oven to 220 C - the rest doesn't take too long and should be ready as the oven is.
Dry ingredients - mixed together
- 260 g whole wheat flour
- 260 g white / all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 35 g butter (unsalted ideally)
- 1 teaspoon table salt
Wet ingredients - mixed, then poured into dry
- 400 ml butter milk
- 1 egg
When it is all mixed together, don't over kneed it. It shouldn't be too sticky and if it is you may need to add more flour as I had to. Make a rough form on a floured baking sheet. Flatten to about 3-4 cm thick evenly and score the top deeply. Apparently this helps even cooking but I'm no expert! This loaf will rise as it bakes as you'll see in my photos.
At this point you can do something a bit fun. Taking the little bit of leftover buttermilk/egg, spread it over the surface of your dough form, then sprinkle some oats or seeds onto the surface. This will help in browning the crust and give it some flavour.
Place into your pre-heated oven (220 C) for 15 min then, without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 200 C for an additional 30 minutes. After it cools slice and enjoy with a large spread of butter.
Other things to try
I am really proud how this one came out. I'm usually more of a helper in the kitchen rather than doing things on my own. I think for the next one, I would add some oats or seeds into the dry mix. Maybe that's not as traditional, but I can make my own Irish traditions out in Austria.
