Super Simple Irish Soda Bread

Name: Super Simple Irish Soda Bread
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: 4 cup All-Purpose Flour (4 cups (510 g) all-purpose flour, see notes below for making it whole grain + flour); 2 tsp Kosher Salt (2 teaspoons (12 g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt, see notes above); 1 tbsp Granulated Sugar (1 tablespoon (13 g) sugar); 1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda (1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda); 1 cup Currants (1 cup dried currants, optional) — optional; 1 piece Egg (1 egg); 1 ¾ cup Buttermilk (1¾ cups (410 g) buttermilk, see notes above); 2 tbsp Butter (2 tablespoons melted butter + room temperature butter)

Super Simple Irish Soda Bread - Bread (European)

45 minEuropean

Servings1

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Vegetarian
Pescatarian
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Steps

1Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Whisk together the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and currants (if using).
2In a medium bowl, beat the egg and buttermilk. Add the melted butter and stir to combine. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until combined. Mixture will be sticky. Grease a 9- or 10-inch cast iron skillet (or other similarly sized oven-safe vessel) with softened butter. Set aside.
3Lightly flour your hands and sprinkle a little flour over the sticky dough ball. Use your hands to scrape the dough from the sides of the bowl and to quickly shape the mass into a ball, kneading lightly if necessary. Transfer to prepared skillet. Sprinkle with a teensy bit more flour. Use a sharp knife to make an X across the top of the dough ball. Place in oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until lightly golden and bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from oven, transfer to cooling rack, and let cool for 15 minutes before slicing.
4To store Irish soda bread, tuck it into an airtight bag (such as a ziplock) or an airtight vessel. You can store it at room temperature for about 3-4 days or freeze it for up to 2-3 months.