a picture of sliced soda bread, with smoked salmon and lemon wedges on a marble block

Traditional Irish Soda Bread

40 minutes

Vegetarian

This recipe is from Delia's Complete Cookery Course.

This is the real thing - proper Irish bread.

As it bakes in the oven and the aroma reaches you, close your eyes, picture the beauty of the Irish landscape and dream you're there. It's heaven just spread generously with butter and good jam, or, now that we can buy good Irish cheeses, a chunk of Cashel Blue or Milleens with this bread, as well as a glass of Murphy's or Guinness, will give you a little taste of that wonderful country, even though you're not there.

The Delia Online Cookery School: You can now watch how to make Traditional Irish Soda Bread in our Bread for Beginners Video, just click the image to play.

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Method

This could not be easier.

Begin by placing the dry ingredients in a large roomy bowl, mix to combine, then add the buttermilk followed by the water. Start mixing; first with a spatula then finish off with your hands, to form a soft dough. All you do now is shape the dough into a ball, adding a dusting of flour if needed and place it on the baking sheet and pat it down a little.

Cut a third of the way through the loaf with a sharp serrated knife, one way, then do the same the other way, forming a cut cross which will form the loaf into four crusty sections. Then dust with flour and bake straightaway in the centre of the oven for 40 minutes then cool it on a wire rack.

This has a wonderful crust when eaten fresh but the next day it stays beautifully moist and makes excellent toast.