Crusty and golden outside, this easy gluten-free Irish soda bread has a dense, tight crumb and is perfect for spreading with jam. No yeast or rising time is required to make this delicious gluten-free bread, which is completely dairy-free and vegan too! Bake a loaf or two and freeze to enjoy homemade bread on St. Patrick’s day or for anytime!
There’s just something about homemade bread that makes me feel all fuzzy inside. Nothing beats pulling out a freshly-baked loaf of bread from the oven and slicing into it, and then taking a big bite of bread that you’ve baked with your own hands.
While I certainly love baking yeast breads – from my soft, fluffy gluten-free bread, to soft gluten-free dinner rolls, to gluten-free pizza crust, and our recent favorite buckwheat bread, I’ll admit that sometimes I don’t always have the time or patience to wait for the dough to rise.
Gluten Free Raisin Soda Bread
Sometimes, I just want to mix the dough together, and put it into the oven to bake. Which often means making a quick yeast-free bread that doesn’t require any rising time.
If you aren’t familiar with the term “Irish soda bread”, it basically refers to a type of quick bread that uses baking soda (or “bread soda” as the Irish call it) for leavening instead of the traditional yeast.
Because it doesn’t require yeast, and hence no rising time is required, soda bread can be prepared quickly and easily. Not using yeast also results in the characteristic dense and hearty texture that we love about this bread.
Gluten Free Brown Soda Bread
Fun fact: Soda bread is most famously attributed to the Irish, but it was in fact first developed by the North Americans, but later replicated and adopted by the Irish.
Soda bread may take on many forms, but one of the most common forms of this dense bread is a rounded shape with a cross cut on top of the dough, which is not only for the traditional look of soda bread, which was thought to ward off evil spirits.
Additionally, the scoring of the bread also has a wonderful baking benefit. Since the dough is shaped into a round ball, the center tends to be thicker and takes longer to bake compared to the sides of the ball (and will take much longer to cook).
Gluten Free Seeded Soda Bread
By cutting a cross in the middle of the dough, it allows the heat to reach the middle of the dough, allowing the dough to expand and bake more evenly as it cooks.
Here’s a quick chemistry lesson for those interested: Since baking soda is alkaline in nature (sodium bicarbonate), it is necessary for an acid to be present in the ingredients so that upon reaction with the baking soda, tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide will be formed, and these bubbles are what will result in the leavening of this soda bread.
Typically, buttermilk is used as the liquid in making traditional soda bread because it contains lactic acid that will react with the baking soda. However, any acid will work too.
Savory Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread
I wanted to create a gluten free Irish soda bread recipe that was both dairy-free and vegan, and in turns out that it’s actually easier than it sounds!
Instead of using normal buttermilk, I’ve used a combination of non-dairy almond milk and lemon juice. I’ve also added a bit of baking powder in addition to the baking soda to help give the bread a bit more rise.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum (if using), sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk well.
Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread: Super Easy Recipe!
Add the solid coconut oil to the flour mixture and press it into the flour with the back of a fork or a pastry cutter until all the coconut oil is incorporated (it will look like the texture of sand).
Add the almond milk and lemon juice, mixing until you get a sticky dough that you can shape into a round loaf (the dough will be wet and shaggy but it’s completely fine).
(Tip: A cast iron pan is recommended as cast iron retains heat well and will ensure that the bottom of the loaf turns out crusty, but if you don’t have a cast iron pan, a baking sheet, cookie sheet or a round cake pan will work fine too).
Classic Irish Soda Bread (gluten Free)
Let bread bake in the preheated oven for 55 minutes to 1 hour until golden brown and crusty on top and the loaf sounds hollow when you knock on it.
To freeze, cover the cooled gluten-free Irish bread in plastic wrap or afreezer-safe airtight containerorziplock bagand freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the bread to thaw completely overnight before slicing into it and toasting.
A traditional Irish soda bread recipe usually contains wheat flour (which has gluten), so most store-bought Irish soda breads probably contain gluten and are not safe for Celiacs or those who are gluten-intolerant (unless the loaf is specified to be gluten-free).
Buckwheat Soda Bread
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Crusty and golden outside, soft and tender inside, this easy gluten-free Irish soda bread has a dense, tight crumb and is perfect for spreading with jam. No yeast or rising time is required to make this delicious gluten-free soda bread, which is completely dairy-free and vegan too! Bake a loaf or two and freeze to enjoy homemade bread anytime!
Gluten-Free Flour Blend: I highly recommend using a good quality gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that is made up of lighter flours and starches such as rice flour, corn starch, potato starch and tapioca starch (this will ensure you get a lighter texture). I do NOT recommend using a flour blend that includes heavier flours such as garbanzo bean flour as that will result in a denser final texture.
Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Xanthan Gum: Xanthan gum is the replacement for gluten in gluten-free flours. If your gluten-free flour blend does not include xanthan gum, make sure to include this in the mixture.
Sugar: I like having a bit of sweetness in this bread, but if you prefer your bread not to be sweet, you can simply leave it out. I used granulated white sugar, but you may also use light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, or coconut sugar if you prefer (note that the darker sugars will make the dough and the insides of the soda bread slightly darker in color). If you are diabetic or insulin-resistant, I highly recommend using granulated monkfruit sweetener (a 1:1 sugar substitute that is zero glycemic-index and will not raise your blood sugar).
Baking Soda: Since this is soda bread, we definitely need to include baking soda, so make sure you don’t leave it out.
Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread Recipe Recipe
Baking Powder: I like adding a bit of baking powder to help the dough rise a little more. If you are Celiac or have gluten intolerances, make sure you use certified gluten-free baking powder.
Coconut Oil: I like using refined coconut oil for baking as it has a neutral taste and flavor (as opposed to extra virgin coconut oil that has a more pronounced coconut smell and taste). Make sure your coconut oil is solid before incorporating it into the flour mixture. If your coconut oil is liquid, let it sit for 15 minutes in the freezer and it will turn solid. If you are not lactose-intolerant or vegan, feel free to use normal dairy butter instead.
Almond Milk: I like using my 5-minute homemade almond milk. You can also use other non-dairy milks such as cashew milk, tigernut milk, rice milk, coconut milk, soy milk, or sunflower seed milk. Alternatively, if you are not lactose-intolerant, you can use normal dairy milk.
Easy Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Lemon Juice: In this case, lemon juice is required as an acid to react with baking soda to form bubbles of air that will create the leavening effect. If you don’t have lemon juice, you can also use another acid such as apple cider vinegar or white vinegar in equal quantities.
Cast Iron Skillet: I highly recommend baking the loaf in a cast iron skillet because it ensures that the bottom of the loaf turns out crust and brown too (since cast iron can retain heat very well).
Storing/Freezing: To store the bread, cover it with plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 5 days. To freeze, cover the cooled bread in plastic wrap or a freezer-safe airtight container or ziplock bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the bread to thaw completely overnight before slicing into it and toasting.
Gluten Free Bread Recipe
This recipe was originally posted in March 2021, but has since been republished to include clearer step-by-step instructions, as well as recipe notes and substitutions.
Hey you! I’m Felicia, a Singaporean girl who moved to Buenos Aires for love. A couple of things about me: I love food, writing and food photography. I wrote a grain-free ecookbook
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