Irish soda bread is a reliable anytime-food, but its especially apt for celebrating St. Patricks Day.
Breads can be separated into two categories of leavening: slow breads and quick breads.
(No one really calls them slow breads, but for now we can.)
Quick breads are leavened with a chemical leavener, usually baking powder or baking soda.
(You get one guess on which leavener Irish soda bread uses.)
The speed with which baking soda works can lead to some common problems.
Why is my soda bread flat?
The easiest way to tell if your Irish soda bread is flat is to look at it.
The following are the most common reasons your soda bread might be flat.
You might be overworking the dough.
This carbon dioxide party is limited.
Avoid a flat soda bread with a couple simple moves.
Keep your mix time quick.
Be sure to have your pan ready.
You may need a different cooking vessel.
Most breads benefit from an initially humid baking environment.
Take the lid off for the last 15 or so minutes and brown the top of the bread.
you gotta preheat the damn oven.
I dont want to say more, but I will.
The carbon dioxide bubbles are popping and they wont come back.
Why is my bread tough?
There are around four or five ingredients in Irish soda bread.
The texture of the bread will be largely affected by the ingredient combination and how you mix the dough.
The baking soda is responsible for the rise, which also affects the texture.
Here are the most common reasons your soda bread is coming out tough.
You might be over-mixing.
Bakers annoyingly harp on over-mixing and overworking dough for a reason (or a couple reasons).
Over-mixing the dough can lead to developing strong, rubbery gluten strands and deflating bubbles, which weve discussed.
This inhibits rise, but also dictates if the crumb will be tough or tender.
Like I mentioned earlier, keep the mixing quick and be gentle.
Irish soda bread shouldnt look like a perfect, shiny ball of dough before it hits the oven.
This is your chance to practice rustic-chic.
Its okay to leave some scraggly looking dry pieces on the dough.
Score it with a knife and get it in the oven.
It will bake up beautifully.
You might not have an acid to react with the baking soda.
A weak reaction from your leavening agent can lead to a tough, dense crumb.
Most Irish soda bread recipes will use buttermilk or yogurt to trigger the baking soda.
Check the recipe to see if youre using an acidic liquid.
I hate raisins, so I hate Irish soda bread.
I hear you, raisin haters.
Theres this idea lurking about that all Irish soda bread must be studded with yucky raisins.
Its a big lie.
Find a recipe, and swap out the raisin for the same amount of something you actually like.
you’ve got the option to also omit inclusions entirely, and leave it plain.
Avoiding that is easy; simply use dry fruit or pre-cook the meats and veg.
Now go forth, and take your soda bread know-how to the nearest kitchen.
