Guinness Brown Soda Bread Recipe

April 3, 2022By 1

This Guinness brown soda bread recipe is an Irish classic. Brown soda bread is a non yeasted bread that gets it’s rise from the reaction between baking soda and the acidity of the buttermilk and doesn’t require any time to ferment or rise. It has a signature crunchy crust and a soft, almost cake like crumb. This Guinness brown soda bread is enriched further with brown sugar, oats and Guinness for extra flavour.

So how do I make this Guinness Brown Soda Bread from scratch?

This Guinness Brown Soda Bread comes together really easily and simply. To begin, add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Whisk them together briefly to break up any lumps. In a separate bowl or jug, add the liquids and whisk briskly together. Pour the liquid into the large mixing bowl. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix everything together until no flour or dry lumps remain. Grease the entire loaf tin and line the bottom of the tin. Transfer the brown bread into the loaf tin and spread over evenly. Sprinkle over a small handful of oats. Dip or coat your metal spatula/knife in oil and make a cut straight down the middle. Bake for 40-50 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean You can also check if the bread is done by removing it from the tin and checking the bottom. If the bottom is dry and has small air holes, it’s ready to take out of the oven.

How long does Brown Soda Bread last?

Brown soda bread is incredibly soft and has a great shelf life. Once fully cooled down, and leftover should be tightly wrapped in cling film or beeswax wraps or placed int an airtight container. Brown bread can lat for up for 5 days if stored correctly at room temperature.

How do I eat this brown soda bread?

There’s a number of ways you can eat brown bread. You can eat it still warm with a simple add of salted Irish butter. Slices of brown bread is also delicious toasted with butter or cheese or jam. It also makes a delicious lunch topped with coleslaw or make it fancy by adding a fish pate or smoked salmon and cream cheese.

What kind of Stout should I use for this?

I used Guinness for this brown soda bread but you can use any other high quality stout. Some popular Irish stouts include: O’Haras Irish StoutMurphysBlack Rock Irish Stout.

What can I use instead of Guinness?

If you don’t have any Guinness or stout you can use beer instead. If you want to leave out the alcohol completely, you can just replace with buttermilk.

Do you have some Guinness still leftover? Why not check out this Chocolate Guinness Cake Recipe.

For more Bread recipes, check out my Bread category, here.

Maybe you’re interested in Breakfast Recipes? Take a peek at my Breakfast Category, here.

Guinness Brown Soda Bread

pinkhairedpastrychef
Irish brown soda bread flavoured with Guinness. A soft crumb with a crunchy crust.
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 50 mins
Total Time 1 hr
Course Bread
Cuisine Irish
Servings 1 loaf
Calories 2502 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Large mixing bowl
  • 1 mixing jug or medium sized bowl
  • 1 Whisk
  • 1 Rubber Spatula or Wooden Spoon
  • 1 Loaf tin
  • 1 metal spatula/burger flipper/rectangle cake slice/knife

Ingredients
  

  • 250 grams wholemeal flour
  • 60 grams plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda 5 grams
  • 1 tsp salt 5 grams
  • 30 grams dark brown sugar
  • 60 grams oats plus small handful for decoration
  • 150 grams Guinness or Stout
  • 200 grams buttermilk
  • 30 grams plain vegetable oil

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 180°c (360°c) or 170°c(340°f).
  • Add the flours, baking soda, salt, brown sugar and oats to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together to break up any lumps.
  • In a jug, add the oil, buttermilk and stout and whisk together.
  • Pour into the mixing bowl and using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix together until no dry bits remain.
  • Transfer into a greased and lined loaf tin and smooth the top evenly.
  • Sprinkle over a small handful of oats.
  • Dip or coat your metal spatula/burger flipper/knife into oil and make a slice down through the centre of the bread longways. See pictures above for reference.
  • Place into the preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean and when you remove the bread from the tin, the bottom of it is dry and has some small air holes in it.

Notes

The calorie information is an estimate provided as a courtesy based off the website https://caloriecontrol.org/healthy-weight-tool-kit/food-calorie-calculator/. It will differ depending on the specific brands and ingredients that you use.
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