Irish wheaten bread

Name: Irish wheaten bread
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 2 h
Ingredients: 300 g whole-wheat flour; 150 g all-purpose flour; 30 g rolled oats; 1 tsp baking soda; 1 tsp salt; 1 tbsp brown sugar; 25 g butter, cold, diced; 450 ml buttermilk; 1 tbsp molasses (optional)

Vegetarian

A moist, nutty brown soda bread baked in a loaf tin, made with coarse wholemeal, oats and buttermilk with a touch of treacle — no yeast and no kneading.

Irish wheaten bread is an Irish bread from United Kingdom, ready in about 2 hours and made with whole-wheat flour, baking soda and buttermilk. It serves 12 and is rated beginner to cook.

Start cooking

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Prep: 10 min
Cook: 50 min
Rest: 1 h
Total: 2 h
Serves: 12
Level: Beginner
Calories: 175

Ingredients

12 slices

300 g Whole-wheat flour (opens in a new tab)Coarse stoneground wholemeal is traditional.Contains wheat, gluten
150 g All-purpose flour (opens in a new tab)Contains wheat, gluten
30 g Rolled oats (opens in a new tab)Plus a little for the top.Contains gluten
1 tsp (4.5 g) Baking soda (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (6 g) Salt (opens in a new tab)
1 tbsp (14 g) Brown sugar (opens in a new tab)
25 g Butter (opens in a new tab), cold, dicedSwap: Plant-based butterContains milk
450 ml Buttermilk (opens in a new tab)Contains milk
1 tbsp (21 g) Molasses (opens in a new tab) (optional)Black treacle, for colour and depth.

Equipment

Method

1
Step 1
Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 200 °C (fan 180 °C). Grease and line a 900 g (2 lb) loaf tin (opens in a new tab).
- 2 min
- 200°C · fan 180 °C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
- Loaf tin (opens in a new tab)
2
Step 2
In a bowl, combine both flours, oats (opens in a new tab), bicarbonate of soda (opens in a new tab), salt and sugar. Rub in the butter (opens in a new tab) with your fingertips.
- 4 min
- Mixing bowl (opens in a new tab)
3
Step 3
Whisk the treacle (opens in a new tab) into the buttermilk (opens in a new tab), pour it in and stir just until you have a soft, wet, porridge-like dough — don't knead or overmix.
- 2 min
How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels
4
Step 4
Scrape into the tin, level, scatter with oats (opens in a new tab) and cut a shallow line down the centre. Bake 45–50 minutes until risen and brown; it should sound hollow when turned out and tapped, and a skewer should come out clean.
- 50 min
- 200°C · fan 180 °C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels
5
Step 5
Cool on a rack, wrapped in a tea towel for a softer crust, for at least an hour.
- Cooling rack (opens in a new tab)

About this dish

Origin: Northern Ireland, United Kingdom · Commonly attributed'Wheaten' is the usual Northern Irish name; similar brown soda breads are baked throughout Ireland.Also popular in IrelandMore food from United Kingdom
Dish: Breakfast · Lunch · Breads & flatbreads
Cooking method: Oven-baked
Taste: nutty, tangy, sweet
Diet: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · DASH-style
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Budget-friendly · Everyday · Freezer-friendly
Cook more with: Whole-wheat flour · Baking soda · Buttermilk · All-purpose flour · Rolled oats · Brown sugar
Techniques: Baking · Kneading · Fermentation

Allergens

Contains: Milkfrom butter, buttermilk
Contains: Wheatfrom whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour
Contains: Glutenfrom whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, rolled oats

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

175 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 75 g · recipe makes 12

Where the energy comes from

Protein 14%
Carbohydrate 71%
Fat 15%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g
Energy	175 kcal	233 kcal
Protein	6.2 g	8.3 g
Carbohydrate	32.2 g	42.9 g
Net carbohydrate	28.9 g	38.6 g
Sugars	3.3 g	4.5 g
Added sugars	1.1 g	1.5 g
Fibre	3.3 g	4.4 g
Fat	3 g	4 g
Saturated fat	1.5 g	2 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	6 mg	8 mg
Sodium	373 mg	497 mg
Salt equivalent	0.9 g	1.2 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 174 mg
Calcium: 58 mg
Iron: 1.6 mg
Magnesium: 45 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 20 µg
Vitamin C: 0 mg
Vitamin D: 0 µg
Vitamin B12: 0.1 µg
Folate (DFE): 50 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
Optional ingredients are not included: molasses.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Get it into the oven as soon as it's mixed — the soda starts working immediately.

Common mistakes

Adding too little buttermilk: wheaten dough should be much wetter than white soda bread.

Serve with

With butter and smoked salmon, cheese, or alongside seafood chowder.

Storage

Keeps 3 days wrapped. Freezes well.

Reheating

Toast slices.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 29 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Compare with

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Whole-wheat flour300 g
All-purpose flour150 g
Rolled oats30 g
Butter, cold, diced25 g
Buttermilk450 ml · 464 g

Used in steps 2, 3

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

Mix and knead · about 10 min
Mix only until no dry flour remains — overmixing makes it tough and tunnelled.
Bake · about 50 min at 200 °C
Risen and golden; a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs; the top springs back.
Cool · about 1 h
Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.
Start to finish: about 2 h. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
Ingredient	Role	Weight	Baker’s %
Whole-wheat flour	Flour	300 g	66.7%
All-purpose flour	Flour	150 g	33.3%
Rolled oats	Other	30 g	6.7%
Butter	Fat	25 g	5.6%
Brown sugar	Sugar	14 g	3.1%
Salt	Salt	6 g	1.3%
Baking soda	Raising agent	5 g	1%

Total flour: 450 g
Hydration: —
With milk, eggs…: 0%
Wholegrain: 66.7%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

Salt 1.3% — on the low side (1.8–2.2% is typical for bread).
66.7% wholegrain — absorbs more water and gives a denser, nuttier loaf.

If something goes wrong

Gummy or wet crumb
Likely causes
- Under-baked
- Sliced while hot
- Hydration too high for the flour
What to do
- Bake to 93–96 °C inside (cakes: clean skewer)
- Cool completely on a rack before slicing
- Reduce water by 3–5% or use a stronger flour
Collapsed or sunken middle
Likely causes
- Oven door opened too early
- Too much leavening or sugar
- Under-baked centre
- Over-proofed yeast dough
What to do
- Don't open the oven for the first two-thirds of baking
- Measure leaveners exactly with spoons, levelled
- Test the centre before removing
- Proof less
Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Crust too hard or thick
Likely causes
- Baked too long at too low a temperature
- No steam at the start
What to do
- Bake hotter for a shorter time
- Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
- Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust
Big holes or tunnels
Likely causes
- Overmixed batter (cakes, muffins)
- Air trapped while shaping bread
- Uneven proof
What to do
- Mix quick breads only until no dry flour shows
- Degas gently and shape tightly
- Proof covered in an even, warm place
Dry or crumbly
Likely causes
- Too much flour (scooped, not weighed)
- Over-baked
- Too little fat or sugar
What to do
- Weigh flour, or spoon it into the cup and level
- Check 5 minutes early
- Don't cut fat or sugar by more than a quarter without another moisture source

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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