Ingredients:
- 4 cups All-Purpose Flour (Plain Flour), plus extra for dusting
- 1 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda (Bicarbonate of Soda)
- 2 tablespoons Granulated Sugar (optional)
- 4 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, chilled and cubed
- 1 ¾ cups Full-Fat Buttermilk (at room temperature)
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a standard baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In the large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and sugar (if using). Ensure the baking soda is evenly distributed; this is essential for a good rise.
- Add the cold, cubed butter to the dry ingredients. Use a pastry blender or your fingertips to quickly cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs, like dry oatmeal. Work quickly to keep the butter cold.
- Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Pour in the buttermilk all at once. Using a fork or a wooden spoon, quickly and lightly mix the ingredients together until they just barely come together into a shaggy, wet dough. Stop mixing the moment the dry flour disappears (to avoid developing gluten).
- Lightly flour a clean work surface. Turn the dough out and gently pat and form the dough into a round disc, roughly 7-8 inches (18-20 cm) in diameter. Do not knead. Transfer the round loaf onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Using a sharp knife, cut a deep 'X' (cross) into the top of the loaf, extending almost to the edges and about halfway down the depth of the dough. This allows the heat to penetrate the thick dough.
- Place the loaf in the centre of the preheated oven. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. The bread is done when the crust is deep golden brown and sounds truly hollow when tapped on the bottom. If the top is browning too quickly, loosely tent it with aluminium foil for the last 10-15 minutes.
- Transfer the baked loaf immediately to a wire rack to cool completely. Soda bread is traditionally best eaten the day it is made.