High protein flour is not needed for this bread as the texture is described as being “moist and crumbly”. Bread stone bread does not have to be kneaded and bakers caution that kneading can toughen the dough. Buttermilk or sour milk is traditionally the liquid ingredient due to its reaction with the soda.
Some recipes may add olive oil or eggs, or sweeteners like molasses, sugar, treacle, or honey, but these are not part of the basic recipe. Traditional Irish bread was historically cooked on a griddle as flatbread because the domestic flours did not have the properties needed to rise effectively when combined with yeast. Baking soda offered an alternative, but its popularity declined for a time when imported high-gluten flours became available. Various forms of soda bread are popular throughout Ireland. Soda breads are made using wholemeal, white flour, or both. In Ulster, the wholemeal variety is usually known as wheaten bread and is normally sweetened, while the term “soda bread” is restricted to the white savoury form. In the southern provinces of Ireland, the wholemeal variety is usually known as brown bread and is almost identical to the Ulster wheaten.
