Make a loaf of this delicious Irish brown bread recipe for your St. Patrick’s Day feast! A hearty quickbread made from whole wheat flour with sweet and malted flavors. Each tender slice pairs perfectly with corned beef and cabbage.
Recipe Science
- Irish brown bread utilizes baking soda as a leavening agent, which reacts with the acidity in buttermilk to produce carbon dioxide, creating a rise and giving the bread its characteristic texture.
- Using coarse whole-grain wheat flour in the bread introduces a rich, earthy flavor and a hearty texture, enhancing the traditional rustic appeal.
- Baking at a consistent temperature ensures even cooking, allowing the bread to develop a crusty exterior while the interior remains soft and moist.
Jump To a Section
Featured Comment 26
“Amazing—easy and delicious. I made a double batch and it tastes even better than the brown bread we had last week in Ireland!”—Kathryn
Why It Works
I bake a traditional loaf of Irish soda bread yearly to serve at my family’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration. But to switch things up occasionally, I make delicious Irish brown bread, which has become a popular request. The good news is it’s still quick and easy to prepare and made using baking soda.
Instead of using all-purpose flour, whole wheat adds a more hearty and nutty taste. I use a combination of ingredients to add a hint of sweetness and malty flavor to each slice. It’s also great to serve for breakfast, especially toasted with creamy butter and corned beef hash.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Flour: I skip the white flour and use all whole wheat flour. The slightly high protein content, 13 to 14%, and ground bran give a dense, heartier bread.
- Oats: A small amount of old-fashioned rolled adds a slight chewiness and nutty flavor.
- Leavening Agent: Baking soda gives the quick bread instant rise for a stunning domed top.
- Salt: Kosher salt helps to enhance the flavor.
- Butter: To add tenderness and fat to the bread. It prevents a dry crumb, just like making Irish soda bread.
- Sweeteners: To add sweetness, mix in some dark brown sugar. It also acts as a humectant, keeping the bread soft for nearly a week! Molasses add sweetness and a darker brown hue.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk adds tanginess to the bread, and the acid helps to activate the baking soda, giving the bread rise as it bakes.
- Beer: Add in Guinness Irish dry stout. The malted and roasted barley, hops, and yeast add incredible flavor, dimension, and aroma to the bread. Quickbreads tend to lack the flavor that yeast bread has due to the fermentation of the yeast. Adding in the beer provides that taste without the time required to develop it.
See the recipe card below for all ingredients and measurements (US and metric).
Ingredient Substitutions
Now you know how to make Irish brown bread, try these simple ways to switch up the flavors.
- Flour: Try spelt, sprouted whole wheat flour, or eikorn. Use whole grain gluten-free options for any dietary restrictions.
- Oats: Quick oats or instant oats are good substitutes.
- Sweetener: Pure maple syrup or honey can be used instead of molasses; however, this will make the loaf lighter in color.
- Beer: Other dry stouts, such as Beamish, O’Hara’s, or Murphy’s, can be used. If needed, use a gluten-free Irish stout.
How to Make Irish Brown Bread
Step 1: Preheat the Oven
Set the temperature to 350ºF (177ºC). After making the bread batter, it should be hot and ready to bake. Line a metal 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper and create a sling to make removing the bread easier. Grease the inside of the pan and paper with cooking spray or a neutral oil.
Step 2: Mix the Dry Ingredients
In a large bowl, mix the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. It’s important to disperse the fine particles evenly, which ensures a uniformly shaped loaf. Whole wheat flour and oats add extra fiber to each slice.
Step 3: Incorporate the Butter and Sugar
Wheat flour can dry out the bread since the germ and bran are intact. Fat, like butter, is needed to ensure a tender load. Break the cubes of cold unsalted butter into the flour mixture; it should look like cornmeal. This is a similar process used in homemade biscuits to give a more interesting scone-like texture. Stir in the brown sugar.
Step 4: Add the Wet Ingredients
To make the brown bread moist and flavorful, I combine three liquid ingredients: buttermilk, molasses, and Guinness Irish dry stout. I whisk the ingredients together first, then stir them into the flour mixture until a thick batter forms.
Step 5: Bake the Bread
The bread batter will be very wet. Spread it evenly into the prepared loaf pan. I like to sprinkle rolled oats on top of the dough for a pretty presentation. Bake at 350ºF (177ºC) for about 50 minutes.
The bread is ready when the center reaches 190ºF (88ºC), signaling that the proteins in the flour are fully cooked. The texture will taste like wheat bread and banana bread. It’s soft and tender yet still chewy.
Step 6: Cool and Slice
Use the parchment paper overhang to remove the bread from the pan and transfer it to a wire rack. Allow it to cool slightly until warm or to room temperature before slicing to allow for carryover cooking. Serve warm with Irish butter spread, and it’s hard to resist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Brown bread with whole wheat flour contains more fiber, vitamins, and minerals since the germ and bran are left intact.
Rye bread is made with rye flour, which gives it a unique, sour taste and a denser texture with a dark brown hue. It’s made using yeast-leavened dough. Irish brown bread is a quickbread that tends to be sweeter and moister. It has a brown shade from wheat flour and any added ingredients like molasses or beer.
Let the bread cool completely, then tightly wrap it in foil and place it in a resealable plastic bag to prevent moisture loss. Slices can also be frozen and then toasted, giving them a tender texture when reheated.
This Irish brown bread recipe stays moist and tender for several days after baking. That’s because brown sugar and molasses are humectants that attract moisture from the environment. The oats and proteins in the flour also create a gel-like matrix when cooked, trapping water in the crumb. Slices can be enjoyed for up to 5 days when properly stored at room temperature.
Serve This With
If you tried this Irish Brown Bread Recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Irish Brown Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole wheat flour
- ½ cup old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
- ¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 ½ cup buttermilk
- ½ cup Guinness stout
- ⅓ cup molasses
Instructions
- Preheat the Oven – Set the oven rack to the middle position and the heat to 350ºF (177ºC). Line a 9×5" metal loaf pan with a 9" wide piece of parchment paper that overhangs about 1 inch. The sling will make handling the bread easier. Grease the bottoms and sides of the paper and pan with cooking spray.
- Mix the Dry Ingredients – In a large bowl, whisk the whole wheat flour, oats, baking soda, and salt.
- Incorporate the Butter – Using your fingers, break the butter into very small pieces until the flour mixture resembles cornmeal. Stir in the brown sugar. Make a well in the center of the bowl.
- Add the Wet Ingredients – In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, whisk the buttermilk, Guinness, and molasses. Add the mixture to the center of the flour and stir until a batter forms. Do not overmix!
- Bake – Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan, spreading it into an even layer. If desired, sprinkle oats on top. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 190ºF (88ºC) on an instant-read thermometer or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 to 55 minutes.
- Serve – Lift the loaf out of the pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool. Slice and serve warm.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Molasses Substitute: Use maple syrup or honey. The bread will not be as dark brown in hue.
- Substituting Guinness: Use all buttermilk (the bread won’t be as dark) or use root beer.
- Smaller Loaves: Bake two mini loaf pans (about 5 by 3 inches) on a baking sheet. Check at 35 minutes for doneness, adding more time as needed. Loaves are ready when they reach 190ºF (88ºC).
- Storing: Cool completely then wrap in foil and place in a plastic bag. Store at room temperature for up to 5 days. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost the loaf before using it.
- Reheating: Toast room temperature or frozen slices of bread.
Nutrition Facts
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000-calorie diet. All nutritional information is based on estimated third-party calculations. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
Suzanne Biely says
Baked this gem of a brown bread. Delicious. It’s even better the next day. It gets a high rating from me 4 sure
Jessica Gavin says
Thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the Irish brown bread!