Irish Soda Bread problem?

Question

I Made soda bread using plain flour, buttermilk, salt, bicarbonate of soda tasted o.k. except it went a brownish colour. What went wrong?

Answer 1

well u cud add yellow food coloring

Answer 2

you overcooked it.

Answer 3

You used too much bicarb. 1 teaspoon is plenty if you're making it with a pound or so of flour.Don't use plain flour, use soda-bread flour, or failing that, use self-raising flour. All you need is flour, salt, buttermilk and bicarb, nothing else. You don't add eggs or butter and you don't add sugar. When you start adding these ingredients you're moving into tea-breads, which are sweetened and have glazed crusts. Also known as "brack". If you use 1 part wholemeal flour to 3 parts soda-bread flour you then have wheaten bread. I personally think wheaten bread is superior to soda bread when baked in the oven as a loaf, but if cooked on a griddle ( which I think Americans call a girdle) as farls, soda bread comes out on top every time. Nothing beats a soda farl fresh off the griddle with the melted butter dripping off your elbows as you eat it!

Answer 4

Too much soda will cause it to turn way too brown inside, especially if it got a bit overbaked.

Baking soda always turns brownish, and if you used too much of it it for sure will. To test this out, don't stir the soda in as well and you can see just where it is in the bread by the brown spots.

This is one of the reasons our grandmothers said to dissolve the soda in hot water before adding it to our batter.

Answer 5

The yellow - brown colour in soda bread is caused by excess bicarb.

Answer 6

too much bicarb  

Answer 7

This is my recipe.  You can compare to see what might have been missing in yours.

Irish Soda Bread

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup margarine, softened

1 cup buttermilk

1 egg

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup buttermilk



Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and margarine. Stir in 1 cup of buttermilk and egg. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly. Form dough into a round and place on prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine melted butter with 1/4 cup buttermilk; brush loaf with this mixture. Use a sharp knife to cut an 'X' into the top of the loaf.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 30 to 50 minutes. You may continue to brush the loaf with the butter mixture while it bakes