Soda Farls
Quick griddle-cooked soda bread, cut into quarters and ready in 30 minutes: the other half of the Ulster fry.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 16 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Makes
- 4 farls
- Difficulty
- Easy
Soda farls are soda bread cooked on a griddle instead of in the oven. The dough is patted into a round and cut into four (a "farl" is a quarter), then cooked on a dry, floured griddle until risen and speckled brown.
In Northern Ireland they are eaten warm with butter and jam, or split and fried alongside potato bread as part of an Ulster fry.
Ingredients
- 250gplain flour, plus extra for dusting
- ½tspbicarbonate of soda
- ½tspsalt
- 225mlbuttermilk, you may need a little more
Equipment
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- Bakestone, griddle or heavy frying panHow to chooseShop on Amazon UK(affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
- Large mixing bowlHow to chooseShop on Amazon UK(affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
Method
- 1
Heat a griddle or large heavy frying pan over a medium-low heat and dust it lightly with flour. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a bowl and make a well in the middle.
Photo: Ukko-wc · CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped) - 2
Pour in most of the buttermilk and mix quickly into a soft, slightly sticky dough, adding the rest if it is dry. Turn out onto a floured surface, knead just enough to bring it together, and pat into a round about 2 cm thick. Cut into four farls.
Photo: Nenad Stojkovic · CC BY 2.0 (cropped) - 3
Cook the farls on the floured griddle for 7–8 minutes on each side, until risen, lightly browned and hollow-sounding when tapped. The flour on the griddle will brown; that is normal.
Photo: Infrogmation of New Orleans · CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped) - 4
Cool slightly in a clean tea towel to keep them soft. Split and butter while warm, or fry the split halves in a little butter for an Ulster fry.
Photo: O'Dea · CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
Tips
No buttermilk? Stir 1 tbsp lemon juice into 225 ml whole milk and leave for 10 minutes.
If it goes wrong
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Raw in the middle | Griddle too hot | Cook over a lower heat for longer; keep the round no thicker than 2 cm |
| Dense farls | Dough over-kneaded | Mix and shape quickly: the bicarbonate starts working as soon as it meets the buttermilk |
