Kefir Brown Soda Bread with Oats and Toasted Wheat Germ
A no-knead Irish wholemeal soda loaf raised with kefir and folded with oats for a moist, high-fiber crumb.
Best for A quick wholegrain loaf with steady, high-fiber energy and no added yeast
This is the everyday brown bread I bake when there is no time for yeast and no patience for proofing. Kefir does the double duty a traditional buttermilk once did, its acidity firing the baking soda for lift while its tang keeps the wholemeal from tasting flat, and rolled oats plus a little toasted wheat germ push the fiber up without turning the loaf into a brick. You mix it in one bowl, shape it wet, cut the cross that lets the heat in, and it is out of the oven in under an hour. Slice it thick, still faintly warm, and it needs nothing but good butter or a scrape of honey.
Ingredients
- 300 g Wholemeal flour , stone-ground preferred
- 100 g All-purpose white flour
- 80 g rolled oats , plus 1 tbsp for topping
- 30 g Toasted wheat germ
- 7 g baking soda , sifted if lumpy
- 6 g fine sea salt
- 400 ml Plain kefir , well shaken, at room temperature
- 15 g honey , or blackstrap molasses for a darker loaf (optional – can be omitted)
- 40 g Mixed seeds (optional – can be omitted)
Instructions
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1
Heat the oven to 200C (400F) and line a baking sheet with parchment. In a large bowl, whisk together the wholemeal flour, white flour, 80 g rolled oats, wheat germ, baking soda and salt until evenly combined, breaking up any clumps of soda so it can't leave bitter streaks. Stir in the optional seeds.
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2
Whisk the honey into the kefir, then pour it into the dry ingredients. Using one hand or a sturdy spatula, mix with a few swift strokes just until a soft, wet, shaggy dough comes together with no dry flour visible. Do not knead or over-mix; soda bread turns tough and dense the moment you develop the gluten, so stop as soon as it's cohesive.
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3
Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and, with floured hands, gently pat it into a round about 18 cm across and 4 cm high. Transfer to the baking sheet, scatter the reserved tablespoon of oats over the top, and cut a deep cross most of the way through with a sharp knife (this lets the center cook and, in tradition, lets the fairies out).
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4
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the crust is deep brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the base; an instant-read thermometer should show about 96C (205F) at the center. If it browns too fast, tent loosely with foil for the final 10 minutes.
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5
Cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing so the crumb sets and doesn't gum up under the knife. This bread is best the day it's baked but keeps, wrapped in a clean cloth, for 2 days, and toasts beautifully on day three.