Authentic Irish Brown Bread Recipe – The Travel Bite

Have you ever tried Irish brown bread? I have to warn you, it’s impossible to eat just one slice once you’ve tasted it. I’ve been fortunate to visit Ireland multiple times – from a cooking tour with Chef Kevin Dundon to exploring Northern Ireland’s gin distilleries and TV filming locations, and most recently on a trip with Globus Choice Touring. Across every visit, one thing remained constant: everyone on every trip couldn’t get enough Irish brown bread. At every restaurant and meal, each of us seemed to look for brown bread on the menu. Yes, it is that good!

Overhead look at a slice of Irish brown bread on a ceramic plate, butter spread across the surface of the bread. There is a loaf of brown bread and a dish of butter on the dark wood table as well.

What is it that makes this bread so irresistible? It is full of flavor! Irish brown bread tastes both bitter and sweet, a bit nutty and malty, and it has a hearty texture too. It’s great with a smear of butter and jam, or served alongside your favorite soups or stews.

Loaf of Irish brown bread sliced on a wood cutting board, placed on a towel resting on a dark wood table. There's a bottle of Guinness in the background.

This authentic Irish brown bread recipe is hearty and delicious, with a rich brown color and nutty flavor from wheat flour, rolled oats, and molasses. I adapted this recipe from the Guinness brown bread recipe given to me at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. The original was restaurant-sized, so I scaled it down for home bakers, converted it to US measurements, and tested it multiple times to get it just right. The result? A foolproof recipe that brings a taste of Ireland to your kitchen.

If you’re ready to get started, simply hit that “jump to” recipe button. Or scroll through below for some helpful tips, a bit of history, and some Ireland pics too.

Rachelle on Achill Island, Ireland — Achill Island, Ireland

Turinys:

Why is brown bread so popular in Ireland?

When visiting Ireland, you’ll notice Irish brown bread is served at almost every pub and restaurant with a side of creamy Irish butter. It’s as common as a pint of Guinness and is typically made with a bit of Guinness too!

One of the reasons brown bread is so popular in Ireland is historically white flour was more expensive than wheat flour. Though today, that is quite the opposite. When baking Irish brown bread at home, look for the highest quality whole wheat flour you can find. And if you can find stone ground wheat flour, even better!

Irish Brown Bread on a plate with a smear of butter, and a Guinness to the side.

What is the difference between Irish soda bread and Irish brown bread?

There is a big difference between Irish soda bread and Irish brown bread. But both are delicious! Irish soda bread is more simple and easy to make, with only four ingredients including white all-purpose flour, salt, buttermilk, and baking soda. Soda bread is more like a quick-baking white bread with a crispy crust and soft tender center.

Irish brown bread is more savory and dense, with a rich brown color and nutty flavor from wheat flour, rolled oats, ,molasses, and Guinness. It has more ingredients than soda bread, which gives it a rich nutty flavor.

What do you eat with Irish Brown Bread?

Irish brown bread can be a meal on it’s own with just a spread of soft salty butter. But typically you’d serve it alongside a bowl of potato soup or Irish beef stew. But it is also great with simply butter and fruit chutney or jam. It also pairs will with a sharp cheddar cheese and is perfect cut into smaller slices for a cheese board. We’ve also it thin to use it as sandwich bread too.

Guinness Irish Brown Bread

I adapted this recipe from the Guinness brown bread recipe given at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. The things I changed were reducing the volume and size of the recipe for a home cook or baker, and I swapped the heavy Irish steel cut oats for simply rolled oats which I had more success baking with. This recipe has been tested multiple times, so I hope you enjoy the same results we have!

Irish Brown Bread Ingredients

Here’s a list of everything you’ll need to make this brown bread recipe! I find it helpful to measure everything out first (especially the beer) so I’ve organized it into dry and wet ingredients to make it easy for organizing before you mix it all together.

Ingredients for making Irish brown bread

DRY INGREDIENTS

whole wheat flour: This is what gives Irish brown bread its nutty flavor and hearty texture. While you cold substitute with all-purpose white flour, it would not produce the same results as far as flavor and color. Try to find the highest quality whole wheat flour available at your local grocer or health food store. If you can find stone ground, even better! We used King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour when testing this brown bread recipe.

rolled oats: Rolled oats or old fashioned oats are simply oatmeal in the United States, like what you’d find available in brands like Quaker and Bob’s Red Mill. You could also use quick oats as a substitute.

salt: Salt enhances the flavor of all the other ingredients in this brown bread recipe. It also balances out the bitter and sweet. You don’t need much, just a pinch.

baking soda: Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a leavening agent used to help the bread rise and give it a fluffy texture.

dark brown sugar: Dark brown sugar adds a touch of sweetness and color to Irish brown bread. It balances the bitter and nutty flavors of the molasses and Guinness included in the recipe. If you can’t find dark brown sugar, you can also use light brown sugar.

ingredients for making Irish brown bread on brown wood table — OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

WET INGREDIENTS

molasses: Molasses, also called treacle, is a thick dark syrup that is a byproduct of refining sugarcane into sugar. It’s the color of strong coffee, and pours thick like honey. Molasses is the main ingredient that adds color to this Irish brown bread recipe, enhancing the color of the wheat flour and Guinness as well. As for flavor, Molasses tastes slightly sweet, malty, and bitter.

Guinness: Guinness adds moisture and a delicious complexity of flavor to this brown bread recipe. There are flavor notes of caramel, coffee, and chocolate with a bitter nutty essence of hops. The carbonation also aids in helping this dense bread rise. But you could use any beer you’d like.

buttermilk: Buttermilk is the liquid that is left behind after turning cream into butter. It’s fermented, with a tangy flavor similar to cottage cheese. And it gives a nice rise to baked goods.

honey: Honey gives a light touch of sweetness to this brown bread recipe while also enhancing the earthy, nutty flavor of the bread.

melted butter: Melted butter helps soften the bread, crisps up the crust when baking, and tastes more flavorful than using vegetable oil. To melt the butter, add two tablespoons of butter to a small microwave dish and microwave for 10 seconds at a time until the butter is melted.

overhead view of slice of Irish brown bread with a smear of butter

How To Make Irish Brown Bread

Start by gathering the ingredients listed above. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a bread loaf pan by cutting out a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan. Then spray the inside of the loaf pan with non-stick spray (I like to use Pam Baking). This recipe will fill a large loaf pan (8 inches x 4 inches) or two mini loaf pans (5 inches x 3 inches).

Add the dry ingredients (whole wheat flour, rolled oats, salt, baking soda) to a mixing bowl and blend together with a whisk. Once they look blended, mix in the brown sugar.

ingredients for making Irish brown bread pre-measured

Make a sort of hole or well in the dry flour mix to make room for the liquid ingredients. Pour in the molasses, Guinness, buttermilk, honey, and melted butter.

TIP FOR BAKING WITH BEER

Pre-measure the amount of beer needed for the recipe. I’ve read comments from others that accidentally poured the whole bottle in. It’s also carbonated, so you want to make sure it settles a bit before adding to your recipe. After the foam settles, you might have too much or too little. So this gives you a chance to adjust before adding it to your brown bread mix.

pre-measured cup of dark beer in a measuring cup

Stir together with a spoon or spatula until all the ingredients are well mixed. It’s best to do this by hand so the ingredients don’t get over mixed.

Adding wet ingredients to flour mixture to make brown bread

Spread the dough into the loaf pan with a spatula, making sure to press it into the corners. Draw or cut a line down the middle of the dough with the spatula to give the bread a vent to expand. Garnish the top of the Irish brown bread by sprinkling the top of the dough with rolled oats.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean. It might take a little longer depending on your oven. (If cooking smaller mini loaves, it will only take 45 minutes.)

Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool. Slice and serve with Irish butter. Enjoy!

Irish Brown Bread

Yield:
10-12 Slices

Prep Time:
8 minutes

Cook Time:
55 minutes

Total Time:
58 minutes

This Irish brown bread recipe is hearty and delicious, with a rich brown color and nutty flavor.

Ingredients

2 3/4 Cups whole wheat flour
3/4 Cup rolled oats (plus a pinch extra to garnish top of bread)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
1/2 Cup molasses
1 Cup Guinness
1 Cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp melted butter

Instructions

Add the dry ingredients (whole wheat flour, rolled oats, salt, baking soda) to a mixing bowl and blend together with a whisk. Once they look blended, mix in the brown sugar.

Make a well in the dry flour mix to make room for the liquid ingredients. Pour in the molasses, Guinness, buttermilk, honey, and melted butter. Stir together with a spoon or spatula until all the ingredients are well mixed. It’s best to do this by hand so the ingredients don’t get over mixed.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean. (If cooking smaller mini loaves, it will only take 45 minutes)

Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool. Slice and serve with Irish butter. Enjoy!

Notes

This recipe will fill a large loaf pan (8 inches x 4 inches) or two mini loaf pans (5 inches x 3 inches).
If you want a more savory Irish brown bread, you can omit the brown sugar, honey, or both. Still bakes up great, just less sweet!
If your batter is too runny, it may be that you use a whole bottle of Guinness instead of just one cup. No judgemet. 😉
Authors Note Based On Comments: Because baking with beer and buttermilk introduces a bit of bubbly chemistry, you might need a 9×5″ bread loaf pan. Beer can behave differently depending on whether it is cold right out of the fridge, or if you’ve had it on the counter (taking a sip or two) while gathering and prepping ingredients to make the Irish brown bread. No judgement! You just might need a bigger pan and a wee little longer cooker time. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12

Serving Size: 1

Amount Per Serving:

Calories: 196Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 6mgSodium: 359mgCarbohydrates: 39gFiber: 3gSugar: 16gProtein: 5g