Irish soda bread is a firm favourite during St. Patrick’s Day celebrations and is the perfect accompaniment to hearty meat stews. But given that soda bread is quick to make and doesn’t require any yeast, it’s a great option for home bread makers throughout the year.
But how do you preserve it for longer than just a couple of days? Can you freeze soda bread?
Yes, you can freeze soda bread. Soda bread can be frozen for around 3 months. Soda bread tends to dry out fairly quickly, so freezing it is a great way of preserving its taste and texture. Allow your soda bread sufficient time to cool, wrap it tightly, then freeze.
Does Soda Bread Freeze Well? Yes
Can You Refreeze Soda Bread? No
How to Freeze Soda Bread
Thanks to the fact that you can freeze soda bread for several months, you don’t have to limit your baking to special occasions or holidays!
There’s no reason why you can’t enjoy soda bread all year round, as you can easily freeze it by following the simple steps below.
- Cool
Freshly baked soda bread is hard to resist. With a knob of butter, it truly melts in your mouth! But if you’re able to resist slicing into it, allow your soda bread to cool by placing it on a drying rack or elevated grill stand. The more air you can allow to get in and around your bread while it’s cooling, the better. - Wrap Tightly
As soon as your soda bread is cool, place it in the centre of a large piece of tin foil and wrap it tightly. You may need to double wrap the bread, depending on its size. Make sure there are no gaps or tears in the wrapping, as this may cause the bread to spoil while it’s in the freezer. - Place Into a Container
Once wrapped, place your soda bread in a suitably sized airtight container. While this isn’t absolutely necessary, the container offers extra protection against freezer burn and is a worthwhile extra step if you have sufficient space in your freezer. - Label and Freeze
On the lid of the container, write today’s date, as well as the use-by date of your soda bread before transferring it to the freezer. Remember, you can freeze soda bread for around three months.
3 Tips for Freezing Soda Bread
Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing soda bread to have the best results:
Freeze Whole
While you can freeze slices of soda bread, it’s much better to freeze your freshly baked loaf whole. This ensures it retains its flavours and texture, and sliced soda bread is more likely to dry out.
Freeze When Fresh
When stored at room temperature, soda bread will only stay fresh for a couple of days at most, as it dries out quickly. If you freeze soda bread that is a couple of days old, it won’t taste particularly fresh when it has been defrosted. For best results, get your soda bread in the freezer as quickly as you can after it has been baked.
Take Your Time When Thawing
When the time comes to defrost soda bread, allowing it to thaw overnight in the fridge is your best bet. Don’t be tempted to rush things by defrosting it in the microwave, as this can drastically affect its taste and texture. You can always thaw it in the fridge and then reheat it in the oven if you want to enjoy warm soda bread.
How Long Can You Freeze Soda Bread?
You can freeze soda bread for around three months.
Typically, soda bread is best consumed within 24 hours. Therefore, when you come to freeze it, get it in the freezer as quickly as you can while it’s still fresh. This ensures you will have a delicious and soft loaf of soda bread to enjoy once defrosted.
You Can Freeze Soda Bread for up to 3 Months
How Do You Defrost Soda Bread?
The best way to defrost soda bread is by placing it in the fridge overnight. You can leave it in its wrapping, and it should have thawed by the following morning. You can then opt to reheat it and serve it warm, or remove it from the fridge and store it in the bread bin for your family to enjoy.
Avoid defrosting soda bread in the microwave, as this can ruin its texture, as we’ve already mentioned.
Can You Refreeze Soda Bread?
We definitely wouldn’t recommend refreezing soda bread. The ice crystals that form during the freezing process can affect the dough and cause it to soften.
Once frozen once, soda bread should be enjoyed as quickly as possible, ideally within 24-48 hours, and shouldn’t be refrozen.
Does Soda Bread Freeze Well?
Although it’s pretty tough to replicate the taste and texture of freshly baked soda bread, freezing and thawing it is still a decent option.
Providing it’s well wrapped and protected from freezer burn, soda bread freezes really well and should be good for up to three months in the freezer from the date you baked it.
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing soda bread or bread in general, then these may help:
Can You Freeze Bread in General?
Yes, you can freeze most bread types generally speaking whether that’s a sandwich loaf, sourdough, challah loaf or banana bread.
How Long Does Soda Bread Keep?
If you choose not to freeze soda bread, then it will keep in an airtight container away from direct sunlight for around 4 days. Beyond this, you’ll find it dries out so is only worth using for breadcrumbs.
