Donal's Irish Adventure

Gubbeen, Cheddar & Thyme Soda Bread

Name: Gubbeen, Cheddar & Thyme Soda Bread
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Irish
Ingredients: 375g plain flour; 100g wholemeal flour; 1 tsp baking soda; 2 tbsp of Dillisk seaweed, ground; 350ml buttermilk; 1 large free-range egg; 200g Irish mature cheddar, grated; 200g Gubbeen cheese, chopped; 1 tbsp fresh thyme, in short sprigs

Add a little extra flour if you find the dough is too wet and sticky. Using a mature cheddar here makes the loaf even more flavoursome.

Donal SkehanFrom the series · Donal's Irish Adventure

60 min totalServes 8Medium

Time60 min

Serves8

SkillMedium

ShowSuper Food In Minutes

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 5.

In a large bowl, add the flours, baking soda and seaweed. Mix together and make a well in the centre.

In a large jug, add the buttermilk and the egg, giving a gentle whisk. Pour the mix into the well within the large bowl.

Add in the cheeses, leaving some of the cheddar for later, and most of the thyme. Combine the mix with a wooden spoon until you have a rough dough.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured chopping board and gently knead.

Add the dough to a loaf tin and brush lightly with any leftover buttermilk/egg mix you have. Add in the remaining thyme sprigs and cheese over the top of the loaf.

Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes. Allow to cool before slicing and enjoying with a little butter or an extra slice of Gubbeen cheese!

Cook's notes

The dough only wants a gentle knead — a few turns to bring it together, no more. Overworking it develops the flour and gives you a tight, heavy loaf instead of a tender crumb.
Buttermilk is doing the lifting here: its acidity reacts with the baking soda, so once it's mixed, get it into the oven promptly before the fizz dies down.
Hold back some cheddar and thyme for the top as directed — it forms a crisp, golden crust and tells you the loaf is browning nicely.
Grind the dillisk finely so it disperses evenly; big flakes can taste too briny in one bite and vanish in the next.
Test with a skewer or tap the base — a hollow sound means it's done. Cheese-heavy loaves can look coloured on top before the centre is set.

Serve with Best warm from the tin with cold salted butter melting into it, or an extra sliver of Gubbeen on top. It's also a fine partner to a bowl of vegetable soup or a plate of smoked fish.

Make ahead & storage Keeps well wrapped for two to three days and is lovely toasted once it's a day old. It freezes cleanly too — slice first so you can take out just what you need.

Recipe by Donal Skehan · From the series Donal's Irish Adventure · Photography © Appetite Media
Published 13 July 2026 · Updated 15 July 2026

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

445kcal

20gprotein

49gcarbs

18gfat

Approximate — calculated from the ingredient list using USDA food data. A guide, not a medical figure.

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