Bara Brith
- 1h 0mPrep Time
- 45m Cook Time
- 1h Ready In
Bara Brith is a traditional Welsh fruit bread made with sourdough, currants, sultanas, and mixed peel. It has a soft, slightly sweet crumb and is often glazed with apricot jam.
Ingredients
- 1 10/13 oz wholemeal bread flour
- 1 10/13 oz white bread flour
- 2 2/7 oz whole milk
- 3 8/15 oz firm white sourdough starter (60% hydration)
- 8/15 lbs whole milk
- 8/15 lbs white bread flour
- 2/11 oz fine salt
- 2 1/9 oz packed soft brown sugar
- 1 3/13 oz lard
- 1 3/13 oz butter
- 1/2 lbs currants
- 3 8/15 oz sultanas
- 1 1/16 oz mixed peel
- 1/9 oz ground mixed spice
- 1 tbsp apricot jam diluted with a little boiling water
Nutrition (per serving, estimated)
Estimated based off 10 of 15 identified ingredients (per 100 g food data, scaled by amount).
Vitamins & minerals
- Calcium: 583 mg
- Iron: 19.1 mg
- Magnesium: 177 mg
- Phosphorus: 733 mg
- Potassium: 1583 mg
- Zinc: 4.74 mg
Let's Prepare
Collect
Gather these ingredients — no prep needed yet.
- 1 10/13 oz wholemeal bread flour
- 1 10/13 oz white bread flour
- 2 2/7 oz whole milk
- 3 8/15 oz firm white sourdough starter (60% hydration)
- 8/15 lbs whole milk
- 8/15 lbs white bread flour
- 2/11 oz fine salt
- 2 1/9 oz packed soft brown sugar
- 1 3/13 oz lard
- 1 3/13 oz butter
- 1/2 lbs currants
- 3 8/15 oz sultanas
- 1 1/16 oz mixed peel
- 1/9 oz ground mixed spice
Prepare
- 1 tbsp apricot jam, diluted with a little boiling water
Let's Cook
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Step 1.
Prepare a sourdough starter at 60% hydration (3 parts water to 5 parts flour by weight) if you don't already have one; this can be done from scratch or by refreshing an existing starter with the correct ratio.
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Step 2.
Mix the pre-ferment ingredients (50g wholemeal bread flour, 50g white bread flour, 65g whole milk, 100g white sourdough starter) together in a bowl. Cover and leave in a warm place (35–40°C/95–105°F) for 2–3 hours, or longer in a cooler spot, until the mixture becomes puffy.
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Step 3.
Add 240g whole milk, 240g white bread flour, and 5g salt to the pre-ferment. Mix thoroughly and knead until you have a smooth, stretchy dough. Then add 60g soft brown sugar, 35g lard, and 35g butter, and continue kneading until fully incorporated and the dough is smooth and silky again.
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Step 4.
In a small bowl, mix together 230g currants, 100g sultanas, 30g mixed peel, and 3g mixed spice. Flatten the dough into a rectangle, scatter the fruit mixture over it, and work it into the dough until evenly distributed, being careful not to mash the fruit. Shape the dough into a ball, cover, and leave to prove in a warm place (about 30°C/85°F) for 1 hour.
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Step 5.
Give the dough a single fold (fold one side over the other), cover, and leave to continue proving for a further 2–3 hours.
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Step 6.
Grease two 500g/1lb loaf tins with butter. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces, shape each to fit the tin, and place seam-side down. Cover and leave in a warm place (20–30°C/70–85°F) for 1–3 hours until doubled in size.
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Step 7.
While the loaves are proving, preheat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan/375°F/gas 5. Bake the loaves for 45 minutes, then remove from the oven and turn them out onto a wire cooling rack. Leave to cool for 10–15 minutes, then brush the tops with apricot glaze (1–2 tbsp apricot jam diluted with a little boiling water) while still warm.