Easy Gluten Free Bannock Recipe (2024)

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This gluten free and dairy free bannock is a modified version of a classic bannock bread recipe (sometimes also referred to as fry bread). It is a great recipe for people with celiac disease, food allergies or intolerances. Despite not using regular flour and dairy, the end result will satisfy your craving for this traditional bread recipe.

I live up north in the Yukon Territory, and bannock is part of a traditional First Nations diet here (as well as throughout North America). I feel grateful that I have had the opportunity to try the traditional recipes passed down by our elders, as well as to modify these recipes to make them more allergy friendly.

Product brands I recommend for this recipe

For this recipe, I recommend using the Robin Hood gluten-free flour blend if you can find it. It is the most similar to regular white all purpose flour that I have ever found, and has the best consistency. It is made with rice flour, potato starch, pea hull fibre, tapioca starch and xanthan gum.

I also recommend using a good quality pork or beef lard to deep fry your bannock in. Follow my recipe on how to make beef tallow (also works for making pork lard), or for my Yukon peeps you can buy premade pork or beef lard locally from Tum Tum’s Meats.

Recipe ingredient substitutions

Gluten free flour blends: If you aren’t able to get Robin Hood gluten-free flour blend, feel free to use any other all purpose gluten-free flour blend. Just keep in mind, you may not get consistent results. Try to find a blend that contains rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch and xanthan gum for the best results. I wouldn’t recommend using oat flour or almond flour because they have a very different consistency.

Baking powder: If you don’t have baking powder, use 1 teaspoon of baking soda instead of the 2 teaspoons the recipe calls for.

Egg substitutions: Instead of using egg, you can also swap it out for additional water. Not all traditional bannock recipes use eggs, but I find it helps in gluten-free baking with keeping things from falling apart.

Pork lard substitutions: Traditional bannock would usually be cooked in lard, but you can also use vegetable oil, unflavoured coconut oil or even melted butter.

Dietary modifications

Make this recipe lower calorie: Instead of deep frying your bannock in pork lard or vegetable oil, you can also bake them in the oven. To do this, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and scoop the gluten-free dough into roughly 10 servings. Heat your oven to about 400°F and bake them for roughly 30 minutes or until cooked through. If you want you can also add a little bit of pork lard or vegetable oil to the dough to make sure that it doesn’t burn or stick to the pan.

Make this recipe paleo/grain free and AIP friendly: Instead of using gluten-free flour, swap it out for cassava flour. Instead of using 2 cups, reduce the amount to 1.5 cups. Cassava flour absorbs a lot more liquid than gluten-free flour does. Fry your bannock in pork lard or unflavoured coconut oil.

Make this recipe lower oxalate: Make sure you use a white rice based gluten-free flour. Otherwise this recipe is low to medium oxalate.

Make this recipe elimination diet friendly: Omit the egg and add an additional 1/8 -1/4 cup of water.

Recipe pairings

There are many ways to enjoy bannock, but here are a few of my favourites:

With butter and/or jam (try my sugar free haskap berry jam!)
With additional lard
With your favourite soup or stew. And on that note, check out my moose stew recipe!
Or just as a snack on its own. Why the heck not!

Storage and reheating tips

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Or you can freeze it in an airtight container for multiple months. When you are ready to eat it, take the container out of the freezer and thaw before eating. Reheat in the microwave for around 30 seconds, or if you want to crisp it up again you can toast it in a toaster oven for a few minutes. Good as new!

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Easy Gluten Free Bannock Recipe

Tara Klippert

A modified version of a classic bannock bread recipe (sometimes also referred to as fry bread). Despite not using regular flour and dairy, the end result will satisfy your craving for this traditional bread recipe.

4.45 from 9 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Appetizer, Breakfast, Dessert, Lunch, Snack

Servings 10

Equipment

Ingredients

2 cups gluten-free flour (I recommend Robin Hood brand gluten-free all-purpose flour blend)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg (roughly 1/4 cup)
1 1/4 cup water
1/2 cup pork lard (or vegetable oil) – for frying the bannock

Instructions

Mix together all of your dry ingredients (gluten-free flour blend, baking soda, and salt) in a stand mixer or large bowl.
Add all of your wet ingredients (except for the lard/oil – this is for frying) to the flour mixture and mix thoroughly. The dough will be sticky and wet.
Important: Different gluten-free flour blends will absorb different amounts of liquid, so start with only half the amount of water and work your way up. You don't want the batter to be so wet that it is runny. Alternatively, you also don't want it to be too dry and crumbly. If you are finding the dough too dry, add a bit of additional water.
This is what the batter should look like.
Heat your pork lard or oil in your cast-iron skillet on the stove at medium heat. Once your pork lard is hot enough, test this out by dropping a small amount of dough into the pan and if it starts sizzling right away it is ready.
Using a spoon, scoop equal portions of dough and form small circular pieces in the pan. Using the backside of a spoon, try to thin out the dough by pressing down on it so that it's not too thick. If it's too thick it may not cook through completely by the time it browns on both sides.
Cook the first side until it turns golden brown, roughly a few minutes. Carefully flip your bannock pieces and then cook on the second side until it is golden brown and cooked through.
If you are finding that the oil is not hot enough and your bannock is not browning, turn up the heat a little bit. Alternatively, if your bannock or oil is starting to burn, turn the heat down.
Line a plate with paper towel. Scoop your cooked bannock pieces onto the paper towel to soak up some of the extra grease.
Serve and enjoy!

Video

Notes

Above in the blog post I provide recipe ingredient substitutions, dietary modifications, recipe pairings ideas and storage/reheating tips.

Nutrition

Calories: 175kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 3gFat: 7.5gSaturated Fat: 2.5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.5gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 155mgPotassium: 7mgFiber: 3.2gSugar: 0g

Keyword dairy free, gluten free, Low FODMAP, low oxalate, nut free, soy free, sugar free

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FAQs

What is the trick to gluten-free baking? ›

Gluten-free flours often contain fine starches, so they absorb more liquid than conventional flour. To address this, gluten-free recipes usually call for more liquid and produce looser batters. They may also call for a larger quantity of leavening, like baking powder, to help add volume and lighten the texture.

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What are the three ways that bannock can be prepared? ›

Bannock can be baked in a pan or on a stone (camping), shallow pan-fried, or deep-fried. You can enjoy it with stews or just jam and butter.

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Does gluten-free flour affect baking? ›

Because gluten-free flours provide less structure than all-purpose, the batter or dough you make with them may require more beating than that which you are accustomed.

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How do you make gluten-free dough stick together? ›

Add binders and stabilizers: Gluten-free bread lacks the structure and elasticity provided by gluten. To compensate for this, add binders and stabilizers like xanthan gum, guar gum, or psyllium husk powder. These ingredients help improve the texture and binding properties of the bread. Use eggs or egg re.

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Can I just replace flour with gluten-free flour? ›

Gluten-Free Bread Flour can be swapped 1:1 for all-purpose flour and bread flour by both weight and volume.

Which gluten-free flour is best for baking? ›

Oat Flour. With its creamy, earthy flavor and delicate texture, gluten-free oat flour is a staple of my gluten-free baking recipes. It bakes up soft and smooth, adding necessary starch to many GF baked goods and keeping them moist and tender due to its high fat content and stable protein structure.

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What is Native American bannock? ›

Bannock, a round of mostly flour, baking powder, water and some sort of fat, has been a part of Indigenous peoples' diets since the 18^th century. It is believed that bannock, derived from the Gaelic word bannach, was introduced here by the Scottish fur traders.

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What is native bannock made of? ›

Scottish bannock was usually made of barley, peameal, or oatmeal. Wheat flour was later introduced. Indigenous people eventually adopted bannock, often using corn flour or plants rather than the wheat flour of Europeans. Bannock became a staple for voyageurs, fur traders, prospectors, and later, Indigenous peoples.

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Why is my bannock dough sticky? ›

Your dough can become sticky when you add too much water or the flour isn't suitable for the type of dough you are making. Over proofing or fermenting the dough can also result in the gluten structure weakening causing sticky dough.

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Which gluten-free flour is closest to all-purpose flour? ›

Brown rice flour is about as close to a 1:1 substitute for all-purpose flour as it gets since it provides structure and a “wheat-like” flavor.

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Does gluten-free flour need extra baking powder? ›

2 teaspoons of baking powder per cup of gluten-free flour is necessary to ensure proper leavening. Baking soda and buttermilk can be used to leaven instead of baking powder, but 1-1/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar should be added for each 1/2 teaspoon baking soda used.

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What flour is best for gluten-free bread? ›

Rice flour(s): A combination of brown rice flour and white rice flour, with their ideal balance of protein and starch, provide bulk and mildly sweet, neutral flavor. The rice flours are finely ground so they absorb liquid quickly and evenly.

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What happens if you don t add xanthan gum to gluten free flour? ›

Without gluten, many recipes (especially flour-based ones) have trouble holding their ingredients together. This results in dry, crumbly goods that don't hold their shape well. Using xanthan gum helps provide some of the stickiness that gluten free goods lack, replacing some elasticity.

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What holds gluten-free dough together? ›

The three most common binders are xanthan gum, guar gum and psyllium husk powder. Each one works in a slightly different way to help create the structure we need to hold baked goods together.

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What are the challenges of gluten-free baking? ›

Owing to the challenge of gluten-free flours to form a protein network that provides structure and strength to dough, breads produced in the absence of gluten tends to be flatter, denser, crummier, less chewy and less tasty.

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How do you make gluten-free baking less crumbly? ›

One of the most common gluten-free baking tips is “let your batter rest”. Letting the batter rest gives the gluten-free flours and starches more time to absorb the moisture. In theory, it will turn your dry, crumbly cakes into delicious, moist masterpieces.

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