Recipes

Ulster Fry

2 slices of bacon
2 sausages
2 slices black pudding
2 slices white pudding
2 eggs
2 tomatoes
2 slices bread
Fry.

This breakfast tastes best the morning after the night before.

Irish Stew

500g lamb (you can use beef)
1.5kg potatoes
225g carrots
225g parsnips
2 or 3 onions
Oil for sauteeing
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 cups water or stock
Salt, pepper
5 bay leaves
1 tsp basil
Optional: 1/2 cup barley and an extra cup of water/stock.

For a more meaty, traditional stew, increase the proportion of meat to vegetables. You can also add turnips.

Cut meat into 2.5cm cubes. Brown the onions and the meat with a bit of oil.

Slice up the carrots and parsnips. Saute them for a few minutes and then add just a little bit of brown sugar to glaze them.

Peel and slice the potatoes into quarters (big ones into 6 or 8 pieces). Put them in a casserole dish with the meat and onions and add the water or stock. If desired, add some barley, but only a handful, as it swells, then add the extra liquid. Add salt and pepper, bay leaves, some basil and other herbs if desired.

Cover the dish and bake the potatoes and meat at 180 deg C for about 40 minutes, then add carrots and parsnips.

Cook for about an hour to an hour and a half: it's ready when the potatoes are tender.

Colcannon

500g cabbage
1/2 tsp mace
1 tsp salt
Salt and pepper to taste
1kg potatoes, scrubbed and sliced, with skins left on
2 garlic cloves
2 medium leeks, thoroughly washed and sliced
8 Tbsp butter
1 cup milk

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and boil the cabbage until tender (about 12-15 minutes). Drain off water and chop the cabbage. Set aside. Bring another pot of water to the boil and boil the potatoes until tender. Drain and set aside.

Put the leeks in a saucepan, cover with the milk, bring close to boiling, then simmer until tender. Set aside.

Add mace, salt, pepper and garlic to the potatoes and mash well. Add the leeks and their milk to the potatoes and mix, taking care not to break the leeks down too much.

Add a little more milk if needed to make it smooth, mash in the cabbage and lastly the butter.

Transfer the whole mixture to an ovenproof dish. Make a pattern on the top by running a fork across the whole surface one way, then criss-cross it the opposite way. Place under the grill to brown for about 5-8 minutes, checking frequently till the fork-furrows are nicely browned. Serves 6 or more.

Potato Pancakes

3 boiled potatoes
2 tsp flour
2 Tbs milk
Butter, salt and pepper

Peel and cook the potatoes. Mash them well, and add the flour and milk until mixture is moist but not wet. Mash in the butter, salt and pepper. Shape into discs about 10cm wide and fry in a saucepan with butter over medium heat until browned and heated through.