Food

Classic Irish Recipes

March 15, 2013

Whether you're Irish or not, St. Patrick's Day can be the perfect excuse to tuck into hearty Irish fare. From corned beef to soda bread, we've rounded up our favorite dishes from the Emerald Isle.

Justin Bogle, chef at New York City restaurant Gilt, says "I associate this dish with my childhood and the meals my mom served on Sundays. Boiled meat, boiled cabbage, boiled potatoes -- I love the simplicity of it. Good and filling. Forgiving. Sometimes even chefs want to cook a dish that's hard to screw up." See the recipe for Corned Beef and Cabbage »Todd Coleman

Irish Potato Bread — These squares of crispy potato flatbread are similar to potato farls, the fried potato bread that's a traditional part of the Northern Irish breakfast known as an Ulster Fry. Get the recipe for Irish Potato Bread »Farideh Sadeghin

Colcannon — Leave it to the potato-loving Irish to dream up colcannon, spuds mashed with finely chopped cabbage and enriched with lots of cream. Get the recipe for Colcannon »Penny De Los Santos

Donegal Oatcakes — Perfect with butter for breakfast or as a snack, traditional Irish oatcakes also keep for ages when stored in an air-tight tin. Get the recipe for Donegal Oatcakes »Kristin Perers

Ever since soda bread, that staple of the Irish dining table, was invented in the 1800s, it seems there are nearly as many "traditional" recipes as there are Irish families. Some are simple concoctions incorporating little more than flour, baking soda and buttermilk, while others boast the additions of various fruits and spices. This raisin-studded incarnation comes from a former SAVEUR staffer, who learned it the way such dishes should be—from her grandmother. See the recipe for Irish Soda Bread »Christopher Hirsheimer

Irish Cream — Cream, whiskey, vanilla, and coffee combine with sweetened condensed milk for a silky-smooth alternative to store-bought Irish cream. We love it added to coffee, used to sweeten cake frosting, or just on its own, enjoyed over a little ice. Get the recipe for Homemade Irish Cream »Cory Baldwin

Native Dubliner Cathal Armstrong, chef of Restaurant Eve in Alexandria, Virginia, says "Stir together good Irish whiskey (like Redbreast or Paddy), brown sugar, and strong black coffee, and then pour fresh, soft whipped cream over the back of a hot spoon onto the surface of the coffee. There should be a good balance between the sweetness of the sugar, the heat of the coffee, and the warmth of the alcohol. That last mouthful of cool cream really brings a well-made Irish coffee together." See the recipe for Irish Coffee »Todd Coleman

Bread is a staple of the Irish table. For best results, use high-quality flour and top it with dense Irish butter. See the recipe for Breakfast Bread »Christopher Hirsheimer

Cabbage is prepared in almost every Irish home. Here, it combines nicely with vinegar to offset salmon's richness. See the recipe for Salmon with Cabbage and Cider Vinegar »Melanie Acevedo

Decadent sultana scones require the richest butter you can find, such as Ireland's Kerrygold, available at most supermarkets. See the recipe for Sultana Scones »Christopher Hirsheimer

In Ireland, bacon typically refers to ham. Here, it is combined with cabbage and potatoes for a hearty casserole. See the recipe for Cabbage and Bacon Pie »Christopher Hirsheimer

A side dish that pairs well with salmon, use "floury," or dry, Irish potatoes for an authentic result. See the recipe for Irish Potato Galette » Melanie Acevedo

Spring onions and potatoes, two of the staples of Irish cooking, pair together wonderfully for a traditional soup. See the recipe for Potato and Spring Onion Soup »Christopher Hirsheimer

Creamy and light, scallop bisque makes a lovely starter on a cold evening. See the recipe for Scallop Bisque »Melanie Acevedo

When his son was off at college in Dublin and missing home-baked bread, Peter Ward devised a recipe that employs the one kitchen item every college student has: the pint glass. As Peter recounted to us, Jeff had no experience and few utensils in his student-housing kitchen, but "I knew that every Irish student has a pint glass, which he's brought home from a pub, so I invented a recipe for the simplest bread in the world, one whose ingredients he could measure out with a pint glass." See the recipe for Pint-Glass Bread »Christopher Hirsheimer

The Irish love their pudding—especially simple egg custard. If fresh strawberries aren't available, use any seasonal berries. See the recipe for Vanilla Custard with Strawberries »Melanie Acevedo

This basic crumble recipe can use various fruits in season. A summer favorite in Ireland is made with plums poached with cinnamon. Crumbles may be served alone, or with ice cream or clotted cream. See the recipe for Rhubarb-Ginger Crumble »Christopher Hirsheimer

In the Ireland of old, fish and shellfish, especially the latter, were so inexpensive that they were often considered the food of the poor. In the 18th century, posted notices advertised you could get a beer for twopence and salmon and lobster for nothing. See the recipe for Smoked Salmon with Pickled Chanterelles »melani

We adapted this toffee recipe from the Irish food authority Darina Allen's book The Complete Book of Irish Country Cooking (Penguin Studio, 1996). See the recipe for Yellow Man »Shoshanna Goldberg

This recipe is based on one used at Ballymaloe, the famed Irish restaurant founded by Myrtle Allen, who shared with us her belief that the most humane way to dispatch live lobsters is to lull them to sleep in slowly warming water. See the recipe for Hot Buttered Lobster »Christopher Hirsheimer

This is a hearty Irish variation on steak and kidney pie, made with the island's most famous beer. See the recipe for Beef & Guinness Pie »Christopher Hirsheimer

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