Irish Food & Recipes

What is black pudding? Ireland’s blood sausage explained: what goes into it (pig’s or beef blood, fat, oatmeal, onion and spices), how it tastes, how white pudding and Cork’s drisheen differ, the history from a medieval Irish satire to the pig killing and the 2011 state dinner, the story of Clonakilty, Irish vs British puddings such as Stornoway, why Irish brands are hard to find in the US (and why it isn’t banned there), and how to cook it in a pan, oven or air fryer, with a seared scallop, black pudding and apple recipe.

A proper Irish apple cake recipe in metric and US cups: a soft sponge baked around sharp Bramley apples, with a buttery crumble top and a real egg custard to pour over. Then Granny Smith swaps for US bakers, apple and blackberry, almond and gluten-free variations, storing and freezing, why the Bramley (an English apple whose first recorded sale fell on Halloween 1862) became the apple Irish bakers reach for, how Armagh became the Orchard County, the 1930s Halloween suppers where an apple cake hid a ring and a button, the apples of the Irish Otherworld, and the difference between an Irish apple tart, apple cake and apple crumble.

The full Irish breakfast explained: rashers, sausages, black and white pudding, eggs, grilled tomato, mushrooms and soda bread, plus the baked bean debate, boxty and the Ulster fry with its soda farls and potato bread. Then a step-by-step recipe that gets everything hot at once, what the puddings are really made of, the real history from pig killings and stirabout to the Celtic Tiger breakfast roll, where to buy Irish rashers abroad, and whether a fry really cures a hangover.

A proper pan boxty recipe in metric and US measures: grated raw potato squeezed dry, mashed potato, flour and buttermilk, cooked on a griddle. Then tips on squeezing and griddle heat, filled-pancake and dumpling variations, the three old kinds of boxty (pan, boiled and loaf), where boxty comes from county by county, how it differs from potato cakes, the honest story of the name bacstaí (poor-house bread or bakehouse?), the ‘Boxty on the griddle’ rhyme from the 1930s Schools’ Collection, and William Carleton’s 1841 description of boxty as an Irish luxury.

A proper Irish soda bread recipe with four ingredients (flour, bread soda, salt and buttermilk) in metric and US cups, plus brown bread, spotted dog and griddle farl variations, troubleshooting, storage and freezing. Then the real history: the 1836 Newry Telegraph recipe, baking in the bastible over the fire, why the cross on top was meant to bless the bread and keep the fairies off it, farls in Ulster, and how the sweet American Irish soda bread differs.

A proper Irish colcannon recipe, with metric and US measures: floury potatoes, kale or cabbage, scallions, hot milk and plenty of butter. Then how to hide a Halloween charm safely, what the ring, coin, button and thimble meant county by county in the 1930s Schools’ Collection, the plates of colcannon left out for the dead, the fairies and the púca, where the name cál ceannann comes from, and how colcannon differs from champ.

Spiced beef is Ireland’s Christmas cold cut, and Cork’s above all. Here’s what it is, why Cork claims it, how long to simmer a bought joint by weight, and a home-cured recipe without saltpetre that follows current food safety advice.

The classic Irish Christmas cake, made weeks ahead and fed with Irish whiskey. One reliable recipe in grams and US cups, every oven setting, a countdown from baking to icing, and how to feed, store, marzipan and royal-ice it.

An easy Irish tea brack for Halloween, with metric and US cups, every oven setting and a safe way to hide the ring. Then what the ring and tokens meant, the name bairín breac, and the yeasted original.

I don’t know how often I tell myself that I am never getting hungover again, but I do seem not to have learned my lesson. It’s 2024 now, and I …

The Irish Christmas traditions everyone recognises are the candle in the window on Christmas Eve, Midnight Mass, the Christmas Day sea swim, the 12 Pubs of Christmas, Stephen’s Day and …

The classic Irish coffee recipe with metric and US measures, the fix for sinking cream, which Irish whiskey to use, the right glass, the story from Joe Sheridan at Foynes to the Buena Vista Cafe, and a spiced Christmas version.

Saint Patrick wasn’t Irish, his colour was blue and Irish pubs were shut on his day for 36 years. Here are 30 St Patrick’s Day facts with real sources, plus stats, kids’ facts and the myths to forget.

Flu season is here; it is around about the time we all get the terrible flu for many of us. What if I told you there was a delicious Irish …

Now, first of all, Blarney stones are a thing! I just discovered them. They look incredibly tasty and a great way to celebrate your Irish heritage.  I know it is …