Traditional Irish Cooking: The Fare of Old Ireland and Its Myths and Legends

225 Pages·2008·0.62 MB·English

by  Andy Gravette

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TRADITIONAL
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COOKING
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On food, the great Dubliner,
John Swift, proclaimed:
Promises and pie-crust are made to be broken.
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TRADITIONAL
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COOKING
The Fare of Old Ireland
and its History
Andy Gravette and Debbie Cook
(cid:1)
a r n e t
P U B L I S H I N G
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TRADITIONAL IRISH COOKING
THE FARE OF OLD IRELAND AND ITS HISTORY
Published by
Garnet Publishing Ltd
8 Southern Court, South Street, Reading, RG1 4QS, UK
Copyright © Andy Gravette and Debbie Cook 2008
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic
or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval
systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except
by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.
The right of Andy Gravette and Debbie Cook to be identified as the
authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance
with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First Edition
ISBN 978-1-85964-155-2
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
House editorEmma Hawker and Dan Nunn
Design byDavid Rose and Mike Hinks
Typeset bySamantha Barden
Front cover illustration byJanette Louden
Printed in Lebanon
Whilst every care has been taken in the preparation of this book,
neither the author, editor nor publishers can accept any liability for
any consequence arising from the use of information contained therein.
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C O N T E N T S
Fabulous Fare and a Rich Heritage 1
Using the Recipes 3
Baking 5
Recipes 10
Soups and Stews 21
Recipes 23
Seafood 47
Recipes 53
Fish 63
Recipes 66
Potatoes 87
Recipes 91
Dairy Products 101
Recipes 107
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Vegetables 117
Recipes 119
Meat 131
Recipes 136
Poultry and Game 157
Recipes 158
Desserts and Drinks 169
Recipes 177
Glossary 197
Index 201
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Fabulous Fare and a
Rich Heritage
Almost everyone is familiar with Irish cream and butter and,
of course, Ireland’s famous stout and whiskey. However,
much of the country’s traditional fare is less well known,
except perhaps by those who have been fortunate enough
to visit the ‘Emerald Isle’. Recently, Irish cookery has
undergone something of a renaissance, as the restaurants
and bistros of its two capitals, Dublin and Belfast, have
gained reputations for presenting diners with superb
modern dishes based on the best of Irish ingredients. The
classic dishes of rural Ireland, however, remain the country’s
mainstay. Boxty and bannocks, colcannon and champ
are just a few of the traditional dishes that contribute to
the rich variety of this country’s cuisine. These recipes,
together with such delights as drisheen and dankey stew,
reflect the culinary ingenuity of the Irish people, and are
fundamentals of the Irish country kitchen. Irish food remains
basically simple. It consists of local ingredients used at
their best so that fresh, wholesome and succulent food can
still be enjoyed now as it was thousands of years ago.
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TRADITIONAL IRISH COOKING
It is through the homely recipes of traditional Ireland
that the rich tapestry of Irish history can be traced. For
many millennia, Ireland has been an agricultural country,
and fields on the island today were cultivated in pre-
historic times. ‘Time is the best storyteller’ is an early
Irish saying that can be applied equally to the country’s
food.
In this book we have combined snippets from Irish
history with descriptions of various ingredients and typical
traditional Irish recipes, demonstrating the link between
the country’s past and its present-day cuisine.
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Using the Recipes
All the recipe ingredients are given in metric, imperial and
American cup measures. Where the names are different,
American terms are given in brackets.
All spoon measurements are level. You should use accurate
measuring spoons for best results, using a 5 ml spoon for
1 teaspoon and a 15 ml spoon for 1 tablespoon.
Unless otherwise stated, the ingredients included in the
recipes – such as vegetables or fruit – are medium size.
All fresh ingredients should be washed and peeled where
necessary.
Medium-sized eggs are used in all cases, except where stated
otherwise. Eggs should always be eaten by the sell-by date
and should never be used if the shells are already cracked.
Pregnant women, the very young, the elderly and anyone
with a specific medical condition should refer to approved
guidelines before eating eggs and should particularly avoid
raw or partially cooked eggs.
Fresh herbs are preferable to dried varieties. Dried herbs
can be substituted where fresh herbs are unavailable, but
half the quantity indicated is sufficient. Fresh herbs can
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