IRISH FOOD AND RECIPES

Former Irish Club director Martha McEvoy and present Irish Club Secretary Joe Doherty gathered together a collection of memories and recipes from their Irish childhoods.  These are some of those recipes.

Ulster Fry

As the name suggests this is popular in the north of Ireland and is a must for any visitors to Ireland .  Traditionally served at breakfast but eaten at any time of the day.

·        Bacon

·        Sausages

·        Black Pudding

·        Mushrooms

·        Tomato

·        Eggs

The method is simple – Fry the lot! Serve with soda bread and wash down with gallons of tea.

Irish Soda Bread

Made with moist flour, soda and buttermilk or sour milk.  There are brown and white varieties and if raisins are added it becomes “Spotted Dog”.   Most people agree that the secret of a great soda bread is finding the right flour – a bit of trial and error.  

Ingredients

·        900g wholemeal flour

·        450g strong white flour

·        1 heaped teaspoon of baking powder

·        Approximately 600ml buttermilk

·        2 eggs

·        A good pinch of salt

Method

Preheat oven to 190º.

Place all ingredients on a large bowl and combine well. 

In another bowl mix the eggs and buttermilk.

Make a well in the dry mixture and slowly pour in wet ingredients. 

Ix with your hands until you get a soft dough but not too wet. (A dough that is too wet or stiff will result in a heavy bread)

Lightly flour a pastry board, divide the dough in half and make two flat rounds of bread on the board.

Cut a deep cross in the middle of each loaf.

Place in preheated oven at 190º for ten minutes then reduce heat.

Bake until the bottom of the bread sounds hollow when knocked.  This takes about ½ hour.

Porter or Guinness Cake

Ingredients

• 100g butter

• 225g brown sugar

• 3 eggs beaten

• 350g self-raising flour

• pinch of salt

• ½ tsp mixed spice

• 100g raisins soaked in Guinness overnight

• 50g candied peel (soaked)

• 225g sultanas (soaked)

• 50g glace cherries

• ½ pint Guinness… plus some for the cook!

Method

Preheat oven to 180º.

Cream butter and sugar until sugar is dissolved then beat in the eggs.

Add flour, salt, mixed spice and the soaked fruit.

Finally mix in the Guinness.

Grease a 20cm cake tin and pour in the mixture.

Bake for about 2 hours.

Irish Stew

• 900g Neck of lamb or forequarter chops

• 900g sliced potatoes

• 450g sliced onions

• Salt and pepper

• Sprig of Thyme

• Lamb Stock

• Chopped Parsley

Layer the lamb, potatoes and onions in a pot and season with salt and pepper.  Fill to 2/3 full of stock and add the thyme.

Cover with a lid and cook for 30 minutes.

Uncover and cook till tender.

Serve with chopped parsley.

Barn Brack

A bread made from sugar, spices and dried fruit.  The word “breac” (brack) means spotted and refers to the fruit.  It can be eaten all year round but is most common at Hallowe’en.  Traditionally at this time a ring, stick, rag and pea were placed in the “breac”.  The person to get the ring was to be married within the year, the rag condemned the person who got it to be single forever, the stick meant physical violence in a marriage and the pea predicted wealth.

Tripe

The sheep’ stomach.  Commonly eaten on Saturday night, it is usually eaten sliced and cooked for a couple of hours with plenty of onions, in milk, seasoned with salt and pepper.

Crubeens

Pig’s feet!  They were common in Co. Cork where the meatier hind feet were coked with onions, carrots and seasoning for about two hours then served with soda bread.  They can be eaten hot or cold and apparently some country chippers (Fish’n’Chip shops) still serve them deep fried with chips.

Champ

A simple, tasty dish of mashed potatoes and scallions (Spring onions)

Useful websites

www.foodisland.com.recipes/index.html

www.foodgloriousfood.ie

www.rte.ie/tv/alittlehistoryofirishfood

www.fic.in-ireland.net

www.visitireland.com/planning/food.asp

http://www.irishabroad.com/Culture/Kitchen/Recipe.asp?RcpID=36

Don’t forget that the Canberra Irish Club’s Ulysses bistro has a special Irish night on Sundays and serves traditional Irish meals such as

• Irish Stew

• Beef and Guinness Pies

• Cabbage and Bacon

• Dublin Coddle

• Ballycotton Fish Pie

Traditional meals are also available on St. Patrick's Day and the Irish Open Day on the first Sunday of May.

Bookings are essential.