40 mins
Colcannon
Recipe by Graham
Colcannon is a traditional Irish method of serving vegetables (in this case, potatoes and cabbage). Dead easy to make and very tasty.
Colcannon is traditionally made from mashed potatoes and kale (or cabbage), with milk (or cream), butter, salt and pepper added. It can contain other ingredients such as scallions, leeks, onions and chives. There are many regional variations of this dish. It is often eaten with boiled ham or Irish bacon. At one time it was a cheap, year-round staple food, though nowadays it is usually eaten in autumn/winter, when kale (a type of wild cabbage) comes into season.
An old Irish Halloween tradition is to serve colcannon with a ring and a thimble hidden in the fluffy green-flecked dish. Prizes of small coins such as threepenny or sixpenny bits were also concealed in it.
Coffee Cup Quiche 
Cold Peking Pork Ingredients for Colcannon
Currently displaying quantities in US Imperial Measurements
How to Cook Colcannon
- Peel the potatoes and cut into pieces of roughly equal size (A medium-sized potato is usually cut into about 6 pieces). Rinse the potatoes to remove any surface starch. Now place them in a large pan with sufficient salted water to cover the potatoes. Bring the water to the boil then turn down the heat and cover the pan so that it continues to boil gently.
- Cooking time can vary depending upon the type of potato and the texture. Generally, however, somewhere between 15 - 20 minutes is sufficient. When you think that the potatoes are close to being cooked, pierce one or two of them with a fork. If the fork penetrates easily with little resistance, the potatoes are cooked. Remove the pan from the heat and drain off the water. Add some milk and, using a potato masher, begin to break up and mash the potatoes. Add more milk (or cream if you want to be decadent) until the texture is soft and light.
- While the potatoes are cooking, chop the bacon and finely shred half the cabbage. Heat about 1oz (30g) of the butter in a saucepan and fry the bacon and cabbage for 5-8 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Heat the cream with the remaining butter and, when almost boiling, beat into the mashed potato. Add the bacon and cabbage mix to the potato and stir well. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve hot.
GRAHAM'S HOT TIP:
Be sure to use floury potatoes (like Estima, King Edward, Maris Piper, Desiree) if possible. What's the difference between Floury and Waxy Potatoes? Floury potatoes are brighter and more granular in appearance with a drier feel. They're better for dishes where you want fluffy potatoes or for mash. Waxy potatoes (like Charlotte or Maris Peer) are translucent and feel moist and pasty. They are good at staying firm and keeping their shape so they make great salad potatoes.
Reviews of Colcannon
| January 03 2015 Wasn't bad at all, but I wouldn't go out of my way to order it if it was offered in a restaurant. Having said that, my husband and kids loved it - what can I say??? pammy (7 reviews) |
What To Eat Tonight
If you know what kids like, they're easy to please, even using 'healthy' foods that they normally avoid. It's all in the preparation!
Oh, bacon, bacon, bacon. What can we say? Seen by many as a true gift from the gods, bacon is just so tasty, so versatile and so more-ish.
Christmas is that special time of year when diets go out of the window and folks spend more time preparing beautiful meals.
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