Irish Recipes

Ireland is famous for a lot of things, its culture, its twang, leprechauns and whatnot. But the food in Ireland is full of freshness and exciting flavors, be it whiskey, ale or liqueurs, Irish food is as gorgeous as the country itself. Here are some of the most popular Irish recipes...

Cruibini - Grilled Pigs' trotters
Ingredients:

• Brined pigs' trotters - 4.
• Carrots - 2.
• Celery stick - 1.
• Onion - 1.
• Wine vinegar - 6 ounces.
• Melted butter - 1/2 cup.
• Dried breadcrumbs - 1 cup.
• Allspice - 1/2 teaspoon.

For Brine:

• Water - 12 1/2 cups.
• Sugar - 3/4 pound.
• Salt and pepper - as per taste.
• Bay leaf - 1.
• Thyme - 3 sprigs.
• Black peppercorns - 1 tablespoon.
• Cloves - 4.

Preparation:

• Add all the brine ingredients in a pan and boil, strain and allow to cool. Next add the trotters and weigh them down in the brine and leave for 24 hours.
• Tie the trotters with lots of string so that they do not break.
• Place these in a pan with water and vegetables and heat. let this mixture simmer for 2 hours. allow this to cool.
• Remove the trotters from the mixture and break in half lengthwise. pat dry and roll in melted butter and cover with breadcrumbs mixed with allspice.
• Grill in a preheated oven at 350F for 20 minutes or till they are crisp.
• Serve hot with mustard.

Vichyssoise - Chilled leek and potato Soup
Ingredients:

• Butter - 4 tablespoons.
• Leeks white only, washed - 8.
• Potatoes, diced - 8.
• Chicken broth - 5 cups.
• Salt - 1 tablespoon.
• Half and half - 2 cups.
• Nutmeg - 1/2 teaspoon.
• white pepper - 1/2 teaspoon.
• Heavy cream - 1 cup.
• Chives, fresh - for garnishing.

Preparation:

• Take a large pan and place over medium heat. Add the butter and let it melt.
• Next add the leeks and let them cook till they turn translucent. This should take 10 minutes.
• To this add the potatoes, salt and chicken broth. Let this simmer for half an hour till the potatoes are soft and cooked.
• After this has cooled, add it to a blender till it is nice and smooth.
• Pour this in a serving dish, add the half and half, pepper and nutmeg.
• Refrigerate and after it has cooled stir the heavy cream and garnish with chives.

Beef and Guinness Stew
Ingredients:

• Guinness - 3 cups.
• Dijon mustard - 1 tablespoon.
• Rosemary sprig, fresh - 1.
• Bay leaves - 1.
• Beef, cubed - 3 pounds.
• Canola oil - 3 tablespoons.
• Butter, unsalted - 4 tablespoons.
• Onions, sliced - 3.
• Celery stalks, chopped - 3.
• Carrots, sliced - 3.
• White mushrooms, quartered - 1/2 pound.
• All purpose flour - 1 tablespoons.
• Garlic, minced - 1 clove.
• Salt and pepper - as per taste.
• Parsley, minced - 2 tablespoons.

Preparation:

• In a large bowl, add 1 cup Guinness, mustard, rosemary and bay leaves, mix well. To this mixture add the beef and mix properly so that the beef is well coated. Refrigerate this overnight.
• Set the oven at 350 degrees F and let it preheat.
• Remove the meat from the marinade and place in a large skillet to which oil has been added. Let the meat heat on each side for 5 minutes till they are nice and brown on each side. Remove the meat from the skillet and place in a casserole dish.
• To the same skillet add the butter and heat, next add onions and cook. Add carrots and celery and cook till softened. Stir the flour and mix well.
• Add the rest of the Guinness, garlic, salt and pepper to the skillet.
• Pour the vegetable mixture over the cooked meat in the casserole and cook in the oven for 2 hours. Keep stirring and add seasoning and parsley for garnish.