Corned beef is not known in Ireland. It is the chosen food of 40 million Americans who claim Irish ancestry. These are the descendants of the more than 1 million Irish immigrants who came to the U.S. to escape the Irish Potato Famine in the mid-1800s. They brought with them Irish beer & whiskey, shamrocks, leprechauns, Waterford crystal and Bellock China. They honored St. Patrick, who brought the Gospel of Christ to Ireland in the 5th century.

In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is more a religious holiday than a cultural one. Fare includes Irish bacon or smoked pork butt and cabbage, as well as Irish stew, boiled dinner, Dublin coddle, and colcannon.

Traditional Irish cuisine is hearty peasant food made with simple, inexpensive ingredients. Poor country people did not have a lot of exotic ingredients on hand. Because of the mild climate, most families had backyard gardens where they grew root vegetables like onions, leeks, parsnips, turnips, carrots; hardy greens like cabbage and kale; and other brassicas like cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. Before the introduction of the potato from the New World, they ate lots of oats, barley and millet. They raised sheep, pigs and cows.

Cabbage is native to Ireland and the British Isles. Oleracea var cytodeme still grows wild on the Atlantic coast of the islands, thriving in the mild, moist climate. Economic historian Cormac Grda writes in Ireland: A New Economic History that before the arrival of the potato, 65 pounds of cabbage (on average) was consumed annually by each citizen of the Emerald Isle.

Large slabs of back bacon are boiled with cabbage, potatoes, onions and carrots. Made from the back of the pig (rather than pork belly), Irish bacon is a much leaner cut of meat than American bacon. This satisfying, nourishing dish is common in the Irish countryside, where many families grow their own vegetables and raise their own pigs. Cabbage, potatoes, carrots and onions are all fairly easy to grow in Ireland’s cool and mild climate.

Corned beef is an American invention. It is beef that has been preserved in a salty brine solution. Before refrigeration, this was the way to preserve meat. “Corn” is an old English word that means a small kernel, in this case, it refers to kernels of coarse salt used to brine the meat. Spices are added for flavor. Sugar is stirred in to prevent the meat from hardening, and saltpeter helps preserve the red color. You buy it already “corned” as a whole corned beef brisket or as sliced deli meat. The corned beef brisket usually comes with a spice packet to add to the broth. Corned beef takes fairly long to cook –about an hour per pound. This makes it perfect for cooking in a crock pot, so you don’t need to watch and stir.

Irish immigrants living in New York City’s Lower East Side in the 1800s began using corned beef because it was the cheapest meat available. They learned this from their Jewish neighbors on the Lower East Side, who didn’t eat pork or bacon.

There are also other things to serve. I like skillet pork chops and cabbage. Other Irish dishes include Irish stew, Irish soda, bread, fried cabbage and colcannon.

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Corned Beef and Cabbage

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Ingredients:

4 to 5 pounds corned beef brisket

Water to cover

Additional spices (Use any or all, depending on your taste and what you have available):

1 Tablespoon chopped minced garlic

2 to 3 bay leaves

Several grains allspice (1 to 2 teaspoons)

Several black peppercorns (1 to 2 teaspoons)

1 teaspoon dill seed

1 teaspoon coriander seed

2 teaspoons mustard seed

Several whole cloves

1 can of beer

1/2 cup vinegar

2 pounds (about 8) yellow onions, peeled

2 pounds (about 8 medium) carrots, scrubbed

4 turnips, scrubbed

2 pounds (8 medium) potatoes, peeled

1 medium head cabbage

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

Place the meat in a large kettle. Add the spice packet that came with the meat and/or the optional spices; some like to add a can of beer or a little vinegar. The alcohol in the beer will cook away, leaving the flavor behind.

Slice one or two of the carrots, a turnip, and dice half the onions, and add to this. Add enough water to cover the corned beef; stir to combine. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 3 hours until a fork can pierce all the way through. (Corned beef needs to cook about one hour per pound).

While the meat is cooking, cut the remaining veggies — turnips, carrots, onions and potatoes into one-inch chunks. Core the cabbage, remove the tough outer leaves and cut into wedges.

When the meat is done, add carrots, potatoes, turnips, onions and cabbage; cover, return to a boil, and cook until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.

To serve, slice the corned beef against the grain. Spoon some of the cooking liquid over it to keep it moist. Serve with the cooked vegetables. Mustard or horseradish sauce are good condiments, as they complement the corned beef.

To cook in a crock-pot:

Mix the water, vinegar and / or beer, spices and chopped onion in the bottom of a six-quart slow cooker. Add the meat, top with the turnips, carrots and potatoes. Add enough liquid to cover. Simmer on low all day, 8 to 10 hours. Increase the heat to high, add coarsely chopped cabbage, cover and cook for another 30 to 40 minutes. The slow cooker is perfect for this traditional dish, which should bubble away untended for hours.

Leftovers? Use the broth left from cooking the beef in soup; the meat can be used in sandwiches.

Cooked Irish Bacon and Cabbage

Ingredients:

1 lb. Irish bacon or Canadian bacon

4 bay leaves

4 grains allspice

1 Tablespoon butter

1 medium onion

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 to 3 large potatoes

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 head Savoy cabbage

1 or 2 carrots

1 parsnip

Directions:

Place bacon in saucepan with bay leaves and allspice grains. Cover with water, and bring to boil over moderate heat. Skim foam from surface. Reduce heat and simmer about 10 minutes. Remove onto a plate, let cool, cut into 1″ chunks and set aside. Reserve broth and spices.

While bacon is cooking, prepare the vegetables. Core the cabbage, cut into 1″ pieces. Scrub carrot and parsnip, slice and set aside.

Melt the butter in a large, heavy soup kettle over medium-low heat. Peel and chop onion; sprinkle with salt. Cook, stirring, 3 to 5 minutes or until translucent. Peel potatoes, dice and add. Cook another 2 minutes. Add reserved stock from cooking bacon together with bay leaves and allspice berries. Add reserved vegetables and sprinkle in pepper. Simmer about 10 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender.

Serve meat with vegetables and sauce. (Reserve broth for soup later).

Or serve as a stew: ladle into bowls, then add the chopped meat and top with sauce.

Serves 3 to 4.

Parsley sauce:

1 bunch fresh parsley

2 cups whole milk

1/2 cup flour

Chop parsley and set aside.

Place milk and flour in quart jar. Shake well to combine. Transfer to saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat, stirring so it does not burn or boil over. When it comes to a simmer, and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, stir in parsley and cook another minute. This can be made ahead.

Mustard sauce:

1 Tablespoon butter

1 clove garlic, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

2/3 cup dry white wine

2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard

1 cup milk

Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in wine and mustard, bring to a simmer and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes. Add 1 cup broth from soup kettle and the 1 cup milk. Bring to a boil; cook about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Pork and Vegetable Stew

A hearty, savory stew with potatoes, carrots, celery, broth, herbs and spices. Cook on the stove or in the crock pot. I used pork but beef or lamb could also be used. Amounts are approximate; use what you have.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds pork steak

3 yellow onions

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 bay leaf

2 carrots

2 pounds potatoes

1 pound parsnips

2 carrots

2 stalks celery

1 head cabbage, coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 cup Irish stout beer

Directions:

Cut off the fatty parts of the meat. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat, render the fat. Cut meat in chunks and brown on all sides in the fat for about 10 minutes. Peel and dice the onions, add, cover, and cook until translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Cover with a little water, add salt, pepper, and bay leaf, lower the heat and simmer 30 to 60 minutes until tender.

Peel potatoes; wash carrots, parsnip and celery. Peel and crush the garlic. Slice all the vegetables, add to the stew along with the herbs, and simmer 30 minutes longer — or a couple hours … longer is better.

Take a little cold water, add 2 teaspoons cornstarch, mix well, add beer, stir in a little warm liquid from the pot, then blend back into the stew, stirring, to thicken. Cook about 10 more minutes.