Vegetarian

Easy colcannon recipe

Prep: 20 minutes, Cook: 25 minutes
6

Looking for a colcannon recipe? This dish from The Irish Cookbook by JP McMahon could be just what you’re after.

Colcannon is a traditional Irish dish originally made from leftover potatoes combined with cabbage, kale or other greens. With this in mind, it can be the ideal thing to cook up with any leftover veggies from a weekend roast!

Historians think that the word ‘colcannon’ possibly derives from the Welsh for ‘leek soup’ (cawl cennin), which also contains potatoes. The dish likely originated from combining leftover potatoes with leeks and water to form a new meal.

Potatoes are not only comforting, they’re also full of helpful wellbeing benefits. They’re a good source of vitamin C, which plays an important role in supporting our immune system. Potatoes also contain a number of helpful minerals, including potassium, magnesium and manganese.

When choosing your butter, opt for quality grass-fed butter. Not only is grass-fed butter utterly delicious, it’s rich in vitamin A and higher in omega-3 fatty acids than regular butter. Omega-3 fatty acids have a number of health benefits, including contributing to eye and brain health.

Find out more about The Irish Cookbook

The Irish Cookbook by acclaimed chef JP McMahon contains 480 home-cooking recipes that celebrate the range and quality of Ireland’s bounty. From oysters and seaweed on its west coast to beef and lamb from its lush green pastures. The book presents best-loved traditional dishes together with many lesser-known gems from the Emerald Isle.

Find out more about The Irish Cookbook

Discover more delicious recipes

Ingredients

  • 1kg (about 10 medium) potatoes, peeled
  • 250g butter, room temperature
  • 100ml milk
  • 6 spring onions, thinly sliced
  • 15g parsley, finely chopped
  • Sea salt, to taste

Method

  1. Put the potatoes into a large pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil over a high heat, then simmer for about 20 minutes until soft.
  2. When soft, strain and press through a drum sieve with the butter. Season with sea salt.
  3. Meanwhile, bring the milk to the boil in a small pan, add the spring onions and simmer for 4–5 minutes until the onions are tender, then fold into the potatoes.
  4. Check the seasoning and finally fold in the chopped parsley.