St. Patrick’s Day is an important religious holiday for the people of Ireland. This day is all about getting together on a specially prepared feast. Over the years the Irish have outlined a specific cuisine for this holiday. Some of the most interesting recipes for St. Patrick’s Day follow.
Appetizers
It is a norm to start off an Irish meal with an interesting appetizer. When it comes to St. Patrick’s Day there are a number of traditional appetizers that the Irish consume on this day.
Potato Soup
The potato soup is a must have on this important religious holiday for the Irish. This simple soup is made using peeled diced potatoes, sliced celery, chopped onions, chicken bullion cubes, milk, flour, water and butter.
The potatoes, onion and celery are combined in a pan of water with the seasoning and put on the stove to cook until tender. Add milk and butter to smoothen the soup. Keep on cooking until the soup becomes thick and the butter is dissolved and this simple traditional St. Patrick’s Day soup will be ready to be served.
Potato and apple pudding
The potato and apple pudding is another all time favorite for the Irish. You will need some mashed potatoes, self raising flour, butter, cooking apples, lemon, cider, whole cloves and white sugar for this dish.
Start by mixing the butter with the mashed potatoes. Add some salt and then flour and milk giving it a slack dough like texture. Line a bowl with some of it while reserving the rest for the lid. Layer the bowl with the apple chunks and add sugar according to your taste. Add the whole cloves, cider and lemon juice to the bowl making sure the contents do not become too wet. Lay the lid and dampen the pastry edges while securing it tightly with foil. Let it rise and then top it with cream or custard to serve.
Main course
This is one of the most commonly eaten main course dishes for St. Patrick’s Day. You will need corned beef brisket, sliced onions, garlic cloves, bay leaves, whole cloves, potatoes, carrots and cabbage to prepare this dish.
You will start by placing the corned beef in a Dutch oven and cover with hot water. To this you will add the garlic cloves, onions and bay leaves. Simmer this for about one hour until the meat becomes tender. Add the carrots and potatoes once you have removed the liquid and then cook for another ten minutes. Lastly add the cabbage wedges and cook for another 20 minutes for the vegetables to become tender.
Irish Dumpling Stew
This is another classic entry for St. Patrick’s Day. You will need gold potatoes, stew lamb or beef meat, onions, carrots, tomatoes clove garlic, beef broth, mixed herbs, salt and pepper.
Start off by coating the meat with flour and then browning it in oil on a skillet. Add the garlic and onions and sauté for a while. Now place the contents in a large cooking pot with the broth let it cook for two hours. While the soup cooks you need to prepare the dumplings made from eggs, mixed herbs, and bread crumbs. Add these during the last 20 minutes of cooking.
