Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (2024)

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Our Traditional Irish Colcannon recipe (potatoes + cabbage) comes straight from the family archives in County Cork Ireland. Otherwise, known as The People’s Republic of Cork. It’s a place of absolute beauty and where you’ll discover Irish cooking at its finest.

Colcannon is the perfect dish for St. Patrick’s Day. Leave it to the Irish to dream up a cream enriched potato dish! There are many variants as there are Irishmen, ours is conventional fare made up of potatoes, thinly sliced cabbage, kale, green onions, milk, butter, cream, salt, and pepper.

Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (1)

But we did cheat a little using the Instant Pot! Who doesn’t love the fact you can cook an entire meal in a couple of hours as opposed to an entire day. You know I love cooking and spend my days in the kitchen, but sometimes we just have to jam it out and this was one of those days!

Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (2)

Plus we made our Guinness Braised Corned Beef and then used the drippings to cook the mash. Literally an entire meal in a pot, perfect!

carte du jour

Can I use Kale in Colcannon?

Yes, in fact many recipes call for kale! Older versions trace back to using green cabbage (as ours does) but Kale is a great choice as well.

Chef’s Tip: You can also swap out the green onions for white onions, shallots or leeks if you prefer.

How to Make Colcannon on the Stovetop

  1. Boil the potatoes: Add the whole scrubbed potatoes to a medium heavy-bottomed pot and cover with cold water by an inch. Add 2 tablespoons of Kosher sea salt, and bring to a boil. Boil until the potatoes pierce easily with a knife, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain in a colander.
  2. Cook the cabbage with butter: Return the pot to the stove and set over medium-high heat. Melt a Tablespoon of butter in the pot and once it’s hot, add the cabbage. Cook the cabbage for 3-4 minutes, or until wilted and have released some moisture.
  3. Mash the potatoes with milk or cream and greens: Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle. Slip the skins off of them and dice into chunks, add to the pot. Pour half of the warm cream in and mash the potatoes + cabbage, and green onions, adding more cream as necessary until the desired consistency is reached. Mash will be “lumpy”. Season with Kosher sea salt and pepper to taste.

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How to Make Traditional Irish Colcannon

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Traditional Irish Colcannon

Our Traditional Irish Colcannon recipe comes straight from the family archives in County Cork Ireland.Colcannon is the perfect dish for St. Patricks Day. Leave it to the Irish to dream up a cream enriched potato dish!

Category:Dinner

Cuisine:Irish

Keyword:Traditional Irish Colcannon

Servings: 8 people

Author: Mean Green Chef

Ingredients

  • 2.5lbsmedium sized Idaho Potatoes,whole + washed + skin on
  • 8Tablespoonsbutter
  • 1/2cup (120 ml)milk,whole
  • 1/2cup (123 ml)heavy cream
  • 1medium headgreen cabbage,cored + roughly chopped
  • 3cupskale,washed + roughly chopped
  • 4scallions,chopped
  • 2cupsstock from cooking corned beef,or stock of your choice
  • Kosher sea salt + freshly cracked black pepper,to taste

Instructions

  1. Add potatoes to Instant Pot with cooking stock, cover with lid, ensuring that the valve is set to sealed, press manual and set the cook time to 15-minutes.

    Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (5)

  2. While the potatoes cook. Warm butter, milk, cream and a few cracks of black pepper over low heat in a small saucepan.

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  3. After the timer goes off allow natural release for 5 minutes and then vent. Remove potatoes from the instant pot with tongs and set aside until cool enough to handle.

    Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (7)

  4. Add thinly sliced cabbage into the Instant Pot, replace the lid,ensuring that the valve is set to sealed, and set to manual high pressure 6 minutes.

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  5. As the cabbage cooks, slip the skins off of the potatoes and cube. Set aside.

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  6. Once the cabbage is done, press Cancel on the IP, safely do a QuickRelease by opening the valve to "Vent". After all of the pressure has been released open the lid. Scoop out the cabbage and set aside.

    Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (10)

  7. Pour the excess stock into a container and reserve for corned beef. Add the potatoes, cabbage, sliced green onions, and half of the cream mixture back into the Instant Pot. Using a hand masher, mash the Colcannon adding more cream until the desired consistency is reached, it should be "lumpy".

    Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (11)

  8. Serve warm with a knob of butter on top if desired and seasoned with Kosher sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

    Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (12)

Recipe Notes

  • Prep time is approximate.
  • Mash only until Colcannon is blended, there will be "lumps".
  • Best eaten the same day but can be stored in an airtight container up to 3 days.

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Angela

Hi, I’m Angela, I grew up in New York in an Irish-Italian multi-generational restaurateur family. I’ve been in the kitchen over 35 years, and it’s still my favorite place to create. Growing up in hustle and bustle of professional kitchens was the forefront for my love of all things food. From baking bread, desserts, to hand rolling pasta and mastering the art of soup making. It was the bedrock that shaped my life.

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6 comments

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Pauline ReynoldsMarch 14, 2019 - 6:59 pm

Angela, what if I don’t have an instapot for the cabbage? What would you use instead?

Reply

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AngelaMarch 14, 2019 - 7:14 pm

No Problem Pauline! Preheat your oven to 275°F/135° layer the ingredients as stated into a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or pan wrap the top of the pot tightly with heavy-duty foil then place the lid on top. Bake for 4 hours, pull and check for tenderness. it should be done within that time but depends on the cut itself you may need an additional hour or so. After it’s tender then you can place it on a sheet pan and broil it to crisp up the top side, about 5 minutes. Pull from the oven, tent with foil and allow it to sit for 15 minutes to rest. The slice and serve 🙂

Reply

Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (22)

Rochelle StiversMarch 13, 2020 - 5:11 am

I have been looking for recipes to cook on St.Paddys day. This looks really delicious, and I love to cook in my instant pot. Can’t wait to try it! Thanks for sharing!

Reply

Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (23)

AngelaMarch 13, 2020 - 6:36 am

This is a classic St. Paddy’s dish, Rochelle. And it’s super easy even if you make it on the stovetop too! Thanks so much 🙂

Reply

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Travel ClansMarch 18, 2020 - 12:30 am

I love visiting your blog! Your recipes are just brilliant! My wife and I love trying them out! Keep up the good work

Reply

Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (25)

AngelaApril 20, 2020 - 3:25 pm

Wow, thank you so very much you made my day! If you ever want to see anything specific please let me know. 🙂

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Traditional Irish Colcannon Recipe | Mean Green Chef (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between colcannon and champ? ›

Colcannon is made with cabbage or kale while champ is made by flavoring milk with green onions, then mixing them into mashed potatoes. To finish the dish off, it's mixed with melted butter.

What is Irish colcannon made of? ›

Colcannon is an Irish dish that's made of mashed potatoes, shredded cabbage or kale, green onions and tons of butter and whole milk. Sometimes crumbled bacon is added for an extra-succulent, salty flavor.

Why is colcannon important in Ireland? ›

Colcannon is a hearty dish that has been eaten on Halloween night for years. Traditionally, a ring was hidden in the dish, and whoever was to find it would be likely to marry in the upcoming year! Colcannon was even paired with a little poem: Did you ever eat Colcannon, made from lovely pickled cream?

What does colcannon taste like? ›

Colcannon is full of flavor. If you like mashed potatoes, you'll most likely love this dish. The mashed potatoes get tons of flavor from the green onions and a nice texture from the chopped kale. We all love butter and milk in our potatoes, so that is also in this colcannon recipe with salt and pepper to taste!

Is bubble and squeak the same as colcannon? ›

Colcannon is mashed potatoes and chopped cabbage and usually chopped ham or bacon. Bubble and squeak is mashed leftover potatoes and chopped cabbage mixed up and fried as single round cake, and then sliced and served usually at breakfast.

What does champ mean in Ireland? ›

Champ (brúitín in Irish) is an Irish dish of mashed potatoes with scallions, butter and milk. Champ. Alternative names. Poundies.

What does colcannon mean in English? ›

Colcannon (Irish: cál ceannann, meaning "white-headed cabbage") is a traditional Irish dish of mashed potatoes with cabbage.

Why do the Irish eat corned beef and cabbage? ›

The Irish immigrants also realized that cabbage was a more readily available vegetable in America than in Ireland, where it was traditionally a fall and winter vegetable. So they combined the corned beef with cabbage to create a hearty, filling meal that was reminiscent of their homeland.

Do Irish people like mashed potatoes? ›

The classic white potato originates from the South Americas and made its way to Ireland via Europe! Nevertheless, we love them in all shapes, sizes and forms. Boiled, roasted, mashed, turned into Champ with milk, butter and spring onions, or fried into Boxty.

What did they eat in Ireland before potatoes? ›

Until the arrival of the potato in the 16th century, grains such as oats, wheat and barley, cooked either as porridge or bread, formed the staple of the Irish diet. The most common form of bread consisted of flatbread made from ground oats.

Why did the Irish only eat potatoes? ›

Why were potatoes so important to Ireland? The potato plant was hardy, nutritious, calorie-dense, and easy to grow in Irish soil. By the time of the famine, nearly half of Ireland's population relied almost exclusively on potatoes for their diet, and the other half ate potatoes frequently.

Who invented colcannon? ›

The name comes from the Gaelic phrase “cal ceannan,” which means “white-headed cabbage”. One of the earliest written references to colcannon comes from the diary of William Bulkeley, who wrote on October 31, 1735 while on a visit to Dublin: “Dined at Coz. Wm.

What is Ireland's famous dish? ›

To many across the country, Irish stew is the national dish of Ireland. The methods and flavour of an Irish stew vary from person to person and have evolved over the years. Previously, it all depended on which ingredients were cheaper and more common at that time.

What's a traditional Irish meal? ›

Colcannon and champ

Potatoes are still a staple at most mealtimes, with traditional dishes remaining popular. Colcannon is a classic, comforting mash of potatoes, cabbage (or kale) and butter (or cream), flavoured with spring onions.

What do the Irish call spring onions? ›

In Ireland, scallions are chopped and added to mashed potatoes, known as champ or as an added ingredient to Colcannon.

Is champ the same as Bubble & Squeak? ›

About Bubble and Squeak

It is along the similar lines of Colcannon or Champ, both Irish dishes that are similar but aren't a crusted mash up of leftovers, rather more creamed mashed potato.

Why is it called colcannon? ›

The word colcannon is derived from the Gaelic term cal ceannann, which means "white-headed cabbage" — the vegetable most commonly mixed with potatoes in this dish. It's often served alongside Irish meats, and is made by combining potatoes and greens (usually cabbage, but kale and other leafy greens are sometimes used).

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