Colcannon is a traditional Irish dish of creamy mashed potatoes, cabbage, and scallions. It’s comfort food at its best and only works if it is made with lashings of good salty butter and real milk. There is an old Halloween tradition in Ireland where a ring or a coin is hidden in the mash, and if you find it, it’s yours to keep. It does seem a little weird now to consider hiding coins in mashed potato, as it does pose a serious choking hazard! In Ireland, we no longer hide any treasures in the colcannon, but we still keep the tradition and hide little prizes like rings and coins in barmbrack, which is a rich moist fruit cake. This colcannon is a simple dish to make, and really tastes amazingly good. If you are still a little suspicious of kale, this is a good dish to try it in. Traditionally colcannon would be served with boiled or baked ham and copious amounts of parsley white sauce. This dish always brings me back to being a child. Ham, cabbage and potatoes was our Saturday staple and one I always looked forward to. With this recipe, I had some leftovers which I turned them into colcannon potato cakes and served them with some melted cheese. It was a really tasty supper. So, if you have never tasted colcannon, now is a great time to try it as kale and potatoes are really plentiful. Please use whole milk and real butter, as it really won’t taste the same without them.
Ingredients
• 450g of peeled potatoes – Russets/ Roosters/ Maris Pipers
• 200g of Kale
• 15g of butter
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg (optional)
• 120ml of milk
• 25g of butter
• 25g of finely chopped spring onions
• Salt and pepper to taste
Method
Place the peeled potatoes in a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water on a high heat. I think a steamer works best to cook the potatoes, as they say nice and dry and fluffy.
While the potatoes are cooking, remove the tough inner stalks from the kale and chop the kale into bite size pieces. Then, heat 15g of butter in a large frying pan. Add the kale to the melted butter and cook for about 5/7 minutes until the kale is tender. Season with salt, pepper and some nutmeg. I find nutmeg goes really well with green vegetables like kale and spinach.
Once the potatoes are cooked, use a potato ricer/ potato masher to mash the potatoes. Then, heat the milk and butter in a large saucepan. Once the butter has melted and the milk is starting to simmer, add the mashed potatoes. Mix in the cooked kale and finely chopped spring onions and stir well with a wooden spoon. Taste it, and season well with salt and pepper. Serve straight away with chunks of salty butter on top. If you have some left over, this colcannon mix also makes really good potato cakes. Simply form the colcannon into patties and fry them in some hot oil.
