8 Distinctly Irish Foods
By Johanna Gohmann, PARADE

Colcannon? Crubeens? Barmbrack? To the people of Ireland, these traditional dishes offer cold-weather comfort and holiday nostalgia.

But for the rest of the world, centuries-old Irish recipes serve up some decidedly mixed reactions.

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day, here's a sampling of Ireland's most famous (and infamous) delicacies and how they found their place in Irish culture.

Colcannon
Colcannon is a hearty comfort food made of mashed potatoes, cabbage, scallions and cream. It’s still widely enjoyed in Ireland, particularly on Halloween.

There are a handful of ancient, playful traditions surrounding colcannon, one of which involves concealing both a ring and a thimble in the mixture. If you discover the ring, you are destined for marriage. The dreaded thimble dooms you to a life of spinsterhood.

Crubeens
Crubeens or “trotters ” used to be a bar snack staple. These boiled pigs’ feet were once as prevalent in pubs as hot wings, and some publicans reportedly served the incredibly salty nibbles to incite greater thirst, and hence, a bigger tab.

While their popularity in Ireland has flagged over the years, pigs’ feet have received more attention recently, most notably at New York restaurant Hakata TonTon, where nearly every dish celebrates the porcine appendage.

Dublin Lawyer
The delectable Dublin Lawyer has been around for some two hundred years. The origin of its name is somewhat uncertain, although locals jest that - like most lawyers – the dish is “incredibly rich and full of whiskey.” And indeed, the recipe calls for a large lobster soaked in plentiful heavy cream and Jameson’s, making it the sort of meal that might be savored on a special holiday.

In America, the entrée can be found at most authentic Irish restaurants.

Boxty
Boxty is said to be centuries old, and as with many traditional Irish foods, it comes with a special rhyme: “Boxty in the griddle, boxty in the pan, if you can’t make boxty, you’ll never get your man.” Apparently it was much to a woman’s detriment if she couldn’t whip up these fried potato pancakes.

In Dublin, Gallagher’s Boxty House specializes in the savory cakes, which can be ordered with a variety of sauces and fillings.

Barmbrack
Half bread, half cake, Barmbrack is typically a Halloween treat. It’s packed with raisins and sultanas, and, sometimes, small objects. If your slice contains the bit of cloth, you have hard times ahead. Discover the coin, and wealth will come your way.  Bite into the holy medallion - you have a future in the priesthood.

Barmbrack is known for being deliciously sweet and moist, although with half the house embedded in the loaf, it sounds like it’s best enjoyed slowly, in small bites.

Drisheen
One of the country’s more unusual concoctions is drisheen. It bares much resemblance to black pudding, and consists of boiled sheep’s blood mixed with breadcrumbs and encased in an animal intestine.  The end result is something that looks and tastes a bit like a sausage patty, although not the kind you’ll find at your local IHOP.

While drisheen is no longer a feature of contemporary Irish cuisine, it can still be procured at a few specialty markets in the south of Ireland.

Nettle Soup
“She fed them on potatoes and a soup made out of nettles, and a lump of hairy bacon that she boiled up in a kettle.” So goes the old Irish tune “In the Town of Ballybay.”

Nettle weeds are famous for their horrific sting, but the Irish long ago discovered that when (carefully) harvested and cooked, they made a healthy soup. It is rarely served anymore, but the recipe appears on many health food sites as a powerful detox agent.

Coddle
The ingredients for what makes a proper coddle are debated among the Irish, as the dish comes in endless variations. But a typical coddle includes bacon, potatoes, sausages, and onions, which are layered in a large pot, boiled, then oven-cooked.

Both Jonathon Swift and Sean O’Casey were reportedly big fans of this decidedly heavy meal, and it is still a popular way to warm your belly and your bones on a cold Dublin night.