5 Traditional St. Patrick’s Day Foods

Corned beef and cabbage have been all but synonymous with St. Patrick’s Day in the United States since Irish immigrants in America repopularized it in the 19th century. But in Ireland, its counterpart is bacon and cabbage. For centuries, the Irish more commonly ate pork and used cows for dairy and fieldwork.

Comer says his family didn’t eat corned beef on St. Patrick’s Day when he was growing up. “It’s more of an American immigrant thing, to be honest,” he says. “I’m not saying there wasn’t definitely corned beef...but I don’t see it as Irish food.”

Today, Irish bacon remains the base of this quintessential dish. It’s boiled with shredded cabbage and then sliced and served with a creamy parsley sauce. It’s usually served with boiled or mashed potatoes.

Traditional Irish stew—full of lamb, cabbage, carrots and potatoes—is one of the country’s best-known dishes. It’s so abundant that Ireland honored its ingredients on stamps in 2005. The slow-cooked stews are hearty and rich and reflect the true roots of Irish cooking.

“Lamb comes into season around March [or] April…and Irish lamb is really good,” Comer says. “Irish stew [with lamb], I would say would be the No. 1 dish [on St. Patrick’s Day when I was] growing up.”

Today, many restaurants and pubs put a modern spin on this classic St. Patrick’s Day food by replacing lamb with Guinness-braised beef. Regardless of the meat, you’re bound to find Irish stews on the menu at St. Patrick’s Day.

Another comfort food regularly eaten in Ireland and on St. Patrick’s Day, shepherd’s pie is a meat‑and‑potato casserole that evolved in the late 18th and 19th centuries. Originally a British dish, shepherd’s pie became commonplace in Ireland as rural cooks made the casserole to stretch leftover meats with vegetables and potatoes. It’s hearty, cheap to make and delicious. Today, traditional Irish shepherd’s pie includes ground lamb or beef, onions, vegetables and gravy topped with a layer of mashed potatoes.

By the 18th century, potatoes were a central part of meals in Ireland. One traditional preparation is colcannon: mashed potatoes mixed with greens, typically kale or cabbage. Today, colcannon is actually a Halloween favorite in Ireland, but in the U.S., it’s common to serve it as St. Patrick’s Day food. It’s simple to make; just sauté or steam shredded cabbage, and mix it with mashed potatoes. It pairs perfectly with a plate of sausages and a pint of Guinness.

Today, Irish soda bread is a favorite on St. Patrick’s Day. This rustic quick bread became popular in Ireland during the 19th-century famine when affordable yeast was hard to come by. Rural cooks needed just four ingredients—flour, salt, baking soda and buttermilk—to bake the bread that provided their families’ sustenance during the devastating potato famine. The buttermilk’s acid reacts with the baking soda to create carbon dioxide, which makes the bread rise without kneading and proofing. Baking in an iron pot over hot coals, per tradition, gives it a crispy outer crust.

Of course, no St. Patrick’s Day would be complete without a pint or two of Guinness. Just don’t go coloring it green, Comer instructs. “It’s sacrilegious to even consider messing with a beer, no joke,” he says.