Northern Irish cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It has distinctive attributes of its own, but has also drawn heavily from

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and British cuisines.

History

Northern Ireland's culinary heritage has its roots in the staple diet of generations of farming families: bread and potatoes. Historically, limited availability of ingredients and low levels of immigration resulted in restricted variety and relative isolation from wider international culinary influences. Recent decades, however, have seen significant developments in the local cuisine, characterised by an increase in the variety, quantity and quality of

gastropubs A gastropub or gastro pub is a pub that serves gourmet comfort food. The term was coined in the 1990s, though similar brewpubs existed during the 1980s. Etymology The term ''gastropub'' (derived from gastronomy) was coined in 1991, when David ...

and

restaurants A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

. There are currently two

Michelin-starred The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The acquisition or loss of a ...

restaurants in Northern Ireland, both of which specialise in traditional dishes made using local ingredients. Northern Irish cuisine received international attention in March 2018 when it was reported that

Prince Harry Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...

and

Meghan Markle Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (; born Rachel Meghan Markle; August 4, 1981) is an American member of the British royal family and former actress. She is the wife of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of King Charles III. Meghan was ...

had

Irish stew Irish stew ( ga, stobhach/Stobhach Gaelach) is a stew native to Ireland that is traditionally made with root vegetables and lamb or mutton, but also commonly with beef. As in all traditional folk dishes, the exact recipe is not consistent from t ...

and sausage with champ for lunch at the

Crown Liquor Saloon The Crown Liquor Saloon, also known as the Crown Bar, is a pub in Great Victoria Street in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Refurbished in 1885, and at least twice since, it is an outstanding example of a Victorian gin palace, and one of Northern Ire ...

during a tour of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

Dishes and foods

Ardglass potted herring

Ardglass potted herring is found in butcher's shops and fish traders. It is herring that is

marinated Marinating is the process of soaking foods in a seasoned, often acidic, liquid before cooking. The origin of the word alludes to the use of brine (''aqua marina'' or sea water) in the pickling process, which led to the technique of adding flavor b ...

in vinegar, rolled with bay leaf and baked with breadcrumbs.

Breads

Potato bread

Potato bread Potato bread is a form of bread in which potato flour or potato replaces a portion of the regular wheat flour. It is cooked in a variety of ways, including baking it on a hot griddle or pan, or in an oven. It may be leavened or unleavened, and ...

is a flat bread prepared with potato, flour, and buttermilk. It is cooked on a griddle.

Soda bread

Soda bread Soda bread is a variety of quick bread traditionally made in a variety of cuisines in which sodium bicarbonate (otherwise known as "baking soda", or in Ireland, "bread soda") is used as a leavening agent instead of the traditional yeast. The i ...

is one of Northern Ireland's griddle breads; it can be eaten straightaway, or cooked until golden in an

Ulster fry A full breakfast is a substantial cooked breakfast meal, often served in the United Kingdom and Ireland, that typically includes back bacon, sausages, eggs, black pudding, baked beans, some form of potato, tomatoes, mushrooms, toast, and a ...

. They are sometimes eaten with butter and homemade jam, or with savoury food such as smoked salmon, fresh fried eel, or thick dry-cured bacon. Soda bread is a soft, thick and fluffy bread. It was first baked in the 1800s in Ireland, and local people used

baking soda Sodium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda, is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt composed of a sodium cation ( Na+) and a bicarbonate anion ( HCO3� ...

to cause the dough to rise. It is typically served with an Ulster fry.

Wheaten bread

Wheaten bread is a brown bread made with whole wheat flour which also uses baking soda as a rising agent. It is often sweetened in contrast to the savoury white soda bread.

Veda bread

Veda bread is a small, soft, caramel-colored, malted loaf, typically eaten as a slice with a cup of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

. Veda is often toasted and/or served with butter or margarine.

Fifteens

A soft tray bake cake which gets its name from using fifteen of each main ingredient (marshmallows, digestive biscuits, cherries).

Boxty

Boxty Boxty ( ir, bacstaí) is a traditional Irish potato pancake. The dish is mostly associated with the north midlands, north Connacht and southern Ulster, in particular the counties of Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Donegal, Fermanagh, Longford, and C ...

, mainly found in County Fermanagh, is a weighty, starchy potato cake made with a 50:50 mix of cooked mashed potatoes and grated, strained, raw potato. The most common variety is boiled boxty, also known as hurley, a large round loaf which is boiled whole for several hours, allowed to rest and then sliced and fried, often with bacon.

Champ

Champ is made with potatoes mashed with milk and chopped

scallions Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus ''Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, chi ...

Vegetable soup

A vegetable soup made throughout Ulster contains carrots,

celery Celery (''Apium graveolens'') is a marshland plant in the family Apiaceae that has been cultivated as a vegetable since antiquity. Celery has a long fibrous stalk tapering into leaves. Depending on location and cultivar, either its stalks, ...

, thin

leeks The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek ( syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus ''Alliu ...

and parsley, thickened with red lentils and

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

. Packets of these six ingredients are often sold together as “soup veg”.

Dulse

Dulse ''Palmaria palmata'', also called dulse, dillisk or dilsk (from Irish/Scottish Gaelic '/'), red dulse, sea lettuce flakes, or creathnach, is a red alga ( Rhodophyta) previously referred to as ''Rhodymenia palmata''. It grows on the northern coas ...

is a seaweed snack food. Originally, it was harvested by fishermen for income supplementation when fishing was meager.

Pasties

Pastie A pastie is a large to medium-sized battered deep-fried round of minced meat and vegetables common to Northern Ireland. Generally served with chips to form a "pastie supper" ("supper" in Northern Irish chip shops means something with chips), ...

s are made from a mixture of sausage meat, onions, and mashed potato, shaped like a burger and spiced with black pepper. They can be ordered battered from most chip shops.

Ulster fry

The best known traditional dish in Northern Ireland is the

. An Ulster fry, although not originally particularly associated with breakfast time, has in recent decades been marketed as Northern Ireland's version of a cooked breakfast. It is distinguishable from a full breakfast by its griddle breads—soda bread and potato bread, fried (or occasionally grilled) until crisp and golden, and sometimes also includes small pancakes. Bacon, sausages, an egg, and (as a modern development) tomato and sometimes mushrooms complete the dish. It is usually served with tea and toast.

Yellowman

Yellowman Winston Foster , better known by the stage name Yellowman, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay, also known as King Yellowman. He first became popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, rising to prominence with a series of singles that established ...

is a crunchy golden confectionery and looks a bit like honeycomb. It is mainly sold at fairs and markets.

Beverages

* Bushmills whiskey *

Brown lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage. There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using le ...

* McDaid's Football Special * Punjana tea *

Nambarrie Nambarrie is the brand name of a tea company, founded in Belfast in 1860, and later based in Andover, Hampshire. Now owned by Twinings, Nambarrie Tea Co. Ltd. operates delivery depots in Mallusk, County Antrim and Glasgow Glasgow ( ; ...

tea

Notable Northern Ireland chefs

* Jenny Bristow * Michael Deane * Noel McMeel * Robbie Millar *

Paul Rankin Paul Rankin (born 1 October 1959 in Glasgow, Scotland) is a celebrity chef from Ballywalter, County Down, Northern Ireland. Rankin's parents moved back to Ballywalter, where he grew up, some time after he was born. This was stated when he was t ...

Clare Smyth Clare Smyth (born 1978) is a Northern Irish chef. She is the Chef Patron of three Michelin starred Core by Clare Smyth which opened in 2017. Previously she was Chef Patron at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay from 2012 to 2016, won the Chef of the Yea ...

References

{{cuisines British cuisine Irish cuisine Cuisine