Irish Food Traditions
While you’ll find great recipes in both the Irish Dishes and the Irish Drinks sections, the concept of food in the Irish psyche is much larger than just the traditional recipes we hand down. These recipes and styles are the artifacts. But the cultural background from which they stem is the dusty treasure cave that stores them. This is where our Irish Food Traditions section comes in.
Irish food traditions are especially important because of the deep contrast at their heart. The island of Ireland is a truly abundant land that produces a range of foodstuffs, but one that has experienced tragic episodes like the Great Potato Famine, and so has a very particular relationship with food.
So this section is given over to exploring precisely these cultural and historical aspects of Irish cuisine. With reflective pieces on the Irish approach to Irish food and drink and deep dives into the cultural history framing them.
Irish Humor
But there’s lighter social commentary, too. And like all we do at Irish Buzz, we do it askew. So a humorous, genuinely humanly approach is always bound to prevail. Because if we can’t poke fun on a subject like inserting edible cellular material into a hole in one’s face, pray tell what’s the point of all this human being lark at all?
Food is fun! And we are here to poke at it.
And besides, Irish humor is legendary simply because it scythes things down to truth. And surely the antithesis of the Irish rebellious Irish soul is standing for contrived nonsense, food-related or otherwise. Check out our take on the Great Tart vs. Pie Debate to see what we’re getting at. Or the complimentary Irish apple cake parlor game, helping to save you from death by aural consumption (of blah) at your next coffee and cake meetup.
Irish food traditions in historical context
On the historical side, we bring insightful articles on the broad spectrum of Irish food traditions. Exploring the role food has played in the lives of Irish people of all creeds, colors and citizenship. As ever, these cover lighter topics such as the Irish love of the pig – ‘the gentleman who pays the rent’.
But there’s also in-depth articles on Irish food history, such as our epic saga Irish Potatoes: The Spud in Irish Food Traditions. This series of expansive articles takes an all-encompassing approach to both the role Irish potatoes play in Irish cuisine and the broader story of the Irish. The first part of Irish Potatoes examines the introduction to Ireland of a certain unassuming South American vegetable nicknamed ‘Spud’, the second how the potato’s stardom rocketed, becoming synonymous with sustaining Irish life.
But we don’t stop there!
What is surely the greatest love story of all time is unfolded further! The third part of the series paints the historical rivalry between the Celts and the Anglo-Saxons at the heart of potato politics and the fourth the deplorable conditions of the typical potato farm before the Great Irish Famine (1845-1849). Installments V and VI are being baked up as we speak.
Celtic Festivals
As the only Celtic nation state on the planet, any thorough depiction of Irish food traditions will also cover the Celtic festivals governing the calendar of ancient Ireland. And Irish Buzz examines up close the specific food rituals and recipes connected to each major festival. From the bannock recipe whipped up for the harvest festival of Lughnasadh, to the future-telling Irish tea cake still made as part of the Samhain ritual, we explore in detail. Bringing you the practical recipes, the history, and the core Irish culture that still lives on.
With all of the flavors and tips from the past being truly accessible to anyone who engages their Irish heritage and ways. And the information and analysis we lay before you is a good step on the path!
Along this very Irish way, we bring you two quite different types of knowledge:
1) How to make these ancient Irish dishes – the methods and techniques handed down to us from our families and communities.
2) WHY make these Irish dishes? For what reason should they still be made today, in this traditional way? What do they represent in the scheme of Irish life and heritage? And what role do these ancient recipes play today, as religious or pagan symbols?
Erin’s Isle stands waiting
So, come buzz with us.
Take a trip into the heart of an ancient people, as we delve into the food traditions of Erin’s Isle, exploring her history and examining her food culture. Traditions that still prevail, guiding the eating (and drinking) habits of many Irish around the world this very day.
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