Colcannon (Irish Mashed Potatoes) (2024)

Why We Love This Recipe

• Great side dish: We're always looking for interesting side dishes to pair with dinner or to bring to parties, and Colcannon is the perfect side dish! It's a crowd pleaser that's also a conversation starter with an interesting history.
  • Serve it up alongside a roast or your favorite stew.
• Easy to make: Just boil and mash potatoes, sauté leeks and kale, and mix everything together with some milk, butter, and cheese.
• Better than regular mashed potatoes: Mashed potatoes are great, but we like these even more. The leeks and kale impart a delicious sweet and earthy touch, and add texture and color as well. I couldn't stop eating them!

History of Colcannon

First referenced in literature in 1735, Colcannon combined the traditional Irish staple, cabbage, with a relatively new (in the 1700s) import of mashed potatoes, thus bringing together old and new Irish culinary traditions.

Authentic colcannon typically contains just four ingredients: potatoes, butter, milk, and cabbage, but over the years, kale has come to replace cabbage, and aliums like leeks or scallions have also found their way into the dish.

It's traditionally served on Halloween, with a ring, thimble, or other trinkets hidden inside the dish. Whatever you found inside would portend your future in the coming year.

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need to make this colcannon:

Ingredient Notes

• Leeks: Leeks are grown in sandy soil and will have a good amount of sediment in between their many layers. We like to chop them and then use a salad spinner to remove any dirt and debris.
• Kale: We used lacinato aka dino kale in this recipe. It's thinner, more tender, and cooks a bit more quickly than regular curly kale. You can use curly kale if that's what you have, however.
• Potatoes: We used Yukon Gold potatoes, as they are definitely the perfect potato to mash. They're fluffy, buttery and delicious. You can also use regular yellow potatoes or russets.
• White cheddar: We used a 9 month aged sharp white cheddar. The sharper your cheese, the more the flavor will stand out. You can also leave out the cheese for a more traditional version.
• Butter: Since this is a traditional Irish dish, try to use a good-quality European-style butter. We love Kerrygold!

Step-by-step Instructions

Prep: Peel and roughly chop potatoes into evenly-sized pieces. Add to a pot of salted water and bring to a boil.

STEP 1: While the potatoes come to a boil, wash your leeks.

STEP 2: Add butter to a pan (make sure it has relatively high sides) over medium heat then add in your leeks and sauté until soft and slightly caramelized, about 20-25 minutes. Deglaze frequently with a splash of vegetable broth to prevent burning.

STEP 3: Once the leeks are done, add in the kale, wait until it has shrunk a bit, then stir. Keep cooking until kale is wilted and tender.

STEP 4: Drain your potatoes and then rice or mash them.

STEP 5: Stir in butter, cheese, salt, pepper, and milk.

STEP 6: Add in your leeks and kale, and garnish with some melted butter and green onions.

Tips and FAQs

• What part of the leek should you use? Some people only like to use the white and light green part of the leek, as the dark green upper sections are significantly tougher. However, they're still perfectly edible, and the leeks cook for long enough in this recipe that you can absolutely use them! We remove about inches off the very top and trim any damaged leaves. Just make sure to sauté until the darkest green sections are tender.
• Washing leeks: Chop the leeks first and then soak them in water to remove dirt and debris. We like to spin them in a salad spinner to remove any remaining dirt particles and to dry them off quickly and easily.
• Mashing potatoes: For the fluffiest mashed potatoes, use a ricer or a food mill instead of a potato masher. It's easier, and you'll have a much smoother and more even texture.
• Deglaze frequently: To prevent your leeks from burning and sticking to the bottom of your pan, add a splash of vegetable or chicken broth every couple of minutes. This also adds quite a bit more flavor!
• To get your cheese and butter to melt into your mash, either mash the potatoes while they're still warm, or heat the mash over medium low heat and add everything in. You can also heat up the milk, butter and cheese in a small saucepan before adding to the mash.
• Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up 5 days. Microwave or reheat on the stovetop. If they start to dry out, you can always mix in a little more warm milk.

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