Side Dish Recipes
Creamy Colcannon with Irish Cheddar
There are so many things you can do with potatoes, especially when making side dishes. Just ask my family what their favourite potato recipes are and you will get a whole host of replies. Fries! Mashed potatoes! Uh…how about more fries? Yes, there is no shortage of potato-related ideas luckily, but one thing I love to do with the humble potato is make colcannon, a typical Irish dish which pairs with just about everything. This is basically mashed potatoes with cabbage and cheese. It’s important to use a good cheese, and I’ve found the Kerrygold brand to be perfect here. In fact, I often add a little extra cheese to the mix.
Along with the cabbage and cheese, I add milk, salt, onion, butter and black pepper, and those are all the ingredients you’re going to need to get that Irish flavour just right. As for toppings, why not crumble some bacon on top or add some spring onions or chives for a splash of colour? Serve this with anything from sausages or pork chops to steak, chicken or even a hardy fish like cod or salmon. Yes, the bacon does complement the fish believe it or not!
Some people might want to try kale instead of the cabbage and that’s also fine (of course the Irish are more associated with their cabbage than their kale, these days you’ll find ‘anything goes’ so simply add your favourite green vegetable). Serve this instead of your usual plain mash, and see how everyone loves the cheese and bacon additions. In fact, this tastes so good I bet your kids won’t even notice you sneaked that cabbage in there! Try it and see. Continue reading
Ultimate British Chip Butty
Chips as they are known in the UK or fries as they are known in the US are always good and they go with everything. Can you think of a meal that wouldn’t be better with a few fries on the side? No, nor can I! Think of Britain and what comes to mind – ah yes of course, fish and chips! That is probably the most famous British dish. But have you heard of chip butties? They are just as well-loved. A ‘butty’ is an English term for a sandwich on buttered bread. Chip butties originated in Liverpool and are typical in the north of the UK, but these days you’ll find them as a staple in pubs all over Britain.
Other names for the chip butty include chip sandwich, chip barm, chip cob, chip roll, chip batch, or even chip muffin, and ‘butty’ is a contraction of ‘bread and butter’ which are the two key ingredients. This used to be a working class lunch or dinner (bread and potatoes are very cheap) but these days it’s more of a snack. Even if you are somewhere they don’t sell chip butties, get some chips or fries, ask for some bread, and make your own!
Wander into a bar in the US and you will probably not have much luck ordering a chip butty, although Primanti Brothers in Pittsburgh is famous for their sandwiches with fries (and will add fries to every sandwich unless you say not to) and Burger King made a version of the chip butty for a short while. The traditional way of enjoying a chip butty is to use soft white baps (buns) and toss the finished chips in plenty of salt. Then you can layer them in the buttered bread and add some ketchup or mayo on top, and maybe even a little malt vinegar (the dark kind not the light one) for that perfect British taste! Continue reading
Bubble and Squeak Cakes
This tasty English recipe is traditionally made with mashed potatoes and vegetables left over from the Sunday roast dinner. The main ingredients are of course potatoes and vegetables, and you can use any vegetables you wish, with carrots, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and peas being typical ones. These ingredients are combined with some fried onion (this is optional but we love to add onion to ours for extra flavour) and salt and black pepper for an easy side dish. The next time you make a roast dinner, make sure you cook enough to have leftovers, because this is well worth making, I promise you!
We often don’t seem to have leftovers because my husband and I appreciate great food and we have 4 growing boys who seem to be hungry most of the time. So even when I cook ‘enough to feed an army’ the food seems to vanish quickly! However, it’s worth making extra so you can make bubble and squeak. Failing that, you don’t have to use leftovers. You can cook mashed potatoes and veggies just so you can make this yummy side dish.
Some people make one big one and then cut it into wedges but I like to make individual cakes. Dip them in flour before frying so you get a nice crust on them and they can be flipped without breaking into pieces. This was a popular recipe during World War II because it was a simple way of converting leftovers into something yummy when most foods were of course subject to rationing. Try them with ketchup. One of my English friends says she likes to serve these with bacon and fried eggs at breakfast time. Continue reading
How to Make Mushy Peas
In the South of England and the Midlands, mushy peas traditionally go with fish and chips, while in Ireland they are more likely to make an appearance alongside a roast leg of lamb. In Northern England you can order ‘pie and peas’ which is a meat pie served with a portion of mushy peas on the side. They are jokingly termed ‘Yorkshire caviar’ in the North. Some people even like to serve them cold as a dip for bread or crackers. There is a vinegary version served in Scotland, and some English recipes feature sugar as well as fresh mint. Blue and yellow food colourings are sometimes used in the recipe.
Mushy peas are usually made with dried marrowfat peas, although split peas or fresh peas can be used at a pinch. Dried marrowfat peas can be hard to find outside the UK so we suggest using fresh peas instead, adding butter and cream to get a perfectly authentic texture. Choose large peas to make this recipe; the smaller ones will have too many skins when mashed to get the texture just right.
You can get mushy peas from any fish and chip shop in the UK and you can also get the tinned (canned) version which is not bad. However, once you leave British shores, you will find mushy peas more difficult (or impossible) to find, and even the tinned kind can cost more than anticipated. The easy workaround is of course to prepare your own mushy peas recipe from scratch, so you can enjoy the fresh flavour it offers. Continue reading
Honey Roasted Parsnips and Carrots
This easy side dish is a great choice if you are serving roasted meat, because it goes so well with beef, pork or chicken. It would even work with hearty game meat or fish. Try it with your Sunday roast or even a special occasion meal like Christmas dinner. Parsnips and carrots are sautéed in a pan with aromatic fresh cinnamon, star anise and thyme. Honey is then added so the vegetables can caramelise in a sweet, sticky glaze, and some butter finishes the dish off perfectly. Parsnips and carrots are naturally sweet root vegetables, so it makes sense to add a little honey to bring out this characteristic.
Whether you are looking for something which pairs perfectly with meat and gravy or you want to add some exotic flair to your regular Sunday dinner, this British recipe is perfect. Warm spices often feature in British recipes to add a subtle flavour to the dish, and they can be found in both sweet recipes and savoury ones like this delicious side dish. Use fresh herbs and spices, not dried, for the best and freshest result in the finished dish.
Your parsnips can be cut lengthwise in half. If they are thick, cut them lengthwise into quarters instead. We like to use baby carrots, but you can use regular carrots if you prefer and cut those into halves or quarters too. Once the vegetables are tender, you can add some butter to add a nice, luxurious finish to the dish. Serve this right away, or keep it warm in a covered dish until serving. Continue reading
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Hi, my name is Christine and I would like to welcome you to TeaTime Recipes. Tea has always been a favourite of mine and I adore the tradition of serving this wonderful beverage with all kinds of little snacks both sweet and savoury. Read More
Christine