It’s a funny word isn’t it? I only heard of this dish recently while watching the Food Network and was very intrigued by it because it is full of things I love: bacon, potatoes, and cabbage!
When I went to the internet to look it up I found this description from the New Oxford American Dictionary: an Irish and Scottish dish of cabbage and potatoes boiled and pounded. Origin: late 18th century; the origin of the second element is uncertain but it is said that cannonballs were used to mash vegetables as spinach.
When you read this description it makes you wonder, doesn’t it? Well, I can attest that it is delicious as a side dish or as a main dish, no matter how you mash it up! Here’s my version:
Colcannon
7 medium potatoes, diced, peeled and cooked
½ head of cabbage, shredded
¼ cup of chopped onions
6 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled
4 tablespoons of butter
½ to 1 cup of whole milk
½ cup cheese, optional
Cook the bacon in a large ovenproof pan, crumble, and set aside. Save the pan and bacon fat.
Cook the onions in the remaining bacon fat. If there’s more than 2-3 tablespoons of fat, remove it from the pan.
When the onions are cooked, add the cabbage and cook until the cabbage is soft.
In a separate pot, mash the potatoes with a potato masher, add the butter, and just enough of the milk to make traditional mashed potatoes.
Add the mashed potatoes to the cabbage and stir to combine. Add the crumbled bacon and stir.
Top with cheese and broil in the oven until warm, melty, and yummy.
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