Anyone have a good colcannon recipe that they use or have tried?

I made this today, came out great! I followed a reviewer and caramelized the cabbage in the bacon pan instead of nuking.

I had never heard of colcannon before I read this Q. So I looked at a bunch of recipes. Most of them use cabbage, which I think I’d be inclined to do, simply because I love the combo of cabbage with potatoes. Cabbage might be a little more savory, and kale would be slightly more sweet. Some of the recipes call for either cabbage or kale.

I found This One that also calls for leeks, which I think would be a really nice addition. This particular one seems suitable for vegetarians.

Most of the recipes I saw called for bacon, and a few called for ham. Remembering back to my meat eating days, I think the bacon/leek/cabbage combo would be my favorite.

According to This Site colcannon traditionally does not have meat in it. They say it was a dish that was commonly eaten on Halloween and meat was not supposed to be eaten on that day. Be that as it may, most of the recipes I’ve seen today have meat, and maybe even some scallions/green onions as well.

This Site gives a very good description of how to make colcannon (which was a very budget conscious dish) with bacon or ham, it also talks about the substitution of kale, and the addition of leeks. It also suggests that you can use collard greens or mustard greens instead of the other 2 greens mentioned already and it explains how to do that, with slight adjustments. Apparently the spice mace, is another common addition.

I’m thinking that Canadian Bacon might be good too.

Please let us know how you ended up making it : )

@Hain_roo Yum, that looks delicious.

It’s a keeper! I think next time I’ll add leeks too, like @Kardamom suggested. Way better than corned beef and cabbage (which was a staple at my house growing up,—blek)

Here’s a good one from the chef at the farm I worked at recently:

ingredients
1 lb. Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 green cabbage, thinly sliced
1 Tbs. minced garlic
5 Tbs. butter
½–¾ cup light cream
1 Tbs. chopped parsley
salt and pepper

process
Place potatoes and a pinch of salt to a pot with enough water to just cover. Place on the stove and bring almost to a boil.
Turn down to a simmer. Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbs. butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions and cook until golden brown. Add garlic and cook another 2 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook another 8–10 minutes. At this point, the potatoes should be just breaking apart (if not turn off the heat under the cabbage). Drain the potatoes, reserving 1 cup of the liquid. Add the liquid to the cabbage and cook until the cabbage is tender. Mash the potatoes, adding the cream and the remaining butter (I like lots of butter in this).
Add the cabbage and parsley to the potatoes.
Adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

@cprevite Thanks! Looks good although I think i will use green onions and/or leeks.

@marinelife: I think leeks would be nice.

I tend to not like creamy veg so I would do it the same way I make cabbage and actually almost all vegetables, stir fry or steam with asian spices. Or for a change, steam and season with butter and lemon. Those 2 methods seem to work with any vegetable you choose.