Wednesday, February 1, 2012

A Fabulous Irish Recipe

By Camyrn Rhys

To kick off the blog launch of the fabulous RWA chapter I love so much, I am going to reveal my most cherished Celtic recipe. You see, I'll be on this blog regularly (one a month or so) and will be posting some of my favorite Celtic recipes with a little bit of food background. So instead of saving the best for last, I'm saving the best for first: DUBLIN CODDLE.

If you've never had Coddle before, you are missing out. My Irish-Canadian grandmother used to make this for me every year on my birthday, and when it came time to pass on my Celtic-inspired recipes, were my friends in for a treat! I used to run a cooking class for kids in my restaurant, and after school, we would do what I called the "International Cooking Club". Well, when we got to Ireland, on the map, we happened to have a large group of male volunteers there, and I made my Coddle.

Now, understand, Coddle is comfort food. Meat & potatoes. So already, high points with the male of the genders. But specifically, the combination of ingredients is like some kind of crack cocaine for men. Not only did they eat me completely out of it, but I got four marriage proposals that day.

So if you've got some hungry bellies around and you're looking for a way to comfort them, or you've got a significant other who likes meat and potatoes, or have to feed a lot of men, try this one. It's a simmer-cook, and best in a dutch oven. The crisp you get on the bottom is unbelievable.

Without further ado, here's my Coddle.

DUBLIN CODDLE
1 lb. pork sausages
½ lb. thick sliced bacon
2 cups ham or beef stock
2 lbs. potatoes (peeled, sliced into ½ in. rounds)
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
Salt & pepper to season

Simmer the sausages and bacon in the stock or water over low flame for 5-10 minutes. Remove the meat to a bowl, reserving the broth.

Spread one-third of the potatoes on the bottom of a stovetop casserole dish or a large saucepan. Add a layer of half the onions and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Cut the sausages in 3 or 4 pieces and spread a layer of half the sausages and bacon over the onions. Follow by another layer of potatoes, onions, sausages and bacon and finally a top layer of potatoes. Season with salt and pepper and pour over the reserved broth.

Cover and simmer for about an hour. Serve with a green vegetable and a slice of soda bread to mop up the gravy. You won't believe how incredible this tastes. Seriously, you have to try this today.

17 comments:

Pat McDermott said...

This sounds like a perfect cold weather dish, Camryn. I've added it to my "To Be Tried Immediately" list!

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

The coddle sounds like something my DH will enjoy. And what a great way to launch the new site. Thanks for sharing, Camryn.

Renee Vincent said...

Yum, this recipe sounds delish!!! Thank you so much for posting it. I wonder if I can get this when I go to Ireland...one day?

Marilyn ~ wiggiemd said...

This recipe sounds amazing! I can't wait to try it.

Thanks for sharing.

GREAT JOB on the CHRW blog Renee!!!

Cynthia Owens said...

This recipe sounds wonderful! I can't wait to try it. And congrats on the new CHRW blog, Renee, it looks fantastic!

Eliza Knight said...

OMG, that sounds delish! My husband is going to love it! Will put on the menu :)

Sophie Moss said...

I think you should re-name it "Marriage Proposal Stew," and have a character serve it to a man she wants to marry! Great story and thanks for sharing.

Paisley Kirkpatrick said...

OH YUM! I just happen to have all those ingredients in the house. Maybe it might be just perfect for my meat and potatoes guy. Sausages are a favorite of his.

Thanks for the great way to start off this beautiful blog, Camryn. :)

Cathy S. said...

Sounds wonderful! I'll fix up a pot this weekend.

Thanks, Camryn!

A.W. McQueen said...

Oh my Goodness my mouth started watering before I even finished the post. Thanks for sharing Cam! :-)

Sarah Hoss said...

This sounds wonderful and I can't wait to try it out.

Well done on the blog Marilyn and Renee. It looks beautiful!!!!!

Chicks of Characterization said...

This sounds so YUMMY!!!

Great job on the blog Ladies!

Thanks for sharing, Camryn!

~Andrea

Vonda Sinclair said...

Sounds delicious and wonderful! Thanks for sharing! I love the blog!

Paisley Kirkpatrick said...

This was so good, Camryn I could have eaten until I exploded. :) I had a lot of juice so I thickened it with (as my Swedish daughter calls it) chemical pork gravy mix and it thicken into the best tasting gravy ever. I think next time I will cut back on the liquid a wee bit.

Yes, it will be a favorite. Thank you.

Camryn Rhys said...

Wow, Paisley! You'd made my recipe before I even made it back to the blog to check it out! :)

Yes, I often make it with less liquid. The nice thing about that, too, is that the bottom crisps up nicely if you use a little less liquid. And I really make the onions and potatoes very thin so they crisp easily on the bottom.

I'm so glad you enjoyed it!

And thanks, everyone! I hope, if you try it, you'll stop by and let me know how it worked for you. (And whether or not you got a marriage proposal, haha!)

Victoria Roberts said...

Camryn, so how about I tried this recipe last night and the dh and kids absolutely loved it! And you're right--it's definitely comfort food.

Thanks for sharing!

Camryn Rhys said...

Wow, Victoria! Multiple people trying out my recipe. I do love introducing people to new foods.