
A warming winter ragu to comfort our inner child
- Food & Drink
- January 10, 2021, 06:00
JP McMahon: Comfort food is seen as sentimental, but that’s what we need right now

Why is no one producing Irish lentils?
- Food & Drink
- January 3, 2021, 06:00
Lentils are a great meat substitute. Here is how to make a lentil pasty

A butterflied turkey may be the solution this Christmas
- Food & Drink
- December 20, 2020, 06:00
Don’t worry if the bird you ordered is now too big for your smaller family gathering

How to bake a whole fish for Christmas Eve
- Food & Drink
- December 13, 2020, 06:00
Across Europe, seafood and shellfish appear prominently on the dinner table

Chestnut soup with a wonderful pairing
- Food & Drink
- December 6, 2020, 06:00
We have relegated the use of chestnuts to the Christmas period but they are so versatile

How to cook celeriac the easy way – and the best way
- Food & Drink
- November 29, 2020, 06:00
There’s an easy way and a hard way – both bring the humble celeriac to divine heights

A seafood dish with a festive twist
- Food & Drink
- November 22, 2020, 06:00
This recipe may seem unusual, but it brings Brussels sprouts and mussels together wonderfully

Duck, duck, go: Why isn’t Irish duck famous the world over?
- Food & Drink
- November 15, 2020, 06:00
Silverhill, Skeaghanore and Regan’s should be as well-known as our sports stars

A curry with an Irish twist to savour
- Food & Drink
- November 8, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Mutton curry first found its way into Irish households in the 18th century

Get creative with risotto by using Jerusalem artichoke
- Food & Drink
- November 1, 2020, 06:00
Many great chefs, including Gordon Ramsay, have made this dish before

A special family recipe for fruit crumble
- Food & Drink
- October 25, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: The great thing about this recipe is that you can use any fruit

A hazelnut pudding reminiscent of an ancient Irish feast
- Food & Drink
- October 18, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: The hazel tree occupies an important part of our mythology

‘Every day we’re closed is another step towards bankruptcy’
- Food & Drink
- October 13, 2020, 06:05
An open letter to the Taoiseach from chef and restaurateur JP McMahon

It’s quite pleasant to eat pheasant
- Food & Drink
- October 11, 2020, 06:00
The game bird is often seen as the preserve of a higher class of person. This is nonsense

Figs have long tradition in Irish cuisine. Not just in fig rolls
- Food & Drink
- October 4, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Making jam or chutney with a bit of vinegar an easy way to use up a surplus

Two ways to cook wild duck this autumn
- Food & Drink
- September 27, 2020, 06:00
With game season in full swing, why not try cooking wild birds on the barbecue?

Delicious things to do with pumpkins
- Food & Drink
- September 20, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: I’m not a big fan of pumpkin pie – these alternatives are more to my taste

Does putting chorizo into a paella make it any less real?
- Food & Drink
- September 13, 2020, 06:00
Traditions evolve, move around, change...Not according to the paella police

‘Wild Irish venison is one of the most sustainable red meats you can eat’
- Food & Drink
- September 6, 2020, 06:00
Taste of autumn: How to make venison with beetroot and hazelnuts

I was confused by the new hospitality regulations, then upset and then angry
- Food & Drink
- September 5, 2020, 06:00
What happened to that slogan ‘we’re in this together?’ We are not in this together. The hospitality industry is on its knees

How to make the age-old Irish dish of potted crab
- Food & Drink
- August 30, 2020, 06:00
Add plenty of chopped, fresh herbs to your crab and use olive oil to make it lighter

Hay-bake kohlrabi for a taste of ancient and modern Ireland
- Food & Drink
- August 23, 2020, 06:00
Cooking with hay is an age old art, dating back to at least Neolithic times

Tomatoes: To skin or not to skin?
- Food & Drink
- August 16, 2020, 06:00
Tomato skins are normally removed because of their taste and texture, or if you’re making a sauce

Pollan is unique to Ireland so why don’t we eat more of it?
- Food & Drink
- August 9, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: This white fish can be found in five Irish lakes, including Lough Neagh

Make the most of Ireland’s short cherry season
- Food & Drink
- August 2, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Here are two ways to enjoy the wild cherry

Courgette is a fruit but it deserves to be treated like a vegetable
- Food & Drink
- July 26, 2020, 00:00
Though it emigrated to Ireland from Central America, courgette grows well here

A magical thing to do with a cucumber
- Food & Drink
- July 19, 2020, 00:00
JP McMahon: Cucumber ketchup is the relish you never knew you wanted

JP McMahon: ‘It’s not restaurateurs’ job to enforce the quarantine’
- Food & Drink
- July 18, 2020, 06:00
We should not have to police a law that’s not being policed by those in power

How to make a raspberry shortcake
- Food & Drink
- July 12, 2020, 05:45
Raspberries need little more than some sugar and cream. This shortbread is a great way to show them off

Some fresh ideas for sweet Irish strawberries
- Food & Drink
- July 5, 2020, 06:00
Take your summer berries to heavenly levels with salt, rapeseed oil and balsamic vinegar

A fish sandwich with a fruity twist
- Food & Drink
- June 28, 2020, 06:00
Other than fish fingers, what have we against putting fish in between two slices of white sliced bread?

Bruschetta with difference: beans, peas and a sprinkling of feta
- Food & Drink
- June 21, 2020, 05:55
Food nostalgia makes me long for bruschetta, but I seldom make it with tomatoes

How to make the perfect mushroom quiche
- Food & Drink
- June 14, 2020, 06:00
This is a great recipe to bake with children because of its many different parts

How to pan fry the perfect chicken breast
- Food & Drink
- June 7, 2020, 05:00
JP McMahon: My greatest grind regarding cooking chicken is the amount we over cook it

Tortilla time as new-season potatoes arrive
- Food & Drink
- May 31, 2020, 06:00
Understanding the seasonality of potatoes can help us appreciate them more

Barbecued fish: We must widen our nets beyond salmon and cod
- Food & Drink
- May 24, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: We have great fishmongers delivering online so being adventurous has never been easier

It will soon be gooseberry season: make a wonderful jam
- Food & Drink
- May 18, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: ‘The first time I tasted a salted gooseberry my eyes widened’

Elderflower cordial: how to make it and how to drink it
- Food & Drink
- May 10, 2020, 06:00
Welcome the warm weather by making elderflower cordial or add to gin

Why canned food should be valued more
- Food & Drink
- May 3, 2020, 06:00
We treat foods in cans as somehow being worth less than their fresh equivalent

Don’t like oysters? This way of serving them might convert you
- Food & Drink
- April 26, 2020, 06:00
A naked oyster is truly remarkable, but if you need to dress it up, bake it with wild garlic butter

Button mushrooms: Uncommonly good with hazelnuts and cider
- Food & Drink
- April 19, 2020, 06:00
Wild mushrooms are still a few months away, so here’s an homage to the button

Rediscovering the virtues of potted crab
- Food & Drink
- April 13, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: For some reason potted shellfish still has currency in our own era

JP McMahon: A dish that reconnects you with your Irish ancestors
- Food & Drink
- April 5, 2020, 05:00
How to poach salmon and make watercress purée

It sounds exotic but purple sprouting broccoli is pure Irish
- Food & Drink
- March 29, 2020, 06:00
Hardy vegetable survives our climate, despite our poor soil and inclement weather

We need to learn to value our seafood more than we do
- Food & Drink
- March 23, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: This deep fried clams recipe is dish everyone needs to try

Why is mutton addressed as lamb?
- Food & Drink
- March 16, 2020, 06:00
Hogget, mutton – nowadays it’s all lamb in some quarters

Baking with hay: a weird but wonderful way to cook celeriac
- Food & Drink
- March 9, 2020, 06:00
Baking celeriac in hay might raise eyebrows in your family but they will be won over

The secret to sweet baby leeks? Let the heat blacken them
- Food & Drink
- March 2, 2020, 06:00
Catalonians prize their calçot so highly that cooking them is a big event. Here is an Irish alternative to try

Anything you can do with a potato you can do with a Jerusalem artichoke
- Food & Drink
- February 24, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Lamb, Jerusalem artichokes and wild garlic. What could be more beautiful and more Irish?

JP McMahon: Irish food was never just one thing
- Food & Drink
- February 22, 2020, 06:00
To try and define Irish food for a new generation was my ultimate aim in writing The Irish Cook Book

It’s wild garlic season – put it to the testo in a very simple pesto
- Food & Drink
- February 17, 2020, 06:45
This wonderful herb’s accessibility makes it a favourite in my larder and on my menus

How to make a simple rhubarb and puff pastry tart
- Food & Drink
- February 10, 2020, 06:00
‘Forced’ rhubarb, with no air miles attached, is now in season. Go grab some

Simple cod chowder: a quick dish full of flavour
- Food & Drink
- February 3, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Many think that chowder needs a variety of fish and shellfish, but this is not the case

Game for venison? A simple warming slow-cooked stew
- Food & Drink
- January 27, 2020, 06:15
JP McMahon: We’re nearing the end of the venison season. Try it before it comes to a close

How to cook a lobster: ‘It needs nothing but itself and maybe a bit of seasoning’
- Food & Drink
- January 20, 2020, 06:00
“Our lobsters are much too superior to disguise with any fancy sauce,” wrote the great Monica Sheridan. She was right

How to make your own kombucha
- Food & Drink
- January 13, 2020, 06:00
Drinking a few glasses of kombucha or kefir to regulate your gut is a good idea in January

Making the most of winter vegetables
- Food & Drink
- January 4, 2020, 06:00
JP McMahon: Eating more plants will not do us meat eaters any harm

How to make the best mashed potatoes for Christmas dinner
- Food & Drink
- December 21, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: A lot of butter, and I mean a lot, is the secret to making this dish so delicious

To cook your goose, first find a sod of turf
- Food & Drink
- December 16, 2019, 06:00
Long before turkey, goose was the traditional meat in an Irish Christmas dinner

Whole roasted monkfish: the perfect alternative Christmas dinner
- Food & Drink
- December 10, 2019, 06:00
Whole fish at Christmas is a great dish to share and easy to cook

It’s time we embrace Jerusalem artichokes
- Food & Drink
- November 30, 2019, 06:00
My favourite way to prepare this vegetable is to make a nutty purée to go with white fish

The best and easiest way to cook fish? Bake it whole. Here's how to do it.
- Food & Drink
- November 25, 2019, 06:00
The secret is to making any fish dish more beautiful: add some anchovies

Celeriac noodles can be a good way to cut down on your carb intake
- Food & Drink
- November 17, 2019, 06:00
Celeriac is a firm favourite of mine and I eagerly await its appearance every year

The days when bananas, pineapples and figs grew in Connemara
- Food & Drink
- November 10, 2019, 06:00
Why do we continually reduce our cultural experience of food to the humble potato?

How to make pizza beautiful again
- Food & Drink
- November 2, 2019, 06:00
How did it go from being a slow food to a fast-food monster filled with preservatives and sugar?

A simple panna cotta – with a distinctly Irish twist
- Food & Drink
- October 27, 2019, 06:15
What gives the Italians a hold on this set cream dessert?

It’s a pity more of us don’t eat pheasant
- Food & Drink
- October 21, 2019, 06:00
In autumn, pheasant can be used instead of chicken in many recipes

Duck and plum is a classic combination – and easy to cook
- Food & Drink
- October 14, 2019, 06:30
JP McMahon: ‘What is it about autumn that makes me want to eat more duck?’

Beautiful beetroot: where to find it and how to cook it
- Food & Drink
- October 7, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: This dish works well on its own or with other dishes such as couscous or spinach

Autumn is the perfect time for pork belly and native oysters
- Food & Drink
- September 28, 2019, 06:00
Roasting pork belly is probably the easiest way to feed four to six people all at once

Can you imagine buying an oyster out of its shell?
- Food & Drink
- September 23, 2019, 06:00
The laws in Ireland surrounding scallops must take the biscuit

JP McMahon: Size up some squash
- Food & Drink
- September 16, 2019, 06:00
Whether tiny or a two-hand job, this seasonal vegetable can be enjoyed many ways

This autumn fall for salads made with grains
- Food & Drink
- September 9, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: Spelt with roasted vegetables and herbs will produce a filling alternative to leaves

Give kohlrabi the salt treatment
- Food & Drink
- September 2, 2019, 06:00
Thank the rain for the wonderful vegetables, and rediscover the benefits of brassicas

Tomatoes: To blanch or not to blanch
- Food & Drink
- August 26, 2019, 06:00
Avoid the uniform red ovals on supermarket shelves; they don’t taste like tomatoes

JP McMahon: Fatty fish and autumn fruit make a perfect match
- Food & Drink
- August 19, 2019, 06:00
Mackerel, tuna, and trout all work with blackberries and I urge you to try them

Why don’t more of us eat Ireland’s maritime delights?
- Food & Drink
- August 12, 2019, 06:00
A bowl of mussels is a cheap and nutritious dish, something that we should all eat regularly

Spuds and us: Why is Ireland turning away from the potato?
- Food & Drink
- August 5, 2019, 06:00
We are turning away from the spud and don’t even grow enough in Ireland to feed ourselves

Chicken legs; roast, stew or fry them - they’ll always be succulent
- Food & Drink
- July 29, 2019, 06:00
Most of us never purchase the legs of the chicken. Have you realised how much cheaper they are?

Peas and broad beans, like green summer pearls
- Food & Drink
- July 22, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: These great plate companions could not be simpler to prepare

A good pork chop deserves a cherry on top
- Food & Drink
- July 15, 2019, 06:00
Pairing sweet and savoury is a classic combination and Cherries, raspberries, redcurrants and even plums are in season

Surf ’n’ turf needn’t be hell on a plate
- Food & Drink
- July 8, 2019, 06:00
Forget the aberration of beef and chewy prawns – try scallops and black pudding or monkfish and oxtail

Loving Joyce and all things offal
- Food & Drink
- July 1, 2019, 06:00
Food and literature: both feed mind and body and give us energy to get through the day

Nothing says Irish summer like buying strawberries at the side of the road
- Food & Drink
- June 25, 2019, 06:00
Combination of strawberries and cream said to have been created by Cardinal Wolsey for Henry VIII

Yoghurt: Not just for lashing over granola
- Food & Drink
- June 15, 2019, 06:00
We lack vision when it comes to using yoghurt in cooking: use it as a summer sauce or smoke it over hay

Wild garlic: A herb good enough to bring Europe back together
- Food & Drink
- June 10, 2019, 06:00
There doesn’t seem to be a country in Europe that doesn’t have a wild garlic dish

If the idea of cooking a cucumber makes you cringe, read on
- Food & Drink
- June 3, 2019, 06:00
There’s more to this fruit than slicing them for a salad

We have lost touch with the wild food that surrounds us
- Food & Drink
- May 27, 2019, 06:00
Creating a feast of wild green edibles on the Aran Islands

Lobster: A splendid meal that’s not just for poshos
- Food & Drink
- May 18, 2019, 06:30
We should be eating shellfish more and meat a little less, and lobsters are easy to cook

Rediscovering the wonderful writings of Theodora Fitzgibbon
- Food & Drink
- May 12, 2019, 06:00
The cookery writer helped to put Irish produce and food culture on the map

Don’t forget about fish and vegetables when it comes to barbecuing
- Food & Drink
- May 6, 2019, 06:00
But if you must have meat, an outdoor pizza oven is a great way to roast chicken, just rub the bird with oil, salt and chopped her(...)

Time to turn to that ‘third plate’: Locally produced vegetables
- Food & Drink
- April 29, 2019, 06:00
Mushrooms constitute a good alternative healthy option for vegetable-forward dishes

Stalking the first of the year’s asparagus
- Food & Drink
- April 22, 2019, 06:00
Here is a beautifully quick risotto that even the novice cook can pull off

Edible flowers: A sign of the coming summer
- Food & Drink
- April 15, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: Some chefs don’t like flowers, they find them too feminine

The secret to the lightest batter? Beer, and a pinch of yeast
- Food & Drink
- April 8, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: Turn free greens into oil or mayo and eat with fried fish

Oysters with buttermilk? It’s a wonderful pairing
- Food & Drink
- April 1, 2019, 06:00
JP McMahon: I love the ways the tangy acidity complements the briny richness of the oyster

Do we choose the supermarket or the local farmers’ market?
- Food & Drink
- March 26, 2019, 06:00
We’ll never be free of the supermarket but we should bridge the gap between food and our community

Watercress: It may take the goodness out of milk but it makes an excellent purée
- Food & Drink
- March 16, 2019, 06:00
In season now, watercress is great eaten raw in a salad or blanched briefly and blended in to a soup