This is Ireland's food history. The first settlers arrived at Ireland’s coasts in 8000 BC, but the potato only arrived in Europe some 400 years ago. Potato plants are herbaceous perennials that grow about 60 cm (24 in) high, depending on variety, with the leaves dying back after flowering, fruiting and tuber formation. Couple thoughts to get you started: By 1663 it was widely accepted in Ireland as an important food plant and by 1770 it was known as the Irish Potato. My new favourite historical fact, courtesy of Susan Flavin! The Irish Potato Famine is, just as its name suggests, a famine caused by the sudden decimation of the potato crop in . Potato in Ireland. Source: What the Irish Ate Before Potatoes - Bon Appétit The burgeoning population lived on a diet comprised mainly of potatoes and milk, which if eaten in sufficient quantity is a surprisingly nutritious, if monotonous, diet. “There is a perception that Ireland remained isolated from the major dietary changes that occurred across early modern Europe, but my research suggests a much more complex and integrated picture," she teased. A report on the food given provided for inhabitants of workhouses in 1840 would have been an extreme, but not untypical, example of the diet of the poor. The Quakers, through local committees, lent the fishermen enough money to redeem their equipment (Woodham-Smith, p. 292). When we ask, “why did the Irish eat so many potatoes?” our answers are partly to be found in English colonization and the confiscation of land by Protestants. “Foreign luxuries like sugar, turkeys, pineapples, and artichokes found their way into the homes of the elite,” she also revealed - and hinted that beer was also fashionable for both men and women. Irish heatwave could mean spike in potato prices, Read more: Ten Irish potato recipes with a twist. What brings tourists to Ireland over and over again? It came at a time of intensifying violence, political oppression, and economic exploitation by the British, and it combined with enforced poverty to destroy the food culture of the island. (potatoes completely lack vitamin A). What did the Irish people eat before the introduction of potatoes? In towns, shops began to emerge from the early 1600s, primarily butchers and bakers, where before only open markets would have taken place. Held in poverty, most Irish Catholics could afford nothing but the potatoes they grew on their small plots of rented land. So what was the ancient Irish diet? However these foods were expensive and even in the homes of the well off tended to be ‘padded out’ with potato. With access to this new staple food the Irish population began to grow, and grow extremely rapidly. Source: A. T. Lucas, "Irish Food Before the Potato" (1960) The potato itself, in many ways, brought an end to the Irish way of eating that had persisted for the few thousand years prior. They also ate what they could forage in the wild – berries, nuts, nettles, wild mushrooms and now and then a rabbit or bird. Modern? A writer of the time, describes vividly the conditions in which they lived: The master never fed a labourer…it was on the contrary a chief object with him to keep such a person as far away from his dwelling as possible. (Danaher, K 1992). Likewise, poor Irish weather makes the ‘earlies’ (a potato planted early in the growing season, it can be dug up, washed and eaten right away) a fast, easy way to get your family fed before the rest of the crop comes up. Finbar McCormick, Thomas Kerr, Meriel McClatchie and Aidan O’Sullivan, ‘The archaeology of livestock and cereal production in early medieval Ireland, AD 400-1100’ , Early Medieval Archaeology Project , Report 5.1 (December, 2011). So what did people eat till then? The Irish were the first to seriously consider the potato as a staple food. Read More: Major new ancient discovery as important as Stonehenge made thanks to Irish heatwave, Read more: Irish potato and cheese soup recipe. So what did people eat till then? In this respect, the Irish were not unlike many other herding cultures worldwide, such as central Asian peoples or many East African cattle herders like the Maasai or Zimbabweans, who consume a lot of dairy products and meat. Also meat and fish. The vast majority of Ireland’s rapidly increasing population was engaged in agriculture – more than 75% of men and, at least seasonally, large numbers of women also. By the early 19th century everyone ate potatoes, from rich to poor, and no meal was complete without them. Relevance. This is Ireland's food history. There must have been another staple food before? The meaning of Glen in an Irish place name is pretty obvious. British naval escorts were then provided for the riverboats as they passed before the starving eyes of peasants watching on shore. Just for the record, the turkey arrived in Britain after the potato. We have a duty to future generations that they are reminded of how our great, great grandparents, lived and worked, including the food that they ate. Then, the Irish potatoes grown later in the season can be stored for wintertime food. Let them eat bread! For example, where did they get vitamin A? Just for the record, the turkey arrived in Britain after the potato. Favorite Answer. The Irish Potato Famine, also known as the Great Hunger, began in 1845 when a fungus-like organism called Phytophthora infestans (or P. infestans) spread rapidly throughout Ireland. As the Famine worsened, the British continually sent in more troops. Ireland: A Nation of Dairy Lovers It’s fair to say that dairy played a large role in the Irish diet. Hard to believe your website still uses the imperial measurement system in a country that has long adopted the metric system. https://t.co/pjVUqU4J7W. The Irish, we were taught, in the 1800’s, were so enthusiastic about potatoes, and so silly, that they planted nothing but potatoes and ate a diet almost exclusively of potatoes. And then it happened. Coronavirus live updates: 89 deaths reported between NI and RoI today, Godspeed to proud Irish American Joe Biden, An Cailleach - the Irish goddess of the winter and following her trail in Ireland, National Pie Day: Avoca’s Irish apple pie with blackberries recipe, Genetic mapping reveals ancestry between Ireland and Scotland, Irish couple reunited with son after 40 years, following Catholic agency adoption, Biden's Irish roots a bunch of Blarney says London Times. Pity the lactose-intolerant Irishman, because much of the diet revolved around dairy. The Irish Potato Famine is an event that stands out in the history of Irish foods. When you think of Irish cuisine, you’ll probably think of potatoes first and foremost. Arriving from South America in 1570, the potato took to the Irish climate like clover leading to […], With St. Patrick’s Day upon us, let’s set aside the ingredients you’ll need to start the day with the modern, traditional Irish Breakfast. Get occasional updates with news, events, offers and more to help you plan a vacation in Ireland. The better off had access to cultivated vegetables and regularly ate meat, primarily pork and mutton with rather less beef. Another traditional Irish food, black pudding, which is made from ox blood and oatmeal, gave those who had a cow access to protein without killing their valuable animal – the blood came from occasional bleeding of live animals. There were various root vegetables available: carrots, turnips, parsnips. Irish workers in the 16th century drank 14 pints a day! While the potato provided enough food to allow the poor to survive and grow in number, it also caused their diet to become very narrow and restricted, a massive change from the varied diet eaten in earlier times and, as would become clear, a very dangerous dependence. Update: Dissturb: thanks for your input. All useful information for my research in writing the sequel to Aine – based in 19th century Ireland. 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