Colcannon – Traditional Irish Dish

This was one of my favourite dishes growing up and still is. It’s difficult to get nice, really green cabbage here, there’s always plenty of the whiter cabbage which we use in cabbage/carrot salad and stuffed cabbage leaves. So I use the white cabbage, but prefer leafy green cabbage any day!!!

This was a simple traditional Irish dish to prepare. The tender shredded cabbage mixed with the creamy mashed potatoes was perfect. The scallions barely cook and add a lot of flavor to this dish. We really enjoyed this dish and the “knob’ of butter on top!

Why is it Called Colcannon?

The word colcannon is derived from the Irish word for white-headed cabbage, cál ceannann. Ultimately, many words associated with the brassica family of vegetables (cabbages, kale, mustard greens, etc.) come from the latin word for cabbage, caulis. Think “kale,” “colewort” (an archaic name for non-heading brassicas), and “collard greens