Dublin Coddle with fresh bread

It’s time to welcome another guest blogger! This time it’s Heidi Medina from FlyAwayU, She is a freelance food, travel and healthy lifestyle writer from Denver, USA who is currently travelling the world, working as she goes,with her husband. She’s talking about an Irish dish called the Dublin Coddle (yep, it’s new to me too!) and has kindly shared her travel story about it AND a recipe so we can all try it at home! Thanks Heidi! 

Holding a frosty pint of cider and a menu, I slide onto a wood bench for lunch at the Gravedigger’s pub in Dublin, Ireland. Eager for a rest after a morning of sightseeing at the National Botanical Gardens and the Glasnevin Cemetery, both David and I were ready to enjoy the flavours of Ireland while we caught our breath.

National Botanical Gardens in Dublin

John Kavanagh’s Pub, aka the Gravedigger’s Pub, has been serving the Glasnevin gravediggers and Dublin locals since 1833. And you can feel the history of the place, especially when you stop into the original section of the pub which bleeds the scent of Guinness and tobacco out its dark, homey pores. Locals chat in the dark corners and the bartenders sweet talk the ladies, while pouring perfectly cream topped Guinness into pint after pint.

We ordered our pints, soothing our parched throats while checking out the old photos gracing the walls. It wasn’t long before our tummies protested from not receiving any tasty bites, so we grabbed our drinks, dropped a few quid on the counter and headed over to the new section for a bite to eat. Don’t worry you can still order more Guinness or cider on the new side as well.

Outside the Dublin pub KavanaghsThe entrance to Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin

Quick tip #1: John Kavanagh is a cash-only establishment but don’t worry if you forget. The bartenders are happy to direct you to a close ATM so you won’t miss out on the experience.

Quick tip #2: Don’t take photos of the locals without asking when in the pub. It’s considered rude and can get you thrown out.

On first glance, the menu is a small mishmash of pasta and sandwiches, interspersed with a couple of Irish dishes. Everything looks yummy but that could have just been my hungry tummy talking. It’s pretty indiscriminate when it’s hungry!

The Dublin Coddle

With a beautiful Irish brogue, the waitress recommended I try the Dublin Coddle. “What’s a Dublin Coddle?” I asked. It turns out a Dublin Coddle is a simple dish featuring a delicious broth, onions, potatoes, Irish sausage, giant pieces of Irish bacon, parsley and thyme. It’s as simple as that. Nothing complicated.

The Dublin Coddle isn’t the lowest fat item on the menu. And you have to LOVE meat. But it’s so yummy, it’s worth forgetting the diet for. Especially if it’s cold outside and you want to feel that warm, contented, fuzzy feeling on the inside. The broth alone is comfort food at its finest (I want a huge vat of it for the next time I have a cold).

Making the Dublin Coddle at Home

Now back home in Denver, the only way to enjoy a Dublin Coddle is to make my own (no Irish restaurants here).

A quick bit of online research tells me there’s no real right or wrong way to make a Dublin Coddle. It seems everyone in Dublin has their own special top secret recipe. And now I do as well! Except mine isn’t so top secret because I’m sharing it with you.

My biggest goal was to keep the simplicity but increase the veggies and cut the meat. I substituted turnips for half the potatoes and added carrots, leeks and garlic. And since I couldn’t find Irish sausage (a real loss. Irish sausages are soooo good), I used breakfast sausage instead. I also used thick-cut bacon. But ham is closer to Irish bacon if you want a more authentic dish. I highly recommend searing the sausage. Searing gives it a gorgeous, tasty brown coat and adds flavour. Otherwise, you have pale, lifeless coloured sausages that look more like boiled fingers. But braising in the broth is the authentic way!

Finish is all off with a thick slice (or two) of Irish Brown Bread, perfect for helping you not miss a drop of that beautiful broth. And now that I’m finished writing this post, I’m missing the tastes of Ireland something fierce. Time to go make a pot of Dublin Coddle. Wanna join me?

My slightly less than authentic Dublin coddle recipe

The simple goodness of a warming slightly less than authentic Dublin Coddle made with a tasty broth, lots of vegetables and plenty of pork.

Prep Time: 10 Minutes   Cook Time: 1 Hour    Servings: 4 portions

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 Irish breakfast sausages 
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 – 5 strips thick cut smoked bacon, cut into 2 to 3 inch lengths
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 leek, sliced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 large turnips, diced into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 large red potatoes, diced into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 large carrots, cut into 1 inch lengths
  • Small handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped, divided
  • 3 tbsp. fresh thyme, sage or rosemary, chopped 
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 6.6 pints of chicken stock or water

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
  2. Sear sausages in pot until browned. Remove from pot to a plate until needed, leaving the oil in the pan.
  3. Brown bacon in the pan. Remove to plate until needed, again leaving the oil and bacon fat in the pan.
  4. Saute onions and leek until soft in the olive oil mix. Add garlic, turnips, potatoes and carrots. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes.
  5. Pour in chicken stock or water. Bring to a boil before reducing to a simmer.
  6. Add bacon, sausages, fresh chopped herbs and half of the parsley. Simmer the coddle until turnips are tender, about 35 to 40 minutes.
  7. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with remaining parsley and serve with Irish Brown Bread or your favorite thick crusty bread.

If you want to know more or to get in touch with Heidi, give her a follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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7 thought on “Discovering the Dublin coddle”
  1. It looks amazing. Thanks for hosting my recipe along with your other tasty bites 🙂 And after reading it again, I want to pot of Dublin Coddle because it’s cold and snowing outside here in Denver.

  2. I love the look of your ‘not so authentic coddle’ – though it’s much what I do with a ham hock when I get my hands on one – this looks like the sausage version! I’ll have to try at home too as I can seldom find the hock…

  3. I could go for a coddle now! Never heard of it either, seems like the very definition of Irish comfort food. Love your healthier changes too when recreated back home. Now I want to try Irish sausages!

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