Coddle

This is a traditional Irish stew, full of meat and potatoes and enough onions to keep you warm all night. It’s called “coddle” because it’s easy on the stomach and is used as a hangover cure. It’s good comfort food and goes well with Irish soda bread and a little cheese.

You’ll need:

• 2 lbs potatoes (any kind will do, but I like gold or russet best)
• 4 large onions
• a fairly large ham steak (between 1 1/2 and 2 lbs)
• 8 pork sausage, large, OR 12-14 breakfast sausages (plain, not maple)
• 4 heaping tablespoons dried parsley
• salt & pepper

Cook the sausages first. Let them cool, then dice and add to a large pot. Dice the potatoes, the onions, and the ham and add them, too. Add in the parsley and just a little salt and pepper (more pepper than salt- there’s lots of salt in the meat).

Add just enough water to the pot that you can barely see it creeping up through the chunks. Don’t cover the ingredients- the onions will break down and you’ll end up with more broth than you started.

Bring the stew to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook it with the lid on for at least 20 minutes. Check the potatoes and onions- the stew’s done when they are. If it’s a little thin, you can boil it with the lid off for a bit.

Serve it hot!