Irish Food History: A Companion will be published by the Royal Irish Academy on 2 September 2024
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Enlightening, entertaining and often surprising, Irish Food History: A Companion takes you on an unforgettable and expert journey through Ireland’s culinary past.
Beginning at the end of the Ice age, before reindeer, brown bears, and the giant Irish deer became extinct, this vital and brilliantly researched collection brings us forward from the introduction of farming and livestock, cultivation of crops and development of cooking technologies, to the delicious world of medieval honey, banqueting, bog butter, whiskey distilling, to eighteenth century feasts and famines. Historically, cattle predominated, but when butter became a commercial commodity, its consumption among the poorer citizens declined. With the arrival and adoption of the potato as a staple food the population of Ireland was transformed. Personal correspondences, diaries, literature, and linguistic analysis assist us in charting the rise in social and nutritional importance of the tuber and the ensuing calamity, the Great Famine of 1845–52. Late-nineteenth century technological changes modernised food production and society at large, and from the early decades of the twentieth century Ireland adopted this modernity in all its nuanced facets, from the proliferation of restaurants, hotels, tourism, to rural electrification, televisions and the rise in consumerism and globalisation.
Through analysis, storytelling, and mouth-watering descriptions, every dish and moment in time reveals ancient techniques, hidden gems, and innovative cooking often seemingly far beyond its time, all of which have shaped Ireland’s culinary landscape for centuries. Irish Food History: A Companion brings the reader on a gastronomic odyssey from earliest times and the start of the hunter-gatherer community, all the way to the abundant world of modern Irish cooking, safe in the hands of the world’s most highly regarded food historians. With an engaging introduction from the editors Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire and Dorothy Cashman, and a foreword from Professor James Kelly, the thirty-two different contributors, all experts in their own field or period of study, provide the latest thinking and research from a wide range of academic disciplines. This book offers you the chance to explore the rich tapestry of Ireland’s history with food in these twenty-eight urgent and compelling chapters.
Whether you are a seasoned ‘foodie’ or a novice in the kitchen, a keen historian or merely curious about life, Irish Food History offers a glimpse at horizons old and new, unfurling a complex culinary history and revealing nuances of our cultural heritage. Comprehensively chronicling the island’s deep connection to food and drink and bringing us right up to the present moment, we are presented with a portrait of a country and a place forever connected to its culinary traditions, while also showing us a new and exciting snapshot of a vibrant, modern, daring, and connected nation of eaters and drinkers. Beautifully designed by Brenda Dermody, this volume is richly illustrated and interspersed with folklore, songs, recipes, and food-related poetry from Seamus Heaney, Paula Meehan and Raiftearaí, making it a must-read for the culinary and culturally curious both young and old.
Available from ria.ie and all good bookshops from 2 September 2024.