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I like a few things when I go on holiday; good food, good company and plenty of things to do. The sun holiday of lounging by the pool and getting burned has never really been my thing. The first sun holiday I went on was with my girlfriends from school the summer after we did our Leaving Cert. My friend Sheenagh’s mum, Eileen, and her friends also went to the same place – yes, I know, we were wild!
One of Eileen’s friends was the Kilkenny chef and local food champion Anne Neary of Ryeland House Cookery School. A few weeks back, the same wild bunch who went on their Leaving Cert holiday with their mothers’ friends 20 years previously, went to a cookery demonstration in Ryeland House – a one-pot night. Catching up with Anne, it was hard to believe that such a length of time had passed.
It is increasingly difficult to meet up as a group with competing priorities but we put this one in the diary well in advance and it was really very enjoyable. The one-pot idea was of particular interest to me as I try at the weekends to batch cook food for the freezer so that we are not enjoying the culinary delights of processed food all week. Over the course of the evening, four dishes were made: a lamb dhansak, which was fabulous – I shamefully rarely cook lamb but I was inspired after this; a peppered chicken tarragon; chilli con carne; and a fish pie. All in one pot, all prepared quickly and all would eaten by my children – so a win all around.
Recently we met with Fáilte Ireland and over the course of the conversation it was said that Ireland is not yet a full-on tourist food destination. People are not yet travelling here for the food as Irish food has been tarnished by the Irish pubs dotted across the globe and expectations are low. Although it is good news that people are leaving here pleasantly surprised by the quality of food we produce, it is disappointing that we have not yet gotten to where it’s part of the selling point to come here in the first place. As large exporters, we semi expect that our country is recognised as a great place to eat as well as a great place to produce products for export, but there is still some way to go.
It is fantastic that we have people like Judith McLoughlin living abroad with such a strong connection and pride for Ireland and to their heritage that they want to share that with others. Her taste of Ireland tours will change perceptions as more people come and experience Irish food first-hand. Reading the feature, I was reminded that Anne had told me about the Kilkenny Tasting Tours that she runs, showcasing the producers, retailers and restaurants that helped to crown Kilkenny as Ireland’s foodie destination for 2018.
There are already lots of food tours across the country, farm tours, walking tours and minibus tours. This summer we are skipping the poolside burning in Spain and I think that we will definitely try out a few of these food tours ourselves.
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