From savoury blood sausages to ocean-scented seaweeds, Irish cuisine offers a unique culinary adventure for the daring.
Ireland is world-famous for its hospitality and delicious cuisine, but some traditional Irish food isn’t for the faint-hearted.
Whether you’re planning a trip to the Emerald Isle or looking for a local dish to serve your guests, we have compiled a list of ten Irish foods tourists can’t handle.
While locals consider these staples the ultimate comfort food, many visitors find themselves staring at their plates in a mix of confusion and mild horror.
10. Soda Bread – a dense Irish classic
Irish soda bread differs from the sweet raisin-filled, cake-like version common in other countries. Many tourists are used to light, fluffy, yeasted bread.
A food you’ll only find in Ireland, traditional Irish soda bread is dense, wheaty, and incredibly filling. One slice can sit in your stomach like a stone if you aren’t prepared. Because it dries out quickly, it can feel dry and crumbly for anyone who eats it a day or two after buying it.
9. Skirts and Kidneys – a forgotten Dublin favourite
While most tourists are familiar with a standard beef stew, this traditional Dublin dish is a much more intense affair.
“Skirts” are the trimmings of pork diaphragm, simmered alongside kidneys to create a deep, iron-rich broth.
The strong aroma of the kidneys and the meat’s distinct, chewy texture can be quite a surprise. However, this delicacy remains an Irish favourite and the perfect recipe to warm you up on a cold day.
8. Liver and Onions – an intense culinary experience
A traditional midweek dinner, this dish is a staple of Irish cuisine and highly regarded for its high nutritional value.
However, its metallic taste and grainy texture make it a tough sell for visitors. Even adding some fried onions and gravy usually isn’t enough to make it more appealing to a sceptic.
7. Dulse – the salty snack from the sea
Dulse is a red seaweed found along the Irish coastline and the North Atlantic. This dried seaweed, when cooked or fried, resembles the taste of bacon, offering a chewy/leathery and smoky texture.
It has a delightful combination of savoury and salty flavours that can overwhelm those unfamiliar with it. For locals, it’s a nostalgic seaside snack, but it can be intimidating to palates unaccustomed to sea vegetables.
6. Coddle – the famous Dublin cuisine
The Dublin coddle is a stew-like dish traditionally made from leftover sausages, rashers, and basic vegetables like onions and potatoes steamed together. This is one of the Irish foods the rest of the world might find strange, but it’s a Dublin staple.
Many tourists admit they are hesitant to try it because the bacon and sausages are boiled rather than roasted or seared. However, once they get past the appearance, they begin to appreciate this hearty Dublin delicacy.
5. Boiled Bacon and Cabbage – the scent of a Sunday morning
Most first-time tourists visiting Ireland have a complicated relationship with boiled bacon and cabbage.
The dish has a distinct, sulphuric aroma that fills the house while boiling, something many tourists find overwhelming before they’ve even tasted it. While it’s a traditional family favourite, some visitors say it tends to taste salty and bland.
4. Tripe and Drisheen – undisputed “soul food” of Cork
If you are an adventurous tourist who wants to experience the true taste of old Cork, you might come across tripe and drisheen.
Tripe is made from a cow’s stomach lining, while drisheen is a type of blood pudding made from blood, milk, and spices.
The rubbery texture of the tripe combined with the soft, jelly-like drisheen is an old-school delicacy that even many modern Irish people struggle to handle.
3. Carrageen Moss – seaweed for dessert
Carrageen is a species of red algae often found along the Atlantic coast. It’s cleaned, dried, and boiled in milk to create a jelly-like dessert.
While it’s packed with nutrients and great for a sore throat, most tourists and first-time tasters may find this traditional Irish dessert hard to swallow.
Its gummy and silky texture and iodine-like flavour can be overwhelming to tourists who aren’t used to this unique taste.
2. Crubeens – the original finger food
Crubeens are pigs feet, and can be boiled, fried, or roasted. They may not look like your ideal “prime cut” at first glance, but their texture and flavour are unmatched.
Modern tourists see this traditional Irish delicacy as a bucket list item only for the brave and adventurous. The high ratio of bone, skin, and fat to actual meat can often put off even the most curious food enthusiast.
1. Black Pudding – blood for breakfast?
Black pudding is essentially a sausage made from pig’s blood, suet, and oatmeal. While locals love that rich, earthy flavour, the blood element can intimidate international tourists.
However, if you can get past the ingredients list, it’s a savoury delight, but we won’t judge if you stick to the extra bacon.
