Irish Black pudding
 

Please settle an argument between me and my husband. What is Irish Black pudding?

Not exactly sure but I thought it was a sort of sausage?

It is a fat sausage the main ingredients are pigs blood & Pork,it is AKA Black or Pigs pudding in England

In essence,Irish black pudding is the same as English, Scottish, French or Spanish black pudding, though there are some variations on flavourings.

Pigs blood, roughly equal amounts of pork fat and lean pork (you want visible nodules of white fat to show), oatmeal or barley and flavourings (in the British Isles, white pepper is especially important). Stuff into a casing (usually chorizo size in Ireland, though they're often more tennis ball size and shape elsewhere) and cook.

Black puddings are, of course, delicious anywhere, anyway, anytime. But they're surprisingly good cold.

Ah, the great black pudding debate.
Scottish black pudding is different from the sort that is made in the North of England.
The Scottish stuff doesn't have the lumps of white fat in it.
My Yorkshire mother would turn in her grave, but I must say that I prefer the Scottish version.

Hi Mary,

What's the argument?

flanneruk writes: "In essence,Irish black pudding is the same as English, Scottish, French or Spanish black pudding, though there are some variations on flavourings."

There are also variations of 'fillers.' Some use grain; some use rice. We used to just call it 'blood pudding' when I was a child; and it was a 'must' for breakfast on New Years day. Several Irish Pubs in NYC feature it as a New Year's Special.

I think it's possible to trace the paths of some of the Celtic Tribes by the 'trail' of Black Pudding: Spain & Portugal, France, England & Scotland and Ireland.

My favorite is Morcilla Asturiana from northern Spain.

<<I think it's possible to trace the paths of some of the Celtic Tribes by the 'trail' of Black Pudding: Spain & Portugal, France, England & Scotland and Ireland.>>

I don't know much about blood pudding, though I had it in the Dordogne, France. (I don't remember the filler.) I always just assumed that most cultures that eat pigs found some way to prepare and use the blood that might otherwise be wasted, but it would be very interesting if your explanation of its spread from Celtic cultures is correct. In southern Italy, there is a chocolate pudding that uses pig blood as a crucial ingredient. It's a traditional food on a certain saint's day (if I remembered at the moment which one, I'd tell you, but I don't).

Thanks everybody for all the information, especially the people who said they actually liked it. My husband wss right when he called it blood pudding. After reading your posts I guess I'll have to at least try it.

Mr 12 was absolutely not going to try pudding made with blood on our first trip to Ireland this year until we were channel surfing the food network and caught the origin of pudding which was originally sausage. Very interesting show and now that he is not thinking chocolate jello pudding floating in pigs blood, he's gonna give it a try.

(The filling mixture(pudding) had to be stuffed inside an intestine as a casing originally so that it could be boiled in a pot over a fire as there were no ovens. Later, some used a waxy type of cheese cloth to hold the mixture and boil. As baking became the thing and ovens were more and more available the "pudding" could be baked in a pan, thus "sausage" became pudding!)

aaaaah yes!!!!!!!!!! The Black pudding. I use to eat it when I was growing up in Maine. It was called Blood Sausage by the French Canadians.
Well, I thought I was experienced enough about it, so I ate it happily my first night of the trip in Dingle. Next morning after eating my breakfast, I got so sick my friends almost brought me to a hospital. They said I was green. It did pass after awhile. I think it was so rich with all the fat, and I was still in Jet Lag....so my system was off. So be careful, you don't want it to spoil your trip unless your stomache is made of iron.
ladyanne.

This post is making me hungry! What about white pudding which is also delicious!

No blood in the white Pudding...Can't bear to eat it either. My cousins over here are not fans either..they call it pigs lips and Ar*eholes.

My parents are still mad about it and now it seems to be more common in the U.S with Irish/English shops selling all the goodies. I think it's clonakilty that is famous for black pudding in Cork.

Clonakilty Black Pudding - don't just have it a breakfast, beautiful texture and taste - any good restaurant probably serves as a starter and well worth it.

Lot's of other 'cheaper' varieties but don't be fooled...

Black pudding is delicious. My parents used to fry it up on Sunday mornings with scrambled eggs and Irish sausage - the best sausage, sweet, not spicy, which makes it perfect for breakfast. I have not had either in about 12 years (as long as I have been married and my Italian husband would never try it). Time for a trip to the Irish store!