Vegan Colcannon (with Sauerkraut)

Put a tasty twist on your Vegan Colcannon this St. Patrick's Day by stirring in a spot of sauerkraut into this creamy potato mash. You'll be wishing you made more. A gluten-free, soy-free recipe, can be nut-free.

You might also like this recipe for vegan cabbage, leek and potato tart.

Here's a superb vegan colcannon recipe, just in time for the biggest Irish day of celebration.

I love mashed potatoes and I love sauerkraut, so it was something of a no-brainer for me to combine these two things in a dish that I can love twice as much. The sauerkraut, with its salty savoriness, adds great flavor to the potatoes, and the fact that it's probiotic makes this dish really healthy and good for you.

Top tips

• Let's start with the potatoes. You can use yellow, red or russet. Personally, I like russet potatoes. You will need to cook the potates, of course, before you mash them. I do it in the microwave and it works for me, but if you would like to go the stovetop route, you can dice them and place them in a saucepan covered with an inch of water. Let them come to a boil, cover and cook another 10 minutes or until tender enough for a fork to slide in. Drain and place the potatoes back in the saucepan. Snuggle a kitchen towel right on top of the potatoes so they are completely covered and leave them thus for another 10 minutes.
• There's some more cooking involved in this recipe. I used both a bit of cabbage and sauerkraut for the most flavor and texture, and you will need to cook the cabbage and some garlic before you add the potatoes to the pan.
• The potatoes will also go into the pan after the package is cooked, but here's one thing to keep in mind: don't add the sauerkraut to the potatoes while they are still cooking. Instead, add it after you turn off the heat to preserve the live cultures.
• I make my own sauerkraut, so I know it's definitely filled with the good bacteria, but you can just get it from the store. Make sure you buy the one with active cultures for the best health benefit.
• To make this recipe nut-free, use ½ cup of coconut milk with ¾ cup of any other nondairy milk. Soy would be great, because it has the right consistency.

Variations

• Use another green, like kale or spinach instead of the cabbage.
• If you don't want to use sauerkraut (although why wouldn't you?) just use 3 cups of the fresh leafies. Be sure to saute them first.
• Drizzle some mojo on your colcannon instead of the butter. You'll be fusing three cuisines!

Serve

I would serve the colcannon with a hearty vegan Irish Stew and a side of soda bread -- either vegan Irish soda bread or gluten-free vegan Irish soda bread.

If you're not looking to go all Irish, you can serve this with vegan meatballs in a creamy mushroom sauce. Or even with these vegan barbecue meatballs.

More vegan Irish recipes

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