What is Irish Boxty and Irish potato Cake?

Boxty is a traditional Irish potato pancake. When I was a child growing up in Ireland boxty was called fadge and we usually had them at breakfast time on the weekends when it was time for what is known as a full Irish. 

Irish boxty and potato cake names include slims, Irish fadge, potato cake, Irish potato pancakes, potato farls, and tattie scones in Scotland, and Boxty (bacstaí in Gaelic) poundy or poundies. Some people even call them Irish potato Latkes.

In our family, we always called them potato pancakes and it was a huge treat for Christmas breakfast served with eggs, bacon, sausage, bean, tomatoes, mushrooms and fried bread. Never mind the carb count just dig in – this is also known as a Full Irish breakfast.

Boxty vs potato bread. Potato bread or potato farls are made with potato, flour, and buttermilk and cooked on a griddle. The difference between potato farls and boxty is that in a farl recipe, the potatoes are cooked and mashed before adding the flour and other ingredients. The Potato Farl is traditionally cut into a triangular shape before serving – hence the name as the word farl comes from the Gaelic ’fardel’ meaning four parts.

An old Irish rhyme goes – Boxty on the griddle, Boxty in the pan, If you can’t make boxty, You’ll never get a man. Boxty on the griddle, Boxty in the pan, The wee one in the middle, That’s the one for Mary Anne.

Xyuandbeyond is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. You can read my privacy policy here.

History of Boxty

Boxty or Irish potato cake is a traditional Irish dish that is believed to have originated in the 1700s when the Irish relied upon the potato to survive. The creation of the Irish potato cake was a means to stretch out the potato harvest and ensure that everyone had something to eat.

In Ireland, boxty was and is associated with St. Brigid who is the patron saint of dairy and she is associated with milk, butter, ale, cheese and bacon. Boxty is served for St Brigid’s Day with other traditional foods like soda bread with its cross on the top.

Ireland was a poor country thanks to British politics and the Catholic Church and much of its food culture comes from what was available at the time like potatoes until the crop failed. Centuries before the Irish used what they had to hand, for example, one of the oldest foods in the world was found in Ireland. this great lump of butter was discovered in a peat bog that preserved it for hundreds of years.

Difference between Irish boxty and potato bread

Irish boxty or farls are totally different to Potato Bread or Soda Bread as they are a sort of flat unleavened triangular or round-shaped patty, they are usually made with grated raw potato and some leftover mash although some folks have been known to make them with just leftover mashed potato. Traditional Irish food like most countries has a great tradition of using whatever ingredients are to hand and available.

In our house, Potato bread is a form of bread which includes potato flour, wheat flour and leftover mashed potato. Other families consider the farls or potato pancakes as potato bread.

Although the name farl is somewhat interchangeable with potato pancakes or boxty when I was growing up a farl was a thicker version and could be sliced to hold an Ulster fry breakfast so it could be eaten on the go.

The complete guide to planning your trip to Ireland – Everything you need to know

Boxty (Irish: bacstaí) is a traditional Irish potato pancake. The boxty served at the Boxty House in Temple Bar Dublin is a traditional type found in the Northern Ireland border counties of Leitrim, Cavan and Fermanagh. In the north midlands, north Connacht and southern Ulster, in particular, the counties of Mayo, Sligo, in Donegal it is known locally as poundy or poundies.

Take a fabulous food tour of the Causeway Cause with Irish Feast

The Boxty House Dublin

In 1988 Padraic Og Gallagher developed the Leitrim Boxty which retains the traditional 70% potato content. The Boxty House in Temple Bar is the place where Padraic features this Boxty and it is served in a variety of ways. Boxty House makes potato dumplings, boxty chips (fries by any other name) that are simply addictive and boxty features in many of the recipes. The Boxty House restaurant serves a very thin boxty traditionally found in Leitrim and slightly different than a homemade one which is more similar to a latke or rosti.

When we were in Dublin we had a fabulous lunch at The Boxty House. The place was packed out with all kinds of folks enjoying some of the restaurant treats.  The Boxty House has become famous for its culinary wizardry with boxty. We had to try out the House platter which contained boxty Fries, boxty Dumplings and some lovely Irish potato bread. All three were stellar but the fries were absolutely addictive.

To go with the platter we enjoyed some deeply delicious Irish stew, packed with pieces of tender lamb that melted in your mouth. I warmed myself with a gorgeously rich Seafood Chowder served with Guinness Bread that was fresh from the oven and topped with the best Irish butter in the world.

The Boxty House also sells a little box of Boxty mix that you can take with you and prepare at home it is from Padraic’s mother Anna’s recipe which he has perfected, so you can take some home as gifts.

In the shops look for McNiffes Boxty in the grocery stores they even make a gluten-free version.  You will probably also find a few varieties of boxty in most grocery stores.

Mc Niffe’s Bakery creates four mouth-watering varieties of Boxty- Pan boxty, Loaf Boxty, Boiled Boxty and Irish Potato Pancakes, providing an exceptionally unique taste experience.  

One of the most popular versions of boxty consists of finely grated, raw potato and mashed potato with flour, buttermilk, egg and baking soda. The raw grated potato is strained to remove most of the starch and then fried on a griddle pan till golden brown for a few minutes.

Irish Boxty/Irish potato cakes Recipe click on this link and download an easy recipe

Boxty and Irish potato pancakes FAQS

Traditional Irish recipe for easy boxty potato pancake

Ingredients

• 300g Raw potatoes, peeled
• 300g Leftover mashed potatoes (floury potatoes are best)
• 300g Flour
• 10g Salt
• 850ml Milk

Grate the raw potatoes into a muslin cloth and squeeze as much liquid as possible into a large bowl. Let liquid stand for 20 minutes.

Gently pour off the liquid and keep the starch that settled in the bottom of the bowl.

Add grated potatoes to mashed potatoes and flour. Add starch and salt to mix.

Slowly add 3/4 milk to form a batter of pouring consistency. Depending on the potato, you may not need to use all the milk. If the batter is too heavy, add more milk. Leave the batter to rest for 30 minutes.

Drop a ladle full onto an oiled non-stick pan over medium heat and cook on the first side for 2 minutes (depending on how heavy the batter is and how much you use). Check the colour (should be a nice golden colour) on the bottom. Adjust heat if necessary. Turn and cook on the other side for 2 – 3 minutes more. Boxty pancakes are best left overnight in a fridge and reheated in a pan in good Irish butter.

 I like my boxty or potato pancakes served with a little butter eaten cold.

​Traditional Irish potato cakes are (or should be) served with a traditional Irish breakfast which should include: Irish bacon, Sausage, Black or white pudding, fried eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes. Some folks prefer them like a french crepe with some chopped scallions and a dollop of sour cream.

Enjoy your Boxty.