Melody Mcteigue Diversity Amid Globalization #4
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Melody McTeigue December 9 Ruby Time Spent: 2 hours The potato can be considered as Ireland’s version of the olive tree. A primary staple of the Irish diet, potatoes are a big part of Irish life, as they have been for centuries. On average, each Irish adult consumed ten potatoes daily before the Great Famine. The Great Famine was a tragedy in Ireland that began in 1845 and lasted to 1852. The main cause of the famine was the devastating loss of the potato crop. A few days after potatoes were dug from the ground, they turned slimy, decayed, and rotten. This blight made the potatoes completely inedible. Experts convened to investigate the cause and suggested several possible reasons, including static electricity, smoke that blew from railroad locomotives, or the mortiferous vapours rising from underground volcanoes. The true cause was later identified as a deadly fungus that had traveled from Mexico to Ireland. Within five years, the Irish population decreased by twenty five percent as a direct result of the Great Famine. Over ten years, more than 750,000 Irish people died and another 2 million left their homeland for Great Britain, Canada, and the United States. Today, potatoes remain an essential ingredient of Irish daily life. They are eaten several times per day in many different forms, including the popular boxty, a traditional Irish potato pancake. In Ireland, boxty is enjoyed in virtually every household. People make boxty in a variety of ways. They add ingredients such as vegetables and spices to add flavor and stretch the fullness of the potatoes. While there are many ways to cook boxty, such as boiling it like a dumpling or baking it like a loaf, the traditional style of boxty is to griddle it on the stove. In the most popular recipe, potatoes are mashed as well as grated, making boxty part pancake and part hash brown. Its unique texture makes it appealing for a hearty breakfast or a filling dinner. Boxty exemplifies the olive tree because it remains an important element of Irish culture. Boxty is a traditional Irish dish that has brought substance and variety to the Irish table throughout the centuries. There are many new food recipes in Ireland, but boxty is the one dish that stays popular and delicious. Boxty survived the Great Famine of the nineteenth century and is still treasured by Irish families today. Bringing boxty to the World’s Fair adds diversity and understanding of Irish culture and history. .