If local food reflects the culture from whence it came, then Northern Irish dishes truly reflect the environment in which they were created.
From the classic institution of Irish stew to the beloved Ulster Fry, culinary lovers will delight in discovering the region’s treasures that will sizzle their taste buds:
9. Pastie supper
You can easily find this traditional dish in most pubs or chip shops, usually alongside crisps or chips, and gravy for dipping, when the dish becomes known as a pastie supper. Typically, it is easily made with ground pork or beef, potatoes, onions, and various seasonings. This concoction is then covered in batter and deep-fried or placed in a pastry shell and baked. Photo: Richard Bell on Unsplash
10. Ulster fry
Considered by many to be the ultimate breakfast food, there’s a reason why this constantly tops polls for Northern Ireland’s favourite dish. On one level, the fry includes sausage, bacon, and eggs - very much like its English counterpart - but subverts expectations for non-Northern Irish consumers by including black and white pudding, grilled tomato, beans, soda bread, and potato bread.
Despite cooked breakfasts dating back to at least the Victorian era, the Ulster Fry owes its popularity to the tourism boom of the 1960s. Significantly, the fry must not, under any circumstances, contain anything that cannot be fried in bacon fat, and debate continues to rage over the components needed for a perfect fry Photo: Joerg Beuge / Adobe stock