Boxty is a traditional Irish potato pancake from County Mayo and all other northern countries of Ireland.

In Irish it is called Bacstai or Aran bocht-ti meaning "poor-house bread".

In fact the boxty is made from very simple ingredients: finely grated, raw potatoes, flour, baking soda, milk or buttermilk and sometime eggs.

A good boxty must have smooth and fine grained consistency.

Did you know?
Boxty is a dish that has deep roots in the Irish traditional culture and it has inspired folk rhymes, the most famous is:
Boxty on the griddle,
boxty on the pan,
If you can't bake boxty
sure you'll never get a man.

Prep time: 30 min

Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 1 9" pie (8 servings)

Ingredients

• Potatoes, weighted after peeling : 750 g

• Self-raising flour : 350 g

• Butter, melted : 60 g

• Baking powder : 1 teaspoon

• Salt and white pepper

• Milk or buttermilk to mix

Directions

1 Divide the potatoes in half and boil one half in salted water until cooked.

2 Grate the remaining half into a clean tea towel and wring out the liquid.

3 Drain the boiled potatoes and mash them.

4 Mix the grated and mashed potatoes together and add the flour and baking powder.

5 Melt the butter, stir in and mix to a soft dough, adding milk or buttermilk.

6 Pre-heat the oven to 200°C.

7 Place the dough on a floured surface and knead gently.

8 Shape into four flat, round cakes and mark each with a cross.

9 Brush with little milk to glaze and place on a greased baking tin.

10 Bake for 25/30 minutes or until well risen and golden brown.

11 Divide the boxty into "farls" along the cross.

12 Serve warm and buttered.

Tips

The boxty can be cooked on a griddle, cooking each side for 15 minutes