Irish Potato Soup with Bacon and Cabbage
A creamy and comforting Irish Potato Soup recipe with cabbage gets rich flavor from bacon, cheddar and Guinness.
- Author: Cooking Chat
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 50 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: Irish
- 2 slices of bacon (turkey bacon a healthy substitute for regular if you like)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 3 1/2 cups cabbage, 3 cups coarsely chopped and remainder sliced super thin for topping
- 4 medium red or yellow potatoes, peeled and chopped coarsely
- 6 sage leaves, chopped
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup Guinness or other dark beer of choice
- 1/4 to 1/2 tsp fennel seed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup or so shredded cheddar cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large soup pot on medium heat. Cook the bacon until it’s nice and crispy, about 10 minutes. Remove the bacon to a plate with a paper towel on it, set aside to cool. Drain most of the bacon fat from the pan but leave a bit for flavor. When the bacon has cooled, crumble it up into small bits to serve on the soup later.
- Return the pan to the burner on medium heat, add the other tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion, cook for about 5 minutes, until it begins to soften.
- Stir in the carrots, followed by the cabbage and garlic.
- After the cabbage and garlic have had a few minutes to soften, add the potatoes and sage. Add a bit of salt at this point, too.
- Add the liquids: vegetable broth, water, and Guinness. Add the bay leaf and fennel seed at this time, too. Stir well to combine. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer on medium. Simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, until the potatoes are soft.
- Remove the soup from the heat. Discard the bay leaf, then puree the soup with a handheld blender, or transfer to puree in a food processor. I went for a consistency that still had some nice chunks of potato and other veggies, but you could go for a smoother puree if you prefer.
- Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle bacon, cheddar and a bit of the shredded cabbage on top of each bowl to for a nice presentation. Enjoy with a glass of Guinness!
Notes
- Turkey bacon can be used in place of typical pork bacon if you want to lighten things up.
- Cook the bacon separately if someone at the table doesn’t eat bacon. You can serve the crumbed bacon bits over the soup of those who want it.
Keywords: Irish cabbage soup, cabbage and bacon soup, Irish potato cabbage soup