Traditional Irish Boxty are the holy grail of pancakes for potato lovers! Combining mashed and raw potato with buttermilk makes a dreamy, yet simple meal. Also called Irish Potato Cakes, they are often made for St. Patrick’s Day here in the US.
If you’ve never tasted an Irish Boxty, you are in for a treat. This boxty recipe is simple and truly delicious. They really are the best ever potato pancakes, in my humble opinion!
If you’ve never tasted an Irish Boxty, you are in for a treat. This boxty recipe is simple and truly delicious. They really are the best ever potato pancakes, in my humble opinion!
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When I visited Dublin a few years ago, I saw these on pub and restaurant menus, and couldn’t believe how expensive they were. Especially given the fact that this is one of the least expensive (but tastiest) meals you can make at home. I bet there will be no complaints from anyone, even the pickiest of your family members!
What are Irish Boxty?
An Irish boxty is a potato pancake made from mashed potatoes and grated raw potato. It’s like a potato scone and a hash brown/latke type pancake had a baby; what’s not to love?
Serve these Irish potato pancakes in the morning with eggs and bacon for a lovely breakfast or brunch, or add a salad for lunch. The contemporary way of serving them includes using them as one would a tortilla or flatbread. Just fill the Irish boxty and serve them like a “wrap” type entree.
My favorite way to eat them is as part of a British breakfast. However, I’ve also made miniature Irish boxty and served them as a luxurious appetizer! They’re so versatile.
Furthermore, you can add this Irish Boxty recipe to your list of Irish foods to make when St. Patrick’s day arrives!
How to Make Irish Boxty
A combination or raw and cooked potato is what sets boxty apart from other types of potato pancakes or scones. Once the batter is mixed, they are cooked on a pan or griddle as normal pancakes. Just follow the step by step directions below for perfect results. This boxty recipe will give you the results you want.
How to Serve Traditional Irish Boxty
My favorite way to serve Irish boxty is with traditional Irish breakfast fare: eggs, bacon, and if you have it, black and white pudding, etc. Don’t forget a piping hot cup of tea, too!
There’s also an old Irish saying, and correct me if I don’t have it exactly right…
“Boxty on the griddle, boxty in the pan, if you can’t make boxty, you’ll never get your man!”
Irish Boxty Recipe (Irish Potato Cakes)
recipe adapted from Faith Magazine
Ingredients
- 9 oz (2 cups) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp Kosher or sea salt
- 8 oz (1 cup) mashed potatoes, boiled in salted water
- 1 1/2 cups (8 oz) grated, raw potato (nothing fancy needed, just a regular grater)
- 8 oz (1 cup) buttermilk (or more if needed)
- butter for the pan
In a small bowl, place the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
Using a large mixing bowl, combine the mashed potatoes with the grated raw potato, then add the flour and mix well.
Next, slowly add the buttermilk and stir gently (do not over mix).
The mixture should be like a very firm, thick batter; almost like a dough, so add more buttermilk if needed (I just used 1 cup or 8 oz).
Heat a nonstick frying pan or cast iron pan over medium-high heat, and add a pat of butter, just before scooping out some of the boxy batter onto the pan. You are now cooking Irish potato cakes!
Flatten and shape into a nice, round pancake shape and fry until golden brown on the bottom.
Turn the boxty and continue to cook until golden brown on top, too. Consequently, turn the heat down if they are browning too quickly (remember there is raw potatoes which need to cook).
Continue to add a little butter and fry the boxty until all the batter is finished.
Serve the traditional Irish boxty hot, as desired, with or without toppings.
Best Irish Boxty Recipe
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(Printable recipe below)
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Traditional Irish Boxty: the Best Ever Potato Pancakes, with a Twist (Irish Potato Pancakes)
A wonderful and hearty Irish potato pancake recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (9 oz) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp Kosher or sea salt
- 1 cup (8 oz) mashed potatoes, boiled in salted water (I prefer Idaho© potatoes)
- 1 1/2 cups (8 oz) grated, raw potato
- 1 cup buttermilk (or more if needed)
- butter for the pan
Instructions
- In a small bowl, place the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the mashed potatoes with the grated raw potato, then add the flour and mix well.
- Slowly add the buttermilk and stir gently (do not over mix).
- The mixture should be like a very firm, thick batter; almost like a dough, so add more buttermilk if needed (I just used 1 cup/8 oz).
- Heat a nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, and add a pat of butter, just before scooping out some of the boxy batter onto the pan.
- Flatten and shape into a nice, round pancake shape and fry until golden brown on the bottom.
- Turn and continue to cook until golden brown on top too, turning the heat down if they are browning too quickly (remember there is raw potatoes which need to cook).
- Continue to add a little butter and fry the boxy until all the batter is finished. Serve hot.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 2Amount Per Serving:Calories: 253Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 7mgSodium: 570mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 3gSugar: 3gProtein: 7g
All nutrition info is estimated.
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[…] Boxty is a potato dish quite similar to the Fried Potato Farls, which were described above. The biggest difference between these two dishes comes through their flavor. Boxty, in this case, is salty while, the Fried Potato Farls, are sweeter. […]
In Canada, our one cup measure is 8 oz, therefore two cups of flour would be sixteen ounces. I’m confused as to where the 9 oz comes in. Thanks.
Wilma, this is why I wish I could remove cups completely and only instruct people to use weight vs. volume. There is a HUGE difference, so let me explain as many people forget their science lessons from school years.
If I told you to give me one pound of feathers or a pound of marbles, it would be the exact same weight, but you would NOT be able to deliver them to me in the same number of cups, right? Let’s just say a pound of marbles might fit into 3 cups, but a pound of feathers would require maybe 100 cups. Do you understand where the 9 oz comes in now?
If possible, use a scale, they are much more accurate and very inexpensive.
Christina
[…] Potatoe pancakes made with buttermilk are a great addition to any meal on St. Patrick’s Day. Here is the recipe for Traditional Irish Boxty. […]
Do I have to make all of the box day at once, or can I save some mix for the following night?
The only problem is that the grated potato turns color, Barbara. Don’t think there’s a difference in flavor, but I seem to recall that was what happened when I put some batter in the fridge. :) Enjoy!
[…] Conte Cuisine: Italian / Category: Bread, Cookies & Pastries Here’s an Irish Boxty recipe you can bookmark for next St. Patrick’s Day (March […]
Yummy, I never had Boxty before but the look like the perfect way to make some leftover mashed potato go further:-)
Oh yeah, you must try them, Camilla! If you love potatoes, you’ll love boxty!
This looks so good, Christina. I’d completely forgotten about Boxty – had it when we were in Ireland years and years ago and absolutely loved it. I have to make them. Thanks for this recipe!
They are one of those things you kick yourself for not making because they’re so good!
Do you rinse the raw potato and dry it before cooking, or keep the starches intact?
Also, thank you for posting a recipe with baking powder! Every recipe I’ve found doesn’t have it. I’ve had great boxty before, but couldn’t quite figure out what they used to puff them up a little bit…the other recipes seemed like they’d be gummy and flat without a magic little pop.
Hi JK, so sorry for the delay in responding as I’ve been traveling for 3 weeks. No need to rinse and dry the potato, so that much quicker and easier, too. Enjoy! They are really good! CC
[…] Click here for recipe. […]
I first tried to make these on St. Patrick’s Day earlier in the year; I had the heat too high and wound up burning the boxty (and setting off all three legally-mandated smoke alarms in the process). After a few months, I tried again, with the heat below medium; the result was just about perfect, golden brown and perfectly cooked. I had them with a creamy chicken/bacon/mushroom/cheese topping and it was wonderful. Since I had spare buttermilk (and milk and cream), I did it again and it was wonderful again. The only thing, and I do not mean this as a criticism, is that I would like to try a boxty recipe with less flour, just to have a contrast and see what I like best. But this recipe has worked very well and I have no complaints
Oh dear, that’s no fun! I can’t imagine 3 alarms going off! So glad you got it perfect the second and third time, Raymond. Really happy you enjoyed them, I love them, too! No worries about the comment with using less flour. Tbh, this is the only recipe I’ve ever used and I really like it, so I have never chanced using a different one in case they don’t turn out as well. Enjoy your boxty testing, and keep me updated on what you discover :)
[…] One recipe of Irish Boxty […]
Christina, iI made these, but with a different recipe,. It did not use baking powder so they were very flat and gooey. The recipe called for Yukon Golds and I think that is part of the gooey problem. They were cooked about 4 minutes on each side and were nicely browned. What potatoes do you use ?
Hi Patti, sorry to hear that. I hate when recipes go awry. I honestly don’t think the Golds were the problem as I think I’ve made these with Yukon Gold as well as Russets. Maybe try this recipe and see if you get good results? Should be perfect! Let me know!
[…] January, Arjun presented Ireland. He created a suitcase filled with lapbooks on Ireland. He made boxty and barmbrack to shared it with his […]
My mother would crack an egg into the left over mash potatoes, then add flour until you could form a patty in your hands and drop on down onto some hot grease and fry them, hopefully only turning them once. We kids would try and grab them up to try and makes sure they were good. We usually ate ours with pinto beans and pork chops. YUMMY
Those are so good, too!! I actually also have this recipe on my site (potato croquettes) only my mother dipped them in breadcrumbs afterwards to give them a crispy coating. I agree, YUMMY! :)
I’ll be honest I didn’t read all the comments, so apologies if you’ve covered this. . . When you say 1 cup mashed potatoes, boiled in salt water is that just boiled potatoes that are mashed, or I cup of “leftover” mashed potatoes with everything that might be added to them?
Hi Lara, no worries (there are too many comments to read all of them)! The former is the correct method to make the boxty (just boiled, mashed potatoes), but to be honest, as long as your leftover mashed potatoes aren’t too soft, you could use those too. I bet boxty were invented to use up leftovers! Enjoy. :)
Thanks, this is going to be part of Sunday dinner with a roast chicken. My best friend said, do something interesting/different with potatoes & this looks like a winner.
Wonderful! Let me know what you think!
On a visit to Ireland, I was taken to Gallagher‘s Boxty House in Dublin for a delightful meal! I’m so happy to have found this recipe. Thanks!
That’s lovely, Laura! I do love to taste the local fare wherever I travel. Enjoy the boxty, and let me know how they stack up against the authentic version!
Yes Gallaghers we went there in 05 and fell in love the boxtys
Lovely, Thomas!
Use less flour & pour larger thinner pans; about 12” diameter & 1/4” thick. I come from the county where boxtie originated & as kids we’d sneak downstairs in the middle of the night to make pans of boxtie :)
That’s so cool that you did that, Chris! You can’t yell at your kids if they do the same, now :)
[…] KNOW? Many nationalities share the same love for potatoes (mashed or not). Take the recipe for Irish Boxty (Irish Potato Cakes). It is made similarly to my Loaded Potato Pancakes (recipe found below). What I find amazing is […]
Made these last night for the first time. This recipe made 9 five inch round boxties that were about 3/4 inch thick. Loved them and plan to make them every St. Patty’s (even though my husband has asked for them more frequently).
Wonderful, Lia! Yes, no reason to keep them for only once a year! Thanks for letting me know! CC
I’ve made these for a few years now and this year my family complained. After reviewing other recipes, I know why….this recipe calls for way too much flour. Most of the other recipes call for 1/3cup or less to the same amount of potatoes, not 2 cups.
I find it strange that you’ve made the same recipe year after year with no review on using my recipe, and all of a sudden your family complains and you come here to leave a bad review?
Your research is also erroneous. Gallagher’s Boxty House which is the standard in Dublin for boxty has a ratio almost exactly the same as this recipe. I’m also wondering why you don’t just make another recipe, but feel the need to leave a one star review on my recipe which has so many 5 stars and not one that is less than 4? (Also, many people have told me they try to leave 5 star reviews but are only able to leave a 4 star rating.)
If you ask me, something’s rotten in Denmark.
[…] Traditional Irish Boxty by Christina’s Cucina […]
Sorry if I missed this somewhere in the post. About how many boxty does this make? I want to make them for my daughter’s school St. Patrick’s Day party and infuse a little authentic Irish cuisine in with all that green stuff they’ll be eating 😁.
Good for you! Actually, I have no idea how many it makes because it truly depends on how thick you make them and how large or small in diameter. I’d recommend making 1.5 time the recipe and making it a little less thick so that you can make them a little thinner. I’m sure you’ll have more than enough that way. (I’m assuming your making for about 30 children.) Hope this helps! CC
I recently made this. I made 3 rather large (10” diameter roughly) Boxtys and had some leftover batter for probably a 4th large one. If you make small-sized ones like that in the pic, I’m sure you can squeeze out 8-10.
Hi
I live in South Africa, and we do not have all-purpose flour here; can I use self-raising flour or cake flour in this recipe; and if so, what would the measurements be?
Many thanks!
Hi Tanya, I’m almost positive you’d have an equivalent to all-purpose. What is your most “normal” flour that isn’t cake or self-raising? That is what you’d want to use. If you truly don’t have it, use self raising and omit the baking powder. Enjoy!
Hi Christina :-)
Unfortunately, we only have cake flour, bread flour and self-raising flour. I will try it with self-raising flour.
Thanks so much!
Yes, that’s the best option, then. I’m sure they’ll be great! :)
Thank you :-)
You can omit the baking powder.The reason the baking powder is used alongside the buttermilk is they both react with each other to help them rise. Self-rising flour already has the baking powder in it.
I noted that in my first response.
I think he was just giving a more in depth response
Love this. My Mom’s side of the family is Irish so I always love seeing amazing recipes like this.
You have to try the boxty then, Kim! What are you waiting for? :)
I love Irish boxty! The combination of mashed and grated potatoes really yields such a great texture. It’s been forever since I’ve had these and that needs to change. Yours look perfect!
Thanks, Kimberly! I do love them too, but then again, how can you ever go wrong with potatoes?! :)
awesome mouthwatering recipe..we do not use Buttermilk..is it ok to use normal cow milk?? Thank you
YES! Just add a squeeze of lemon to the normal milk and it’s a good substitution for buttermilk! :)
My family has an Irish background. My mom would purposefully make too many mashed potatoes using butter and milk so she could make potato pancakes with the leftovers! She would just add a little flour to it and then fry it! Being from the US we of course as kids are ours with ketchup!
Awesome, Kim! Lucky you-most US kids never had this luxury! :)
[…] do it. My menu this year consists of the New York Times lamb stew and a simple recipe I found for boxty (potato pancakes) by Christina’s Cucina. I realize that name doesn’t sound very […]
My Dad, an Irishman, used to make Potato Cakes for us kids for Sunday Nights tea (that’s all he could cook!). We loved them, except we hated having to peel them after they were cooked. My Dad used to make them with just Potato, butter, salt, Flour (only about 1/2 cup, they were mostly potato) and a little bit of Baking Powder. He would form them into cakes about 1″ thick. After they cooked, dry, on top of the stove we would then split them in half and slather them with homemade butter. They were wonderful hot with the butter running down your chin! One was enough even for the greediest kid.
What wonderful memories, Mary! I can just picture that scene and now I want Boxty!!! ;)
I’ve never had boxty before, but what’s not to like? Interesting that it uses buttermilk, and both grated and mashed potatoes. I need to try this!
You’d love them, Cynthia!
I make Boxty using the recipe from my late mum in law who hails from Co Donegal. She only made Boxty using Queens- 6 t0 8 depending on size. She would finely grate them into a fine mush add salt, a teaspoon of baking powder and a cup of flour. Mixing them altogether until you get the consistency like a batter mix. Then using a ladle this was poured into to a frying pan with butter about 1\2″ thick and cooked on both sides for approx 3- 4 minutes. We had this on it’s own, with sugar or you can have it with nearly anything you want. Note we have never measure out any of the ingredients it’s becomes second nature after a while
Wow, I never thought about serving them with sugar, James! Will have to try it. Yes, many of the recipes I post I have only measured for posting on the blog as they are recipes we make all the time. Thanks for stopping by! CC
My late mammie was from Roscommon and made pan sized boxty the same way as your mum-in-law. They were what we would eat as a poor man’s meal,
with butter, hot off the pan. I now toss in some fried onions too. Delicious and they really fill you up.
Hi Brian, that’s a lovely memory! Glad you’re still making them. I don’t make them often enough; a really wonderful meal. Thanks for sharing! CC
Just as an aside, Boxty cakes are a Northern Irish dish, I grew up in Southern Ireland and we didn’t eat them, in fact I never even heard of them till I moved back to England!
Boxty was..and still is made in the west and mid-west of Ireland…from Leitrim. .Longford..across to Mayo and Slog and up to Donegal ..can’t believe you had never heard of them growing up in Southern Ireland
I actually grew up in Scotland, so that might be why I hadn’t heard of them, Emmel. I do love them now!!
Hi Christina…Sorry…crossed lines…I was just a little surprised that Shaun hadn’t heard of boxty whilst in Ireland….I realise it is more prominent in certain parts of Ireland…I wasn’t having a pop at anyone…keep the good recipes going..thanks..Emmel.
Oh dear, I was responding on a different spot on my site, so I didn’t see that you were responding to Shaun! Yes, that is a bit surprising. Thanks so much!! :)
[…] tasted the cuisine. When she heard about this roundup, she immediately felt that Traditional Irish Boxty would be the ideal dish for the same. Boxty is a traditional Irish potato dish which can […]
I came across this too I love potato pancakes, I eat mine with apple sauce, however I read further down where someone wanted to try them the syrup, go for it they are delicious with maple syrup, or blueberry, blackberry, even apricot, I love making mine with fried onions. So good… thanks for the recipe hope my tips can help too…these may be savoy but they work great as a subtle sweet.
Thank you, Jolene! I think I’d like the fried onion option! Great idea!
[…] some right now, just typing that description. I can’t even…) I first read about them on Christina’s Cucina (a blog by a lovely Italian woman who grew up in Scotland. Basically, if I could have chosen my own […]
Somehow this came across this newsfeed, but I love the idea! YAY! They look scrumptious!
Thanks, Kathryn!
I love the sound of these! I eat a plateful right now!
You’d love them, Cynthia!
Hello Christina,
Just came across this post for “Boxty Potato Pancakes” . I would love to give them a ry as they ok very appetizing ! My question is the cooked mashed potatoes … Are they left over mashed with the butter and milk already in or just plain cooked boiled potatoes just mashed with no additions in?
Christina, I love your posts and your recipes ….. Thank you for always being there with healthy, good suggestions!
Hi Anna! Thank you so much for your kind words!
Regarding the mashed potatoes: I would hazard a guess that the Irish came up with this recipe in order to use up leftover mashed potatoes, so I honestly think either plain mashed potatoes or leftover with milk and butter would work (I’ve only made it with plain). Let me know how it goes! Thanks for following along! :)
[…] love blini with caviar, so I decided to make my own version with a twist: remember my Irish Boxty recipe? Well, I made miniature pancakes, topped them with a lovely dollop of creme fraiche (which you can […]
Christina, I’ve never heard of these and they sound amazing! The texture looks divine — crispy on the outside and ever so fluffy inside. Perfect.
Oh you must try them, Valentina! You’re such a potato lover, these are right up your alley!
I have always wondered what a boxty was – now I know! These look wonderful, and just the kind of thing that makes for a nice comforting evening supper! ~ David
Absolutely, David~perfect for any meal! :)
These are an absolute delight!! Appropriate for ANY day, wearin’ the green or not. :D
Thank you, Debbie!! They are! CC
Hi Christina,
Pardon my ignorance!!! I have never heard of Irish Boxty! This is something new that I learn today :D
I can clearly see the comforting factors in your double-potatoes cakes… I would rather to have these potatoes cakes rather than the personalized license plates :p
Zoe
Hahaha! You’re a woman after my own heart! :)
Hi Christina, Wow, these are very interesting, and I have never had this before. But like you said between all the ingredients, what’s not to love. I think they are lovely looking, and I would probably like to try them for breakfast. I checked out your English breakfast page, fantastic! Love the sheep, they are so cute…Interesting that you had baked beans with it. I was wondering how they would taste with some maple syrup? Serving them as a wrap may be good too. Wonderful idea and I love new ways to prepare new types of foods. Thank you for sharing this one….Your pictures are so beautiful, and your recipes are very different. I always look forward to seeing your next post…Blessings Dottie :)
Hi Dottie, I wouldn’t eat them with maple syrup because they are savory, not sweet. Yes, wraps would be good. Thank you for your compliments! ;)
These are interesting pancakes. We have potato pancakes, ones are made with mashed potatoes and others made with raw potatoes, but nothing using both! I would like to try these :)
I know, Medeja! Same thing here…when I first heard about these I was so intrigued! Yet another potato treat to enjoy!! Trust the Irish to give it to us! ;)
So funny, I was doing some research thinking I would do a St Patrick’s day post and I settled on Boxty, I saved a recipe that I found on some Irish website and it’s pretty much identical to the one you posted and gave different options for fillings. They sound delicious and we are on the same wave length. I think your boxty look fabulous and sound so delicious.
Great minds think alike! I have made these quite a few times, but never often enough because they are so GOOD! I have never filled the with anything as I love them in a British breakfast…you know, how you order the same thing you love at a restaurant? Hope you try them! CC