Irish Potato Farls

Name: Irish Potato Bread
Prep time: PT0D0H0M
Cook time: PT0D0H45M
Total time: PT0D0H45M
Yield: 20 squares
Ingredients: 1½ cups self-rising flour, plus more for dusting; 2 Tbsp. cold bacon fat or unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for frying; 2 tsp. kosher salt; 1½ cups mashed potatoes (about 3 large potatoes, boiled until tender and mashed with a potato masher or fork); ¼ cup whole milk; 2 scallions, thinly sliced, for garnish (optional)

Pillowy squares of dough are fried in bacon fat until crispy and golden in this beloved flatbread.

Makes
20 squares
Time
45 minutes

PHOTO: HEAMI LEE • FOOD STYLING: CAMILLE BECERRA

By Kaitlin Hill

Updated on March 17, 2025

For most Americans, St. Patrick’s Day is monopolized by green beer and bad decisions. It’s a day when you can get away with drinking past your limit and kissing perfect strangers just because they’re wearing green. But for me, a daughter of Northern Irish parents, St. Patrick’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate my heritage, spend time with my family, and most importantly, indulge in my favorite Irish foods.

The best meal in our weekend of Irish-only eating is my mom’s Irish breakfast—known as the Ulster Fry in Ireland—with over-easy eggs, bacon, Irish-style bangers, and my favorite, freshly made potato farls, or potato bread. When my mom pulls out the pots and pans to prepare breakfast, it’s the dish we’re all most eagerly awaiting: Pillowy squares of dough made with mashed potatoes, with a crisp, golden exterior thanks to a final fry in bacon fat.

Initially created to avoid wasting leftover mashed potatoes—of which the Irish have plenty—the recipe has been in our family for years, passed down to my mom from my grandmother, Myrtle. And although the dough is made up of humble ingredients and prepared using simple techniques, the finished product is extraordinary—it’s so reminiscent of what you would find in one of the cozy little pubs that line the streets of Belfast that, with one bite, I feel instantly transported and connected to the generations of my family that made and enjoyed the same type of bread in Ireland.

As most St. Patrick’s Day revelers are recovering from hangovers and scrubbing themselves clean of green sequins, I’ll be settling into a lovely little meal with my mom, dad, and brother. And you can bet I’ll enjoy my fair share of mom’s potato bread—the ideal vehicle for sopping up runny egg yolk and finishing off that last bit of bacon for the perfect final bite. —Kaitlin Hill

Ingredients

1½ cups self-rising flour, plus more for dusting
2 Tbsp. cold bacon fat or unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for frying
2 tsp. kosher salt
1½ cups mashed potatoes (about 3 large potatoes, boiled until tender and mashed with a potato masher or fork)
¼ cup whole milk
2 scallions, thinly sliced, for garnish (optional)

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Instructions

Step 1

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 400°F.

Step 2

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, bacon fat, and salt until pea-size crumbs form. Stir in the mashed potatoes and milk to form a smooth dough. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and roll out into a 10-inch square. Cut into twenty 2½-inch squares, rerolling the dough as needed. Transfer the squares to two parchment-lined baking sheets.

Step 3

Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the bread is light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer the bread to a wire rack and set aside to cool.

Step 4

In a large skillet over medium-high, heat 1 tablespoon of bacon fat. Working in batches, add the bread and cook, turning once and adding more bacon fat as needed, until warmed through and golden, about 1 minute per side. Top with scallions if desired and serve warm.

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 400°F.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, bacon fat, and salt until pea-size crumbs form. Stir in the mashed potatoes and milk to form a smooth dough. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and roll out into a 10-inch square. Cut into twenty 2½-inch squares, rerolling the dough as needed. Transfer the squares to two parchment-lined baking sheets.
Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the bread is light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer the bread to a wire rack and set aside to cool.
In a large skillet over medium-high, heat 1 tablespoon of bacon fat. Working in batches, add the bread and cook, turning once and adding more bacon fat as needed, until warmed through and golden, about 1 minute per side. Top with scallions if desired and serve warm.