Bangers And Mash…My Irish Eyes Were Smiling!

It’s hard to believe, but this old Meemaw had never whipped up a batch of bangers and mash with onion gravy until last week. And as I ate that Irish dinner I became nostalgic for my dear old Irish relatives. The relatives I had known…and some I never knew.

I never met my Grandpa Grady since he died right after the market crash of 1929, long before I was born.  He and his father were some of the original businessmen of our small Iowa town, and his family’s entrepreneurial business successes lived on long after he died.

I think Grandpa Grady’s red hair and freckles were the reason my mom and most of her brothers and sisters were “gingers” just like him. Their fair skin was the color of  milk…and their eyes sparkled like the Irish Sea.

My Grandma Grady was of German descent. She was a cheerful, kind, and soft spoken woman with snow white hair and a lighthearted disposition. She was already “old” when I was born, so I only remember her as an invalid who spent her days in her bed or in a rocking chair close by.

Grandma Grady lived to be almost 100, and she was always surrounded by her large and loving family who cared for her every need. There was no nursing home in her future. Ever. Grandma lived and died in the 13 room “upstairs flat” located above the various businesses that were run by the Grady family for generations. 

Grandma was a beautiful soul, and she was an easy person to love.

I can honestly say I never heard that woman complain about anything in her entire life. To say she lived her faith would be an understatement. I’m sure she was a wonderful homemaker and cook in her younger days. I’m sure of that fact because all of her daughters were exceptional cooks…especially my mom.

And I’m sure Grandma Grady knew a thing or two about cooking sausage…especially since the Grady family owned a butcher shop for generations. This is MY Great Grandfather Grady standing in front of the A. N. Grady Meat Market.

That meat market was located on the ground floor in the same building (still referred to as The Grady Building) where my grandparents lived. So with Grandma and Grandpa’s combined Irish and German heritage I bet many sausages found their way upstairs to Grandma Grady’s kitchen!

Now…back to my newly created version of bangers and mash.

That night was one of those rare nights when I could think of nothing to make for dinner. I discussed my lack of dinner ideas with our neighbor Linda while we were floating in the pool on a warm winter afternoon. Our discussion veered off to upcoming St. Patrick’s Day festivities, and that’s when bangers and mash popped into my head. I quickly realized I had all the ingredients on hand, even though I’m sure the turkey sausage in my freezer was definitely not the type my grandma used!

So after my swim I made a brief scroll through some online recipes, and I created my own version of this classic Irish dish.

First…the mash. I peeled some potatoes and added water to cover them. I added salt and put them on to boil. Next I pulled out my 12 inch cast iron skillet and I added several tablespoons of butter. (What Irish recipe doesn’t include butter?)

I threw in a 13 ounce link of Fit & Active Lean Turkey Polska Kielbasa and I browned it on both sides in the butter in that cast iron skillet. (The smoked sausage was already fully cooked so I just browned it to add some flavor to the skillet and some color to the dish.) I removed the sausage from the pan and set it aside. 

In the same skillet I tossed in a bay leaf and I added two onions I had sliced, and I added a sprinkle of salt to help those onions begin to soften and caramelize. 

I cooked the onions until they were soft, and I stirred in a heaping tablespoon (or maybe two) of flour.

I cooked and stirred that mixture for several minutes to cook out the flour taste.

Next I stirred in several cups of chicken broth (beef broth would also work) and I stirred quickly with a whisk to make sure no lumps were formed.

I threw in a heaping teaspoon of Knorr Chicken Bouillon crystals and a cube of Knorr Beef Bouillon to add more flavor. I simmered the mixture for a few minutes before I added the pieces of kielbasa to the skillet while I mashed the cooked potatoes. (I added a large “knob” of butter as the Irish say, and some salt and half & half to the drained and mashed potatoes.)

And no authentic bangers and mash would be complete without some peas to go with it. So I grabbed a bag from the freezer and cooked them up too.

Finally, I removed the bay leaf from the skillet and I plated my tribute to the family I loved…

And I must say…I’m pretty sure those twinkling Irish eyes were smiling that night in Heaven.

Because I know MY eyes were twinkling right here in my kitchen.

Later that night our oldest granddaughter saw the finished dish I posted on Instagram, and she told me her dad (our son) had fixed that very same dish several nights ago.  That news filled my heart with joy since it goes to show that our Irish roots will live on for at least two more generations!  And now with this blog post our grandkids will have my story and my recipe and these family photos to help them connect to their Irish heritage.

And that’s an even bigger reason for those Irish eyes to keep smiling…and still twinkling for generations to come.