Have you ever wondered how much blood sausage a person can eat in one sitting? If so, you’ve come to the right place. Artie Clifford and Fallon Moore are the founders of Blas na hÉireann, the Irish Food Awards. Blas, which means ‘taste’ in Irish, was born in Dingle in 2007, and has organized an annual celebration of the best in Irish food and drink every year since. With some help from University College Cork, they’ve developed a blind tasting process that’s become the international standard in food competitions. The work of Blas na hÉireann goes well beyond an annual judging competition. They’re champions of local food networks; a networking organization for producers, and a source of invaluable feedback for food startups. They also run a mentorship and educational training program for small businesses.On this week’s episode, we speak with Artie and Fallon about how the food landscape is changing in Ireland; new trends in Irish food & drink; the rebirth of boxty and the renewed interest in traditional foods; and find out whether their judges ever get sick of eating blood sausage.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Is there anything Kwanghi Chan can’t do?! The Dublin-based chef and cookbook author owns two restaurants, a food truck, a retail sauce company, and regularly appears on TV. Born in Hong Kong, Kwanghi moved to Donegal when he was eight and grew up cooking in his uncle’s Chinese takeaway. As an adult, he chose a culinary education over art school and went on to work in a number of Michelin-starred restaurants before going out on his own. Kwanghi’s first book, Wok, came out last year and is the first Irish-Chinese cookbook to be published in Ireland.We’re so excited to have Kwanghi Chan help us to kick off the second season of Dyed Green. On this episode, we speak with Kwanghi about his career trajectory, what Chinese food in Ireland is like, white people cooking Asian food, and the future of the food industry in the face of all of today’s challenges.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.Dyed Green is Powered by Simplecast.

The diversity of Irish whiskey today is in a new league compared to just 20 years ago when a few big brands dominated the market. One of the things that defines a modern Irish whiskey is the story behind it, and few have as compelling a story as Slane Irish Whiskey. Distilled on the grounds of Slane Castle—a site famous in part for hosting huge outdoor rock concerts since the 1980s—the brand uses water from the mythologically important River Boyne and homegrown grain, prioritizes measurable sustainability practices, and weaves the legacy of its rock-n-roll history into their finished products.We are thrilled to be joined this week by Slane Irish Whiskey co-founder and global brand ambassador Alex Conyngham. We speak with Alex about growing up at Slane Castle, his family’s environmental legacy, and what it was like to build a competitive global brand in a competitive spirits marketplace. We also discuss what it means to be truly sustainable in the distilling world, as well as how artisan food and drink producers collaborate to support one another in the Boyne Valley.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.Dyed Green is Powered by Simplecast.

Nestled in the Mourne Mountains, along an old country road that was once a brandy smuggling route, you’ll find Ireland’s smallest distillery. Built in a renovated old cowshed, the Killowen Distillery in County Down was started by architect-turned-distiller Brendan Carty in 2017. Today, he runs the business with just four employees, himself included.This is our first episode profiling an Irish distiller, and we couldn’t be happier to be speaking with Brendan Carty about the magic of Killowen Distillery and his unique vision for the future of craft spirits. Join us as we discuss the history of Irish whiskey, the reinvention of poitín, and how one small but mighty distillery is making its mark in the crowded world of corporate-owned spirits.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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It’s an exciting time in the food world in Ireland, so it should come as no surprise that, like restaurant pop-ups and artisanal producers, the landscape is ripe for new approaches to food writing too. Enter Jane Gleeson and Guzzle magazine, a new publication focused on the intersection of art and food, poised to make a splash with its unique perspectives. On this episode of Dyed Green, we speak to Guzzle editor Jane Gleeson about her inspiration for starting the magazine, and how using food and art as a lens to discuss political and cultural issues in Ireland allows for more open, inclusive, and creative conversations. We also talk about childhood food nostalgia; how fruitcake is generally pretty terrible; and how, stereotypes aside, Guinness and potatoes are never not ridiculously delicious.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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John and Sally McKenna have been have been documenting the Irish food scene since before it even existed. Setting out in the 90s to explore the world of Irish artisan producers, they began publishing their perennially popular and highly respected McKenna’s Guides back when the Irish food scene consisted of a few cheesemakers spread out in the country, and no notable restaurants to speak of all. The McKennas have stayed on the case as Ireland’s chefs and artisans have gained confidence and become more highly regarded internationally. Throughout a changing culinary landscape, they’ve stayed true to their own values and love of food as something that should bring people together as opposed to a status symbol. We sat down with John and Sally recently to discuss how much Ireland has changed from when they first began documenting Irish food. We discuss Ireland’s producer-led food culture, how delightful creative people who work in food are, the beauty of world-class chefs opening restaurants in their rural hometowns, as well as how operators and artisans can stay positive and adapt amid today’s challenging environment of “staff shortages,” inflation, and more. Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Picture this: an organic farm on 250 acres of soft, green, rolling hills on a remote peninsula bordering the Atlantic Ocean—an idyllic location to grow vegetables and raise cows and pigs. At first glance, it seems like the Ferguson family—the multi-generational crew behind Gubbeen Farm outside Schull, West Cork—is living the dream: father Tom is the herdsman; mother Giana, the pioneering cheesemaker; son Fingal the smoked meat producer; and daughter Clovisse the bio-dynamic gardener. 

After taking a closer look, we can confirm that in this case the dream is in fact, reality. With the start of their award-winning cheesemaking in the 1970s, the Fergusons have worked diligently to make cheese-dairy.html">Gubbeen cheese and meat products a household name synonymous with quality, care, and respect for the land in restaurants and homes around Ireland and throughout the world. 

In this week’s episode, we sit down with Fingal Ferguson, the fifth generation of Gubbeen farmers, to talk about life on the farm, the West Cork artisan community, and the beauty of staying small. We also discuss Fingal’s passion for knives and knife making, as well as how to not rest on a legacy, but continue to stay creative and challenge yourself.

Photo courtesy of Fingal Ferguson.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Our guests this week are Tommy McLarnon and Shannon Smith of the Save the Boyne campaign, which has been organizing local residents and concerned citizens to stop meat processing factory Dawn Meats from dumping wastewater into the Boyne River. The Boyne River is an important historical site and part of Celtic mythology, playing a key role in events like the Battle of the Boyne and stories like the Salmon of Knowledge. The river flows through a fertile valley, past ancient historical sites like the Hill of Tara and Newgrange, and through biodynamic farms where some of the country’s best artisans make cider, whiskey, cheese, and grow vegetables. Despite being an integral part of “Ireland’s Ancient East”, the River Boyne's health is under threat from Dawn Meat's proposed plan to build a pipeline that would discharge 400,000 liters per day of wastewater into the river.We spoke about the importance of protecting rivers as part of the broader struggle for climate justice, and the importance of grassroots organizing for social and environmental change. Learn more about the Save the Boyne campaign and find out how you can get involved at www.savetheboyne.org.Photo courtesy of Jim Fitzpatrick.HRN is home to transformative exchanges about food. Our 35+ member-supported food podcasts empower eaters to cultivate a radically better world. This month, we’re asking you to join us. Become a monthly sustaining member at heritageradionetwork.org/donate.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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As the Great Resignation and the repercussions from the pandemic continue to accelerate changes already underway in the hospitality industry, more and more chefs are looking for ways to stay creatively involved in food outside of traditional restaurant kitchens. Keith Coleman is one such chef whose career has taken some unexpected turns. After working at Fumbally Cafe, he was the head chef at the beloved and short-lived Fia in Rathgar. More recently he started a pop-up, Roots, with his partner Aisling McHugh, and oversaw the food and beverage program at Slane Castle, both experiences which led him to reflect on what he truly values about cooking and his own place within hospitality. Today, Keith is a private chef at Bellamont House in County Cavan, where he’s working with the owners to create a sustainable food program on the estate.

Keith's story touches on some of the most important topics in hospitality today. We spoke about the pressures of being a chef and the challenges of creating healthy, non-toxic workplaces, the value of close relationships with organic farmers, and the growing #BeigeFood Movement (simple, honest, delicious food that Keith posts about on his IG (@keithjamescoleman). Join us on a journey into the ever-evolving landscape of Ireland's food scene through the eyes of Keith Coleman. 

HRN is home to transformative exchanges about food. Our 35+ member-supported food podcasts empower eaters to cultivate a radically better world. This month, we’re asking you to join us. Become a monthly sustaining member at heritageradionetwork.org/donate.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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The Irish poet and philosopher John O’Donohue described being born in the Burren, with its surreal, limestone landscape as a “huge, wild invitation to extend your imagination.” Located in County Clare, on Ireland’s west coast, not only is the Burren is one of the country’s most biodiverse regions—seventy percent of Irish native flora can be found there—it has been grazed for 6,000 years. Today, the Burren is celebrated for its High Nature Value farming, a forward-thinking sustainable management practice which allow farmers to make a living while fostering the delicate ecological balance the area requires.On this episode, we speak with Brendan Dunford of the Burrenbeo Trust about the role of farmers in protecting landscapes and improving environmental health, the benefits of results-based payment systems, and how appealing to a farmer’s pocket, head, and heart is the best way to encourage them to farm for nature and the climate. Tune in for an upbeat, inspirational conversation featuring a true climate visionary.HRN is home to transformative exchanges about food. Our 35+ member-supported food podcasts empower eaters to cultivate a radically better world. This month, we’re asking you to join us. Become a monthly sustaining member at heritageradionetwork.org/donate.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Chef Danni Barry became the second woman in Ireland ever to earn a Michelin star while working at Eipic in Belfast in 2016—the first being none other than the legend Myrtle Allen, at Ballymaloe House in 1975. Barry is a powerhouse in the kitchen with a resumé that any young chef would aspire to. After coming up under the tutelage of Michael Deane, Barry worked at L’Enclume, Restaurant 23, and Cartmel in the UK and traveled around the world to places like Spain, Australia, and South Korea before returning to Ireland.Now back at home in the North, Barry is also a chef at a crossroads, in many ways mirroring the changes happening on a broader scale in the hospitality industry. After achieving Michelin recognition and consulting on the celebrated Wicklow Escape, we talk to Barry about what’s next for her and for restaurants in general. We chat about the climate for female chefs in Ireland, the impact of losing her husband in 2019, and what it’s like to open and operate a restaurant in post-Brexit Northern Ireland today.

HRN is home to transformative exchanges about food. Our 35+ member-supported food podcasts empower eaters to cultivate a radically better world. This month, we’re asking you to join us. Become a monthly sustaining member at heritageradionetwork.org/donate.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Eoin Ó Broin is truly a man of many talents: not only is he Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on Housing, Local Government & Heritage and a TD for Dublin Mid-West, he’s also a prolific author, an avid home chef, and a former musician—there’s even a Spotify playlist dedicated to him. Eoin is an outspoken proponent of the need for government to invest in public and affordable housing and on this issue, he’s no stranger to speaking truth to power. We spoke to Eoin about the current housing crisis in Ireland, AirBnB and the impact of tourism on the local housing market, restaurant culture & pivoting during covid, and how we can reimagine public space for a sustainable future for all.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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If artisanal wheat varieties, milling your own grain, and regenerative agriculture make you hot around the collar, then this is the show for you!

Our guest is Fintan Keenan, a regenerative grain farmer and flour miller who runs a 60 hectare organic farm on Bakkegården near Gyrstinge, in Denmark. Born and raised on a beef and dairy farm in County Monaghan, Keenan grows and mills heirloom wheat in Denmark and, with his brother Turlough, is growing over 60 varieties in Ireland - plus the 17 wheat varieties that were historically grown there. Keenan also designs and builds mills around the world.

We spoke with Keenan about how he came to be in Denmark, food tourism in Denmark and Ireland, the importance of community-led local food economies, steel mills versus stone mills (that’s right!), and just how food secure Ireland really is.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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What’s the difference between feeding people and actually nourishing them? Our guest this week has garnered international acclaim for her “Magic Poo Bread,” a 17-ingredient loaf designed with care to provide ultimate gut health. Karen O’Donoghue is the owner of the Happy Tummy Co. a bakery and cooking school in Westport, County Mayo. Driven by her mother’s cancer diagnosis and her own issues with IBS, Karen spent years developing a recipe for a tasty, nourishing loaf that—you guessed it—will help make you poo! But the Happy Tummy story is also about using food to build healthy communities. We speak with Karen about how she built business that allows her to pay staff well and source her ingredients responsibly. We talk about the connections between commercial wheat and digestive health problems, and the pitfalls of following trendy sourdough bakers on Instagram. How can we use food to make positive change in the world? What’s it like to run a successful food business with loyal customers who are happy to pay a premium for quality? Tune in to find out!Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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What makes Irish food special? It’s not fancy techniques or luxury preparations, but the high quality of simple ingredients—hiding in plain sight all along. In an age where we can import nearly anything from anywhere, it’s a powerful statement to recognize that what makes Irish food unique is its ingredients, from produce, to foraged greens and berries, to seafood, and of course dairy (especially butter). This week’s guest is chef and food historian, Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire, who explains that using what’s on your doorstep is the real zeitgeist when it comes to Irish food today. Can you imagine being able to tell which farm your butter is from just by tasting it? On today’s episode, Max speaks with Máirtín about working with quality ingredients, the evolution of Irish food in restaurants, using stories to promote food tourism, and more!Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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How can we use food to strengthen communities? How can small businesses contribute positively to local economies? How can food businesses support sustainable ecology? How can we create nurturing environments for workers? These are questions that chefs and restaurant owners are constantly asking, even as they also struggle to keep their doors open in the midst of many intersecting challenges.

This week we talk about all these issues and more with Aisling Rogerson, founder of Dubin’s Fumbally Cafe and Stables, which continues to evolve while staying true to its core values. The café was one of the first to embrace a more locavore and multi-ethnic approach to Irish food, and many of the kitchen staff have gone on to create successful food brands and open top restaurants. 

We talk about how she and her co-founder, Luca D’Alfonso came up with the idea to open the space, its role as a community hub, and how the neighborhood has changed over the years since it opened. 

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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The image of Ireland in most people’s minds—whether you’ve been there or not—is likely to be a landscape of lush green rolling hills and farmland. But when it comes to sustainability and biodiversity, how “green” is Ireland really?Our guest this week is author and environmental campaigner Pádraic Fogarty. Pádraic is the author of the book Whittled Away: Ireland’s Vanishing Nature and the spokesperson for the Irish Wildlife Trust. We speak with Pádraic about what the divisive “turf wars” are all about, protection for farmers, fishing, and how we can make the most impact as concerned citizens.Join us as we peek behind the curtain and attempt to separate appearance from reality around sustainability in Ireland.Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Deeply rooted in the landscape, the Irish language is thousands of years old and full of words with multiple layers of meaning—not to mention countless references to the Otherworld.

On this week’s episode, we speak with Irish writer, broadcaster, and Gaeilgeoir, Manchán Magan about how the Irish language and food can be used as a metaphor to tune in to our intrinsic connection to the land. We discuss Magan’s traveling show, Arán & Im, and his book, Thirty Two Words for Field: Lost Words of the Irish Landscape. With topics as diverse as sourdough bread baking, folklore, nonlinear time, and quantum physics, this is an episode you will not want to miss!

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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We take a little bit of a detour from food this week and turn our spotlight on the walled city of Derry in the north of Ireland. Perhaps best known around the world for being the site of the Bloody Sunday massacre in 1972, Derry has come a long way over the past 50 years to become a model for peace and reconciliation.

On today’s episode, we speak with Paul Doherty, owner of Bogside History Tours and a founding member of the Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign, and Ciara O’Connor Pozzo, from the Museum of Free Derry. We discuss the impact of Bloody Sunday and how much the city has changed since then, problems with the concept of “dark tourism,” and the gift that is Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls TV show.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Kristin Jensen is upending the publishing world in Ireland and we are here for it! A long time food writer, editor, and publisher, Kristin created the Blasta Books series to change the way cookbooks are made in order to make more room at the table.

No matter what country you live in, the traditional publishing route for cookbooks tends to be prohibitively expensive. Very often chefs have to front the cost of ingredients and recipe testing, and food stylists and photographers are essential components to get noticed in a competitive market. And while immigrants are becoming a larger part of Ireland’s population, you wouldn’t necessarily know this from much of the food media. In practice, many voices do not get heard, and certain parts of Irish food culture are overlooked. And so the idea for the Blasta series was born!

Kristin uses the analogy of comparing street food to restaurants when explaining how Blasta Books measure up to traditional cookbooks: “they give people a fun, accessible and affordable way to eat exciting food,” while providing a more inclusive snapshot of Ireland’s modern and diverse food culture. On this episode, we talk to Kristin about the cookbook industry, as well as the most exciting things happening on the Irish food scene today.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Sally Barnes is the last wild Irish fish smoker in Ireland, a dedicated artisan who refuses to compromise her craft by working with any farmed fish–especially farmed salmon, whose existence in open net pens threaten the well-being of the already endangered, iconic fish. Unbeknownst to many of us, all around the world there are individuals and small communities working to protect foods on the brink of extinction. In his new book, “Eating to Extinction: The World’s Rarest Foods & Why We Need To Save Them,” BBC journalist Dan Saladino creates a compelling narrative to explain how the diversity of our food culture is inextricably linked to the biodiversity of our environment, and champions the stories of people from Kazakhstan to Okinawa who are working overtime to protect local species and food cultures. Dan and Sally believe the future of our food IS the future of our planet, and we agree.

This week on Dyed Green we travel around the world with Dan and Sally, and discus what we’ve lost in the quest to globalize and industrialize our food system; the ways in which the loss of biodiversity affects what appears on our grocery shelves; the impact of farmed salmon on wild salmon populations; and what we can do as individuals to make an impact beyond the farmers’ market or grocery store.

Are you a business owner? Become an HRN business member! For $500 HRN will shine a light on your work AND you will help sustain our mission to expand the way people think about food. As a thank you for this tax-deductible donation, your business will receive on-air mentions, social media posts, listings on our website and more. Go to heritageradionetwork.org/biz to become a business member today.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com

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Did you know that seaweed is one of the most nutritious foods you can eat? Or that it can even dramatically reduce the amount of methane cows produce? Imagine the idea that eating something delicious could be both good for you AND cut down on harmful gases destroying the planet! On today’s episode, we speak to our friend John Fitzgerald, co-owner of Atlantic Irish Seaweed.

John and his wife Kerryann have been running seaweed discovery courses and workshops in County Kerry since 2009. We talk to John about how long Irish people have been eating seaweed and why it’s suddenly back in fashion, how to forage responsibly, other uses for seaweed beyond food, and much more.

Are you a business owner? Become an HRN business member! For $500 HRN will shine a light on your work AND you will help sustain our mission to expand the way people think about food. As a thank you for this tax-deductible donation, your business will receive on-air mentions, social media posts, listings on our website and more. Go to heritageradionetwork.org/biz to become a business member today.

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com

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Jess Murphy is a celebrated chef, restaurant owner, writer, and activist. Originally from New Zealand, she moved to Ireland and opened the Michelin Green Star Kai restaurant in Galway’s West End. We talk to her about why we should all think about today’s Irish food on the same level as other internationally acclaimed cuisines. 

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Tacos? For the 1st episode of a new Irish food podcast? Absolutely! We talk to Lily Ramirez Foran, a Mexican cook, storyteller, food writer, and shopkeeper. Originally from Monterrey, she found her way to Ireland via her husband Alan, who she met while studying in Japan. Together they founded Picado, a Mexican market and cooking school in Dublin. Her new book “Tacos” is now available from Blasta Books. 

Dyed Green is a project of Bog & Thunder, whose mission is to highlight the best of Irish food and culture, through food tours, events, and media. Find out more at www.bogandthunder.com.

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Coming soon from HRN, Dyed Green is a podcast about food and culture in Ireland. Hosted by Kate McCabe and Max Sussman, co-founders of the ecotourism company Bog & Thunder, each episode features dynamic conversations with chefs, farmers, scholars, and more - exploring Ireland’s rich culinary history, its dynamic creative culture, and challenging outdated stereotypes. It’s not just Guinness and potatoes (although there will be plenty of that too!) Join Kate and Max on a culinary journey to the country you won’t believe you’ve been missing: Ireland.

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