Thanks, Rmullins, for that. I was thinking actually, how Ireland was forced onto a single-crop agriculture (hence famine when that one crop, not even native to the land, the potato, failed) and how could any actual native cuisine survive? Though i presume that there were, as there always are, people who sided with the invaders and got advantages and had the money to buy food that most people couldn't get, but then it would have been strongly influenced by british cuisine, i guess.
You forget, among the invaders, the Vikings, who used Ireland as a supermarket and playground - for slaves, slaughter, rape and silver. When things got bad back home, they would go a-viking, though not only to ireland. Britain had managed to keep out much of the Viking invasions for a time, had a viking king for a while, but then were definitively invaded by the Normans, who were --- Vikings who had taken over Normandy and then came in to England speaking french leaving the language completely transformed (hence we say pig and pork, cow and beef, house and mansion - guess what the aristocrats spoke and what the peasants spoke!!
Not meaning any slur on modern-day members of any culture. Look what the ancient Romans did! Look at Alexander the great, Napoleon, and all these so-called heroes, who basically were bullies and warlords, under the guise of "civilization". So can we all be, alas. I can talk about history, but not current events on this forum so i will say no more.
