<P> In the Mesolithic period, seafood appears to have played a large part in the diet . Huge mounds of shellfish, known as middens, are common on many parts of the coast . For example, Sligo is a place meaning "shells", a reference to these mounds . Red deer, wild boar, fish, shellfish, berries, nuts and fruits were the staples of this hunter - gatherer economy . </P> <P> With the arrival of Neolithic groups, emmer whea t, einkorn and barley began to be grown . Sheep, cattle and goats were kept for their meat, milk and skins . </P> <P> The most common sites associated with cooking are fulacht fiadh, a name which means a site for cooking deer, consisting of holes in the ground which were filled with water . The water was heated by the introduction of hot stones . There are thousands of fulacht fiadh sites across the island of Ireland and they mostly seem to date from the Bronze Age (1800 - 900 BC), although many appear to have been used much more recently . Horses arrived in the Bronze Age and seem always to have been taboo as a foodstuff, just like they are in neighbouring Britain . </P> <P> In 1845, the Potato Famine (otherwise known as the Great Famine) began when many potato crops in Ireland had been infected with a mold called Potato Blight . This had turned their potatoes diseased and useless, putting many who are already in poverty into deeper poverty . The crop had failed due to potato blight in 1845 - 46, had little success in 1847, and failed once again in 1848 . The starving Irish tried eating the potatoes, and would get extremely sick from eating them . Irish people began eating a diet of eggs, birds, and plants like nettles and chickweeds . Many Farmers would bleed their cattle out and fry the blood, rather than eat their meat . If the cattle were as malnourished as the people, then their meat would be no good, so they resort to using the blood . Mixed with herbs, garlic, oats and butter, it could be used as good emergency meal . The extremely desperate and malnourished ate rats and worms found off the street . </P>

What type of food do the irish eat