Move over, turkey and ham.

On Leeside, there’s a third important meat that will be appearing on Christmas dinner platters all over the county this December 25th.

A cherished local tradition with a history stretching back centuries, spiced beef first gained prominence when merchant ships would cure meat for long journeys, ensuring it stayed fresh for weeks in cool larders.

By preserving the beef with a careful blend of salt and spices, it became a staple that could last the distance – and in Cork, it quickly became part of the festive culinary scene. To this day, families and chefs alike still swear by its rich, deep flavours, making it an essential part of Christmas celebrations.

It also brings back lovely memories of Christmases past:

“As soon as I smell spiced beef, I’m transported back to my childhood, when Mam would boil it in Guinness. It’s Christmas Eve dinner now, served with savoy cabbage and creamed spuds,” reader Timothy Clifford reminisced.

But which brand to buy?

When we asked our Yay Cork readers for their favourite spiced beef, one name stood out: Tom Durcan’s Spiced Beef. Known for its bespoke, slow-cured recipe, and hand-coated in a fragrant mix of pimento, clove, and cracked black pepper, it’s the star of many a Cork dinner table.

Durcan’s scooped the national prize for Best Spiced Beef in the country last year in a hotly contested competition run by Craft Butchers Ireland.

Ireland’s reigning spiced beef champion, Mr Tom Durcan.

Other local legends, like O’Mahony’s Butchers and Coughlan’s Meats, are also go-to spots for the perfect spiced beef.

But the love for this festive dish doesn’t stop there – McCarthy’s Family Butcher’s in Bishopstown, Sean Twomey’s Butchers in Youghal, Lucy’s in Mallow, and Liam Connery’s Family Butcher Shop on Popham’s Road in Farranree all made the cut in our readers’ recommendations too.

O’Mahony’s Butcher’s Spiced Beef, English Market

“Not being biased but my uncle made the nicest spiced beef in Cork.” says Damien Casey.

“He is dead many years now.He had his own recipe for the spice he took with him, he ran a little blue butcher shop up by St. Finbarr’s Hospital.”

And as Vanessa Cronin rightly put it: “Out of all the progress we’ve seen in Ireland over the past few decades, having spiced beef available year-round – not just at Christmas – is probably the most important.”

We couldn’t agree more.