i just had haggis and neeps and tatties, i loved it all but particularly the swede, on other days i mash swede with carrots and i have no idea why

[NoahVale]

but without carrots and just swede it is so tasty.

does anyone else have swede with carrots?

Yes, I would mash swede with carrots. I would also eat them separately. I thought I didn't like swede when I was young but a woman I worked with taught me that swede is very nice mashed with butter and pepper.

Growing up we always had mashed swede and carrots with Sunday roast. We called it snagger. My dad’s from the NE and I always assumed it was from there. I love it!

😋 mashed swede with butter and pepper. Lovely. A bugger to peel and chop though, so tough.

But what about turnips? Are they nice mashed up with butter?

I’m not completely clear on the difference between swedes and turnips - same thing basically?

Most things are nice mashed up with butter.

Swedes are the orange ones and the turnips are the purple/white ones (unless you are from Scotland) and they taste totally different. Turnips are great in stews.

I've never had haggis OP, what did it taste like?

Haggis is lovely. It's quite peppery. Very savoury.

Microwave it. Total game changer. There was a thread on here about it just before Christmas.
20/25 mins in the microwave - don’t pierce or score. Then simply slice the top off and scoop out the flesh. So easy!

The ket with swede is to thoroughly drain the water so it almost ‘dry’ before you mash it. It will still retain some water after mashing too so drain again before putting the butter in.

@IAmKerplunk I tried that but wasn’t very successful. Do you have the details as I’d like to give it another go.

Any kind of swede/carrot/potato mix mashed up with butter is called "Potch" in S. Wales, and used to be a staple for Sunday dinner in my family. Delicious!

The orange one are turnips in Ireland as well as Scotland, the white ones are white turnips. Mashed (swede) turnip with butter or cream and a pinch of mace is very good. Excellent for a lower carb sausage and mash.

Or mixed with mashed potato, carrot and parsnip with some small cubes of cheese mixed through.

Haggis is lovely.

A staple really.

other ideas for haggis fans

a haggis and cheese toastie or panini.

haggis lasagne, it sits beautifully on the plate.

haggis and steak pie.

chicken stuffed with haggis and wrapped in bacon.

haggis and bacon roll with a large cuppa on. Sunday

The thread is in food & recipes from November last year. Sorry, I can’t link

it is literally as I say - 25ish minutes in microwave then scoop out the flesh and mash with butter and S&P. I found it delicious and has certainly increased how often I have swede 🤣

i am too nervous to cook in the microwave, i have no problem peeling a swede,
i know roughly how long it takes to cook, same as i know how long potatoes take so i can plan a meal.
so have avoided the microwave swede, and then of course the point of swede is the butter!

If I'm doing a mixed root vegetable mash I chop them and steam them all together. Overcooked (swede) turnip, like any overcooked brassica, can be bitter and sulphurous.

We always had mashed carrot and turnip on our roast dinner growing up. Delicious.

Swedes are bigger and with yellow flesh.
Turnips are typically smaller, white with a purple-ish top, and white fleshed.

But in Scotland, and I dare say elsewhere, swedes are generally known as ‘neeps’.

Turnips & Swedes….in the north east we call the orange ones (actually Swedes) turnips and the smaller white ones (actually turnips) we call them Swedes! And we also have very very very serious competitions as to who can grow the biggest, fattest leek! The annual ‘leek show’ is ( was) the highlight of life in Northumbrian and County Durham villages.

I've found the cooking it whole works better in the oven that the microwave, put it on a tray in the oven when cooking meat for roast dinner (I just sit it next to the meat on the rack) then slice the top off and scoop it all out. I found sometimes with microwaving it wouldn't cook no matter how long I cooked it for. Bit of butter, lots of black pepper, no carrots.