Scottish Tattie Soup

If you grew up in Scotland, chances are you’ve had a bowl of Tattie Soup (Scottish Potato Soup) at some point. Maybe at your granny's table, school dinners or after coming in from the freezing rain. It’s one of those recipes everyone makes slightly differently, but it always hits the same.

My version is thick, hearty and packed with soft potato and sweet leeks - just how it should be! No fancy ingredients, no complicated steps, just simple food that feels like home.

If you've ever had a simple vegetable soup in Scotland and wondered if there is an 'official' name for it - it's likely Tattie Soup. Other popular options include Lentil and Ham Hough Soup and Scotch Broth.

Ingredients for Scottish Tattie Soup

• Vegetables and Herbs: potatoes, onion, carrots, leeks and bay leaves
• Salted Butter
• Chicken Stock: substitute for vegetable stock to make the soup vegetarian

Variations of Tattie (Potato) Soup

Scottish vegetables are heavily defined by hardy, cool-climate produce, with staples including potatoes, swede (neeps), carrots, kale, leeks, and cabbage.

The true joy of Scottish food and cooking is that everyone has slight variations of family recipes. As long as the predominant ingredients is potatoes (tatties) in your soup, it can arguably be called Tattie Soup.

Other ingredients that are occasionally added to Tattie Soup:

• neeps / rutabaga / turnip (Scots in the central belt call swedes turnip)
• celery
• leftover meat (shredded chicken, beef, ham etc.)
• barley or lentils
• savoy cabbage, kale or Swiss chard if you fancy adding some greens

Make it however you like, simply ensure the prevailing ingredient is potatoes and mash some up using a spoon or masher to thicken the consistency.

How to make Scottish Tattie Soup

Melt salted butter in a pot with olive oil. Soften onion and leeks in pot with the melted butter (with the pot lid on - as they soften quicker).

Then add potato, carrots, bay leaf and stock cubes dissolved in water into the pot too. Bring to the boil, then reduce down to a simmer to cook.

Remove the bay leaf from the soup. Then the trick to thickening Scottish Tattie Soup is using a wooden spoon to mash up some of the potatoes on the side of the pan. Crush as many potatoes as you like to achieve the consistency you're after. Then season with salt and pepper as needed.

Storage and Reheating

Storage of Tattie Soup:

• 4-5 days in the fridge 
• 4 months in the freezer 

As it cools, the soup will thicken as the vegetables and potatoes absorb more of the broth. So you will need to add more stock (liquid) when reheating.

To reheat: microwave or heat in a pot on the hob until piping hot throughout.