Scottish Tattie Soup

Tattie Soup (Scottish Potato Soup) is a simple broth packed with seasonal vegetables and potatoes where some of the potatoes are broken down at the end using a traditional method to help thicken the consistency. If you grew up in Scotland, chances are you’ve had a bowl of Tattie Soup at some point.

Maybe at your granny's table, school dinner 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. And that's how I grew up eating it!

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 Scottish soup options include Lentil and Ham Hough Soup and Scotch Broth.

Ingredients for Scottish Tattie Soup

• Potatoes: I'm using Maris Piper potatoes - it's best to use a floury type potato in this recipe (rather than a waxy type) as they break down better
• Other Vegetables: onion, carrots, leeks and
• Herbs: bay leaves are used to flavour the broth during cooking, and you could also add freshly chopped parsley (curly of flat leaf) at the end
• Salted Butter: butter improves everything, but opt for oil only if you want to make this recipe vegan
• Chicken Stock: substitute for vegetable stock to make the soup vegetarian/vegan - I just personally love the background hint of chicken flavour with this particular soup

What Type of Potato Is Best To Use?

There are three types/varieties of potato:

• starchy
• waxy
• and those in between (all-purpose).

For potato soup, you ideally want to use a floury-type (starchy) potato as it will break down easier at the end when thickening the consistency. Whereas waxy potatoes holds their shape and structure better (and thus good for curries etc.)

Floury Potato Types (UK): Maris Piper, King Edwards, Desiree, Sagitta and Red Duke of York

Floury Potato Types (USA): Russets (including Idaho potatoes), Burbank and white potatoes like Kennebec.

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.

Variations of Scottish Potato Soup

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

But 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 Tattie soup then you're on the right path.

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.) - this is a popular option to add a further depth of flavour and some extra protein/collagen to the dish
• barley or lentils or split peas
• 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.

Storage and Reheating

Storage of Tattie Soup:

• 4-5 days in the fridge 
• 4 months in the freezer (the potatoes will lose their structure after being frozen, so expect them to break up fully upon defrosting)

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.