# Neeps and Tatties - help needed **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 7, 2010, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028 "2010-01-07T14:42:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/1 "2010-01-07T14:42:10Z")
I have a bunch of turnips and a bunch of potatoes and thought I would make “Neeps and tatties” tonight. The problem is I have never had it and am having trouble picturing what it should look like. Recipes online call for boiling the potatoes and the turnips separately, then mashing them separately. Are they mashed very smooth, or coarsely? Do I butter them? How do I serve them - together in one serving dish, or separate dishes? I’m planning to serve them with lamb chops. Will I offend any Scots is I do that? 🙂 Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on neeps & tatties. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/2 "2010-01-07T15:02:33Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > I have a bunch of turnips and a bunch of potatoes and thought I would make “Neeps and tatties” tonight. > > The problem is I have never had it and am having trouble picturing what it should look like. > > Recipes online call for boiling the potatoes and the turnips separately, then mashing them separately. Are they mashed very smooth, or coarsely? Do I butter them? How do I serve them - together in one serving dish, or separate dishes? > > I’m planning to serve them with lamb chops. Will I offend any Scots is I do that? 🙂 > > Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on neeps & tatties. I’d keep them separate, and butter them. They usually come mashed up fairly thoroughly, but not to a creamy consistency if you see what I mean. They’ll go very well with lamp chops. Yum. ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/3 "2010-01-07T15:05:27Z")
I’ve never looked at a recipe for neeps and tatties. However whenever I make it, I cook them together (just make the chunks the same size as you boil them), mash them together, and serve them in a dish with plenty of black pepper and butter on top. I mash mine pretty coarsely, again with black pepper and butter, maybe a little milk, a pinch of salt, but I’d guess that you can mash them however you want. You’re the one eating it, after all! IANA Scot. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/4 "2010-01-07T15:09:03Z")
What **Teacake** said. I’ve always boiled, mashed and served them together. IAof Scottish descent. ---
**Author:** ![Loisseau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@Loisseau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loisseau)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/5 "2010-01-07T15:43:54Z")
What **Teacake** said also–if you want to kick it up a notch, throw some carrots sliced the same size and boil all three. Yum! ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/6 "2010-01-07T16:04:06Z")
Thanks everyone, I’m going to mash coarsely. Not decided yet if I will do them together or separately. > [@Loisseau](#): > > What **Teacake** said also–if you want to kick it up a notch, throw some carrots sliced the same size and boil all three. Yum! Oh geez, I dunno. That sounds like a wild deviation I’ll get in trouble for! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/7 "2010-01-07T19:58:27Z")
Mmmmm!!! [Looky there!](http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1677/images/1677_MEDIUM.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/8 "2010-01-07T20:01:11Z")
What sort of turnips are you using? For proper neeps they should be what we call a “swede” in England or “rutabaga” in North America. ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2010, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/9 "2010-01-07T23:58:23Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Mmmmm!!! [Looky there!](http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1677/images/1677_MEDIUM.jpg) Looks delicious! ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/10 "2010-01-08T00:02:21Z")
> [@Rayne\_Man](#): > > What sort of turnips are you using? For proper neeps they should be what we call a “swede” in England or “rutabaga” in North America. No Swedish/yellow turnip, unfortunately, just white turnips. But, in a shocking turn of events, it didn’t matter because my turnips betrayed me by going bad when I wasn’t looking (things sometimes freeze then thaw in one of my vegetable drawers. :mad: ) ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/11 "2010-01-08T00:06:54Z")
Augh! I usually like mashed potatoes, but the neeps and tatties I had in Edinburgh was actually worse than the haggis! ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/12 "2010-01-08T00:09:57Z")
do you usually like turnips or rutabagas? If not, I can totally see not liking neeps & tatties. Or did they do something unusual to them? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/13 "2010-01-08T00:15:54Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > No Swedish/yellow turnip, unfortunately, just white turnips. > > But, in a shocking turn of events, it didn’t matter because my turnips betrayed me by going bad when I wasn’t looking (things sometimes freeze then thaw in one of my vegetable drawers. :mad: ) Turnips _ **GO** _ bad? Yummy mashed po-tay-toes for me, please. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/14 "2010-01-08T00:22:55Z")
If you have another chance with turnips and taters, I highly recommend Himmel und Erde (Heaven and Earth). Cook chunked, peeled apples (that’s the Heaven part) with the root vegetables (Earth, obviously). Mash them all together. I like to add some sour cream. And butter, of course. This is sublime with roast pork. ---
**Author:** ![Neeps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a183cd/32.png) [@Neeps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neeps)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/15 "2010-01-08T21:29:11Z")
I feel the urge to contribute something to this thread… If you get the opportunity, the key is to keep it simple. Boil separately, mash roughly, season with salt and pepper and add a little butter. You do need the haggis, though, to set them off. Oh and I also like lashing of malt vinegar with my haggis, neeps and tatties, but that could just be me and my strange palate. Ooh, you just reminded me that it’s getting close to Burn’s night. Mmmmmmm… ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/16 "2010-01-08T21:37:48Z")
If you’re having the neeps, tatties, and haggis you have got to have whisky in large quantities 😃 ---
**Author:** ![JoseArcadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc348/32.png) [@JoseArcadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseArcadio)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/17 "2010-01-08T22:07:09Z")
> [@Neeps](#): > > I feel the urge to contribute something to this thread… > > If you get the opportunity, the key is to keep it simple. Boil separately, mash roughly, season with salt and pepper and add a little butter. You do need the haggis, though, to set them off. Oh and I also like lashing of malt vinegar with my haggis, neeps and tatties, but that could just be me and my strange palate. > > Ooh, you just reminded me that it’s getting close to Burn’s night. Mmmmmmm… My flatmate’s company are sending him and a plus one to a really posh Burn’s supper. I’m the plus one. The menu is cullen skink; haggis, neeps & tatties with whisky sauce served on an Aberdeen Angus steak with a side of skirlie; and cranachan. Yes, I will be eating haggis served on an Aberdeen Angus steak. It… it’s possibly the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me. It’s definitely the most Scottish meal I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/neeps-and-tatties-help-needed/524028/18 "2010-01-09T21:04:12Z")
> [@JoseArcadio](#): > > The menu is cullen skink; haggis, neeps & tatties with whisky sauce served on an Aberdeen Angus steak with a side of skirlie; and cranachan. Cullen skink. Cranachan. Truly, truly food of the gods. _is very jealous not having anything on the go for Burns night_