Icelander recipe
How to make Icelandic lamb soup
Kjötsúpa
All of Iceland
A hearty soup of lamb on the bone, simmered with rutabaga (swede), carrots, potatoes and cabbage, often thickened with a little rice or oats and seasoned with dried soup herbs. It is the dish Icelanders abroad often cook to show foreigners what Icelandic food is like.
Ingredients
- 1 kg lamb on the bone, such as shoulder or neck, cut into large pieces
- 2 litres cold water
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons rice or rolled oats
- 2 tablespoons dried soup herbs (a mix of parsley, celery, leek and carrot)
- 400 g rutabaga (swede), peeled and cut into chunks
- 300 g carrots, cut into chunks
- 500 g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- A quarter of a small white cabbage, cut into pieces
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Put the lamb in a large pot with the cold water and 2 teaspoons of salt. Bring it slowly to the boil and skim off the foam.
- Add the onion, rice or oats and dried herbs, cover and simmer gently for about 45 minutes.
- Add the rutabaga, carrots and potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes more.
- Add the cabbage and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the meat and vegetables are tender.
- Season with salt and pepper. Serve the soup in deep bowls with the meat, or put the meat on a separate plate, as many families do.
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