Every Icelandic winter feast has its loud stars: smoked lamb, singed sheep's head, sour-cured þorramatur. Next to them, almost always, sits a bowl of something bright orange and quietly essential.
That bowl is rófustappa, mashed rutabaga. It is sweet, buttery and soft, and it does a lot of work on a plate full of salty, smoky or tangy food.
This mashed rutabaga recipe is the simple Icelandic home version, with a few variations for when you want it richer, smoother or mixed with potato.
What rófustappa is
Rófa, or gulrófa, is the Icelandic word for rutabaga, the root that British cooks call swede. The name rófustappa simply means "rutabaga mash."
Rutabaga grows well in cool, short northern summers and keeps for months in a cold cellar. For generations it was one of the few vegetables an Icelandic household could count on through the dark half of the year.
It is easy to mix rutabaga up with turnip. Rutabaga is the larger root with yellow flesh and a purple-tinged shoulder, thought to have started as a cross between a turnip and a cabbage, and it tastes denser and sweeter.
That history explains why it turns up in so many traditional meals. It goes into the pot for kjötsúpa, it is boiled alongside salted lamb, and mashed, it becomes the default side for the old winter foods.
Why it belongs next to Icelandic winter food
The classic home of rófustappa is the þorrablót table. When the midwinter month of Þorri comes around in late January, the mash sits beside the boiled potatoes, rye bread and trays of preserved food described in our guide to þorrablót food and traditions.
It is also the expected partner for svið, the singed sheep's head, whether served warm or pressed into jelly. Slátur, the Icelandic blood and liver puddings, are rarely eaten without it either.
The reason is balance. Much of this food is salty, smoky or soured in whey, and the gentle sweetness of the rutabaga softens all of it.
Ingredients for classic Icelandic mashed rutabaga
This makes enough for four to six people as a side dish.
- 1 kg (about 2.2 lb) rutabaga, roughly one large or two medium roots
- 30 to 50 g (2 to 3 1/2 tbsp) butter
- 1 tsp salt, plus more for the cooking water
- 1 to 2 tbsp granulated sugar, optional
- 2 to 4 tbsp whole milk or cream, optional
- A pinch of white or black pepper, optional
Choose firm, heavy roots with smooth skin. Smaller rutabagas tend to be sweeter and less woody than very large ones.
If your rutabaga has a waxy coating from the shop, that is normal. It comes off with the peel.
How to make mashed rutabaga, step by step
- Peel the rutabaga with a sharp knife or a sturdy peeler, cutting away the whole tough outer layer down to the pale yellow flesh.
- Cut it into even cubes of about 2 to 3 cm (1 inch). Even pieces cook at the same rate, so you avoid hard lumps in the mash.
- Put the cubes in a pot, cover them with cold water by a couple of centimetres and add a good pinch of salt.
- Bring to the boil, then simmer for 25 to 40 minutes, until a knife slides through a cube with no resistance at all.
- Drain well, then return the rutabaga to the warm pot for a minute or two so the last of the steam escapes.
- Add the butter and mash with a potato masher until mostly smooth. Add milk or cream a spoonful at a time if you want it looser.
- Season with the salt, the sugar if using, and a little pepper. Taste, adjust, and serve hot.
Rutabaga needs far longer than potato, so do not rush the boiling. Undercooked rutabaga stays grainy and slightly bitter however hard you mash it.
How sweet should rófustappa be?
This is where Icelandic families disagree. Some recipes add a generous amount of sugar, while others use only a teaspoon or none at all and let the root speak for itself.
Start with one tablespoon for a kilo, taste, and go from there. A rutabaga picked in early autumn is often sweet enough on its own, while an older, stored root can use a little help.
If you are serving the mash with very salty food, such as salted lamb or cured fish, a slightly sweeter mash makes a pleasant contrast.
Mashed potatoes and rutabaga
A popular way to soften the strong flavour is to mash rutabaga together with potatoes. Half rutabaga and half floury potato is a good starting ratio.
Cook them in separate pots, or start the rutabaga first and add the potatoes about 15 minutes later. The potatoes need roughly 15 to 20 minutes, the rutabaga longer.
Drain both, mash them together with butter and a splash of warm milk, and season with salt and pepper. The result is milder and creamier, and it is a good introduction for anyone wary of rutabaga.
Carrot and rutabaga mash
Carrots bring extra sweetness and an even brighter colour. Swap about a quarter of the rutabaga for carrots, cut into slightly smaller pieces so they finish cooking at the same time.
Mash with butter as usual. You will probably not need any sugar at all with this version.
It is a nice choice with roast lamb or pan-fried fish, where you want the side dish to feel a little lighter than the classic winter version.
Smooth rutabaga puree
For a silkier finish, transfer the drained, buttered rutabaga to a food processor or use a stick blender. Blend in warm cream a little at a time until the puree is as smooth as you like.
Icelandic cookbook writer Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir has published a richer take that simmers the rutabaga with garlic, celery leaves or parsley, stock and a little cumin before mashing it with butter.
Either way, a puree like this works well under a piece of cod or alongside pork, not only with traditional food.
Serving ideas and storage
Serve rófustappa hot, straight from the pot, with a small knob of butter melting on top. It sits happily next to boiled potatoes and a white sauce, too.
One of the most common Icelandic pairings is saltkjöt og baunir, salted lamb with split pea soup, the dish eaten on Sprengidagur before Lent. Boiled or mashed rutabaga is served alongside it.
Leftovers keep in a covered container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat gently in a pan with a little butter or milk, stirring so the bottom does not catch.
The mash also freezes reasonably well. It may weep a little liquid when thawed, so simply stir it back in, or cook it off in the pan as you reheat.
A few tips for the best mash
Dry, well-drained rutabaga is the key to a mash that tastes of the root rather than of water. Those minutes in the warm pot after draining make a real difference.
Season the mash at the end rather than the beginning. Salt, sugar and butter all change how sweet the rutabaga tastes, so add them gradually and keep tasting.
Finally, make more than you think you need. In Iceland, a bowl of rófustappa is rarely the thing anyone leaves on the table.
About Sigrún Ólafsdóttir
Sigrún grew up baking rúgbrauð with her grandmother in Akureyri and has spent the last decade collecting recipes from kitchens all over Iceland. She writes Icelandic MAT's recipes, one dish at a time.