Kjötsúpa {Icelandic Lamb Soup}

It’s always been stew to me.  Grandma Bodin’s stew. The first time I remember ever having it, I was 10 years old.  It didn’t look like stew, as in from the can kind, but it had familiar elements of meat, potato, carrots and liquid. 

Only it wasn’t the same, and it wasn’t stew.  It was called stew but after tasting it I knew that this was not stew.  There was weird tasting stuff in there, at least weird to a 10 year old who couldn’t recall eating something as strange as these unidentifiable veggies. 

I quickly figured out that I liked the round white veg (parsnip) and the orangish potato (rutabaga) but once in a while in this concoction there would be a white firm veg that I didn’t like (turnip). Like all children I adapted to my grandma’s stew by recognizing the cut and color of the veg I didn’t like, then dutifully eating all around it and then suddenly become full…

Fast forward to last year when a friend’s cousin from Iceland came to visit and we hog tied her and begged that she do a cooking class.  Yona agreed; Kristen and I hosted while Yona and her daughter prepared a traditional Icelandic meal (I even brought my Great Great Grandmother’s original Icelandic Costume to display).

The main course was Kjötsúpa. Hello lightbulb moment, you mean my grandmother’s stew (which I knew wasn’t really stew) was Kjötsúpa! I instantly recognized it. My grandmother used beef versus lamb probably because that was readily available but otherwise it was the same.

For those of you with gardens full of root vegetables this is an ideal recipe.  It was translated by Yona from an ancient Icelandic cookbook.  The only real seasoning is salt and pepper. Kjötsúpa lets the lamb and veg do all the palate pleasing.

Iceland is not the land of plenty so there wasn’t much in the way of seasoning or variety of food. This soup is a perfect reflection of making a hearty meal with food that stored well and grew in their very short growing season.

Here is the translated version from Yona:

Serves 10 to 12

• 2 pounds lamb shoulder (with bones), cut up (leg of lamb may be substituted)
• 34 ounces water (add more if necessary)
• 1-2 tablespoons salt
• 2 ounces barley
• 1 pound each carrots, rutabaga and potatoes, chopped
• Onions, parsley and fresh herbs (optional)
• Beef bouillon can be added to boost flavor
• Ground white pepper and salt to taste

This is a rather small portion we translated from an ancient Icelandic cookbook. It is not uncommon that this recipe is done without any measuring.

1. Lamb meat in moderate small sizes added to the pot and boiled with salt and barley.
2. 30 min later the vegetables are added.
3. Boil for additional 30 min and add spices as preferred.

This soup is perfect for leftovers as the flavors have merged overnight. This traditional meal is very popular on cold winter nights and has been enjoyed in Iceland for centuries.

I’ve modified the recipe a little to add more flavor but stay true to its original dish.  To boost the flavor I salt and peppered the lamb then browned it on all sides.  I add celery and cooked it with some diced onion.  Instead of using water I used beef broth, lots of salt and white pepper and a garnish of fresh parsley and it was perfection (of course there weren’t any turnips in it either)!

I’m currently on a journey to explore the foods of my Scandinavian heritage. I’ll be posting recipes from Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Some may be authentic while others updated versions or my spin on them.  Some may be a fusion, you know, just like me.

You can read more recipe’s and ramblings at The Kitchen Witch, or follow on Facebook and Twitter@TKWblog. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to the author and or owner of The Kitchen Witch. All rights reserved by Rhonda Adkins.