Reestit mutton is a traditional dish from Shetland, where my family comes from. It’s a leg of mutton which is first salted in brine and then hung to dry traditionally in the rafters (reest) of the house above a peat fire. The smoke from the peat fire helps season the meat.
After it’s smoked the mutton is hung on hooks to dry for 10 to 15 days. Once dry it will keep for years. The mutton has pale, creamy fat, deep red meat and a hard, dry texture, and possesses a salty flavour.
The meat is often used as the basis for stocks, broths and soups, and can also be eaten cold in a Shetland bannock, a wheat flatbread. Reestit mutton is not an ingredient you will find in any supermarket or deli; instead you’ll have to order it from one of Shetland’s better butchers and have it delivered. One to try is J & K Anderson in Brugarth – call 01595 840262.
Reestit mutton and tattie soup
Serves 8
600g reestit mutton on the bone
800g peeled Shetland black potatoes
4 medium carrots
1 medium yellow turnip
1 onion
Place the mutton in a large pan and add enough water to cover. Bring the water to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes, then drain and discard the water (this process removes any excess salt from the mutton).
Peel all the vegetables then cut them into 4-5cm chunks. Place the vegetables and blanched mutton into a large pot and add enough cold water to cover the vegetables by 10-15cm.
Place the pot on the stove and bring it to the boil, skimming off any fat that rises to the surface. Turn down the heat so the water is gently boiling then leave to cook for 1.5 to 2 hours so the vegetables and mutton become tender.
Serve the vegetables with a good amount of the stock in large, warm bowls. Cut the mutton into small pieces and add it to the soup.
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