Swedes were usually got from the local M&F Co-op, as they were bigger and a bit rougher than the home-grown types and were available during winter (no frozen veg back then). They usually ended up in soups, stews and mashed with haggis. Compared to the other turnips, swedes weren’t as nicely flavoured as the others and you could get a variance in flavour from swede to swede. God only knows what the school used to do with them for school dinners, but they usually tasted vile when a dollop of mashed swedes was dumped on your plate.

The three things that turnips can suffer from, for an end-user/diner, are stringiness, dryness typified by little voids inside the turnip and worms which burrow way inside.

I think Scots used swedes because a) they were cheap, b) they were relatively native and c) they were hardy growers. It is one of those food items which Scots ate but English gave to their animals. (oats being another, as Doctor Johnson once famously declared).
I'm a life long swede eater, we were given them with everything during winter, swede, parsnips and carrots mased together, mashed potato, cali's and lamb (exchange meat for variance).

I have to say, I like it, but i do tend to load it up with pepper.

As you have said they are cheap, used to be 50c for a swede as big as your face...not so now, like 1.50...

In Southland we had to wait for a good frost or snow blanket to cover the swedes, other wise they were terrible and just given to the animals.

Southern New Zealanders are colliqually known as "swede eaters" throughout the rest of the country, as it is hardly eaten elsewhere.

oh yeah

Swede cake...

enjoy?

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/fo...ty-swede-cakes