Keto Colcannon with Kale and Rutabaga

Perhaps every Irish family has their own version of this classic comfort food. This Keto Colcannon with Kale and Rutabaga takes everything you love about mashed potatoes and buttery greens and combines them into a savory, cozy, low-carb side dish that uses the perfect potato substitute - the humble, often overlooked rutabaga.

Colcannon is a traditional Irish side dish that is perfect for a St. Patrick's Day meal of Keto Irish Stew, soft Keto Pull-Apart Rolls, and finished with a dessert of green Matcha White Chocolate Cookies. However, it's also a perfect mashed potatoes substitute that the entire family will love and will earn its place as a staple on your dinner table any time of year or as a delicious holiday side dish.

What is Colcannon?

Colcannon is a classic Irish dish that is traditionally made with creamy, buttery mashed potatoes mixed with cabbage or kale.  Today, in America, we often see it served as part of a St. Patrick’s Day feast.  Colcannon mash made with rutabagas is the perfect low-carb substitute for high-starch potatoes and is also FODMAP-friendly.

Ingredients

This easy recipe takes just a few simple ingredients (see below for AIP substitutes):

• Rutabaga – they should be firm and fresh
• Butter – grass-fed is best. I love Kerrygold because it has a superior flavor to non-grass-fed butter.
• Kale or cabbage leaves – either are traditional. Use washed, de-stemmed and shredded or sliced kale. If using cabbage, see my post on How to Shred Cabbage for easy ways to break down the head and make perfect shreds.
• Heavy whipping cream – I like to add a touch of cream because it helps to create a smooth, velvety texture and makes the dish extra savory. If you don't have cream, you can use more butter or your favorite milk alternative.
• Green onions – use the green part only for low-FODMAP
• Salt and Pepper – to bring the flavors together

What is a rutabaga?

Rutabagas look like giant turnips and are, in fact, a cross between cabbage and turnips. They are a root vegetable belonging to the Brassica genus of plants that includes cabbage, cauliflower and turnips and are also known by the names "swede" and "Swedish turnip". Turnips are white and purple, where rutabagas have mostly yellowish and purple skin and are generally a bit bigger. Some rutabagas can grow very large and weigh upwards of 3 pounds.

When cut, the flesh is yellowish in color, but will turn light orange when cooked.

What do rutabagas taste like?

Rutabagas are very flavorful, are slightly peppery and have a slight bitterness. When cooked, they become sweeter and have a taste similar to potatoes.

Rutabagas can be a substitute for potatoes in pretty much any recipe. They make amazing low-carb cheesy mashed potatoes and are delicious in this Herb Roasted Rutabagas Recipe, as well.

Is rutabaga keto?

Yes - they fit perfectly into a low-carb keto diet. They contain fewer carbs than potatoes and can be enjoyed in moderation. One cup of cooked potato has about 32g net carbs, where 1 cup of rutabaga has about 9g net carbs.

Is rutabaga low-FODMAP?

Yes - rutabaga is a nutritious low-FODMAP vegetable. It's FODMAP-friendly in quantities of up to 1 cup.

Rutabaga nutrition

Rutabagas provide substantial amounts of vitamins and minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, vitamin C and B vitamins. They are also very high in fiber and low in carbohydrates.

These roots are high in beta-carotene and antioxidants which are helpful for warding off disease and play a protective role in skin aging.

How to cook rutabaga

There are a few methods for cooking the perfect rutabaga mash:

Pressure cooking

This is my favorite way to cook rutabagas (and most of my veggies). Pressure cooking helps to retain essential nutrients and flavor and cooks rutabagas very quickly. I use a stove-top pressure cooker, but you can also use an Instant Pot.

Rutabagas will cook up soft and mashable when cooked at high pressure for 10 minutes.

Steaming

Steaming is a great way to cook your veggies and still keep nutrients locked in. It doesn't cook your rutabagas as quickly as pressure cooking, but it works really well. Rutabagas will take about 25 minutes to cook when steamed.

I used to steam all of my veggies before I got a pressure cooker. I used a digital food steamer for many years and love its 'set it and forget it' functionality.

Boiling

Boiling rutabagas are a good option if you don't have a pressure cooker or steamer. They take about 20-30 minutes to become fork-tender. Keep in mind that boiling will leach some of the nutrients and flavor into the water. However, it will still make a delicious colcannon.

Rutabaga substitute

Can't find a rutabaga? Try these root vegetables you can use as a rutabaga substitute:

• Celeriac – mashed celeriac is a flavorful low-carb alternative to potatoes and is also a tasty low-FODMAP vegetable in servings of up to 75g. Larger servings are moderate in mannitol content.
• Turnips – these are an easy to find potato replacement and can be used just like rutabagas.  Substitute turnips in any way that you would use a potato.

If you can't find a potato alternative

If you’re in a serious pinch and can only find potatoes, there is a way to still use them and decrease their starch (carb) content while increasing the pre-biotic benefits, as well.

Potatoes contain ‘resistant starch’.  That means when they are cooked and refrigerated (or frozen), some of the starch undergoes a change that becomes resistant to digestion.  After potatoes are cooked and refrigerated for 24 hours or more, up to about 4-5% of the starch may become ‘resistant starch’.  Check out this great article about resistant starch.

If you need a potato ‘fix’ (I feel you…!), substitute half of the mashed rutabaga with refrigerated mashed potatoes.

Instructions

Making colcannon is so easy – it requires just a few steps.

Cut off the top and bottom and peel the rutabaga.

Cut into ½ - ¾ inch cubes.

• Place the cubes in a pressure cooker, steamer or in a pot to boil. Read more on cooking in How to Cook Rutabaga, above.
• Cook until fork tender

Wash the kale and remove the stems.

Slice or tear into small pieces.

Add two tablespoons of butter to a skillet and sauté on low heat until the kale is slightly tender, about 5 minutes.

Place all of the ingredients into a large bowl.

Mash with a potato masher, pastry cutter (which is perfect for this task) or use a hand mixer and serve.

Making AIP colcannon

There are a few easy substitutions to make the best AIP version:

• Replace the butter – use coconut cream or olive oil
• Replace the cream – use coconut milk or some homemade bone broth as a dairy substitute
• Add herbs and omit the pepper – consider adding a small pinch of mace, sage, thyme and/or savory or grate some fresh horseradish for a touch of heat

Pair with these main courses

Try this savory side dish with these dinner favorites.

Variations and add-ins

• Finely diced ham or crumbled sausage – mix in for decadent salty goodness
• Sautéed leek – thinly slice about half of a leek (green part only for low-FODMAP), sauté in butter or olive oil until soft and stir in
• Replace the butter – with ghee
• Garlic or garlic-infused olive oil – sauté some garlic or add some garlic-infused olive oil, which is a flavorful low-FODMAP option
• Cheese – who loves cheesy mashed potatoes?  Stir in some of your favorite shredded cheese or blue cheese to the hot colcannon.
• Add some spices – thyme, savory, a pinch of nutmeg or mace, powdered sage or fresh sage sautéed in butter until crisp
• Sour cream – adds extra creaminess and bit of tang
• Make colcannon cakes – form into patties and fry in butter, oil or bacon grease until crisp
• Paleo and vegan colcannon – simply replace the butter with your favorite butter alternative and use coconut cream or nut cream to add a creamy texture

FAQ

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