Haggis

Haggis is a very well known and well loved dish in my homeland of Scotland, but many people around the world have actually never heard of it, or if they have they have never had the courage to try it after they hear what it is made from. The ingredients of haggis (what usually puts people off) are ground sheep’s liver, heart and lungs (using the lungs is even illegal in the US apparently, which is why it is illegal to import haggis into the country) , along with onion, oatmeal, spices and salt which is all historically encased in a sheep’s intestine or stomach. Most commercially produced haggis’ these days are actually just encased in a plastic or other manufactured casing. Some people are still under the impression that a haggis is actually a small furry animal, native to Scotland, which is definitely not true. To cook a haggis it can be traditionally simmered in a pot of boiling water for around 3 hours or a quicker method is that it can be opened and then cut into pieces and then either cooked in the oven or even in the microwave. The haggis is then served with “neeps and tatties” or in other words, mashed turnips and mashed potatoes. Many people who are brave enough to try haggis, despite hearing its ingredients, are very pleasantly surprised by how good it tastes. It has a sort of strange, almost gooey texture to begin with but then you get an amazing, spicy flavor coming through that was unexpected from this strange looking, darkly colored dish. This is a very traditional dish in Scotland and is served in particular at Burns Suppers. Robbie Burns was Scotland national poet and his birthday, January 25th, is celebrated each year with these Burns Suppers which take place all over Scotland.