Great Chieftain O' The Puddin' Race
We celebrated Burns' Night a day late, but I cooked a haggis with cream sauce, neeps and tatties. And asked Alexa to play Scotland the Brave on the Bagpipes as I carried it to the table [for once, she obliged!] I have no idea what Burns' haggis poem means, and I suspect it might detract from my enjoyment of the meal if I did
I bought my McSween's haggis [serves 2-3] from Robertson's Butchers in Reepham. The butcher was very helpful and I have to say the flavour was excellent. I'd done rather a lot of veg, and we had much haggis left over, so I made two 'cottage pies' for the next day - neeps on the bottom, then haggis, then mash on the top.
The haggis is not usually considered a UPF, being made of lamb, beef, oats, stock, onion, salt, pepper and spices. No artificial colours or ingredients. One of the main ingredients of haggis is liver, which is
high in vitamin A, vitamin B12 and folate. Heart and lungs will provide some
iron, zinc and selenium and the oats included in haggis will contribute to
fibre intake. It’s important not to over indulge in haggis as it tends to be
high in fat and saturated fat as well as high in salt, so be mindful of the
portion size. It was a filling, warming dish on a cold evening. I may serve it again soon, but without the bagpipes! It is relatively inexpensive, and a good ZeroWaste food, using up the offal which is often discarded.
Have you ever eaten haggis?
Did you celebrate with a Burns' Night Supper?
We're not haggis eaters, although we have been known to have some when it is unavoidable!
ReplyDeleteI don't think i would serve it to guests without checking first!
DeleteDelighted to hear Alexa obliged. We’ve just invested in one to replace a very old Tamburg radio which has been repaired several times. Love being able to play BBC sounds whilst cooking.
ReplyDeleteYes, I’ve cooked and eaten haggis in the past. We had faggots from a local butcher the other day. A not unpleasant flavour (butcher very reputable) but one of those tastes from the past for sure!
Jill x
Not had maggots for years. I used to buy "Brains Faggots" in the supermarket, but the name was a bit offputting
DeleteI have only tried Veggie haggis. It was nice. We sang Loch Lomond in Singing Assembly this week so it was quite topical!
ReplyDeleteThat must have been fun
DeleteI can't understand most of the "Ode to a haggis" but I know Burns was extolling the idea of eating local food - well ahead of his time on that one!
ReplyDeleteIndeed he was
DeleteWe bought ours at Aldi, reduced price because they weren’t selling. I froze half for another day, and served it with swedey mashed potatoes, red cabbage and gravy. Delicious. There is a game butcher locally who makes perfect faggots, and another who sells sheep's hearts to stuff and bake. I learned how in school cookery lessons.
ReplyDeleteThrifty, old fashioned, tasty food.
Not sure i could cope with stuffed sheep's hearts. But Hugh FW says "if you are going to eat meat, you should aim to eat it all" As a nation we are not very good at offal-eating anymore. I won't even think about tripe!
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