It’s not hard to find a recipe for haggis. There are many online. However, it isn’t easy to find the ingredients. You just don’t come across many hearts, livers and lungs in you local meat department.
If you’re wondering, today is Robbie Burns Day. That’s why I’m even thinking about haggis. It’s supposed to be a part of a proper Burns Night dinner.
You are supposed to start with soup. Cock-a-leekie soup seems to come highly recommended, although other Scottish soups can be used. Then move on to the haggis, served along with mashed turnip and potato. Then move on to things like oatcakes and cheese for dessert. Maybe even a whisky trifle.
Throughout all this, there are several Burns poems that are to be used, along with the occasional toast of Scotch.
In full disclosure, I’ve never been to a proper Burns supper. I’m not Scottish in any way. But I do like their whisky. And, in spite of the rather unappetizing list of ingredients, haggis does sound interesting. It’s just sort of a sausage or pudding in an unusual casing.
You can get canned haggis, which I have been assured is not the same as the real thing. I believe some of those ingredients are not allowed to be sent across international borders, so they use other meats. But it still could be worth a try.
But since I don’t have a can of haggis in the pantry, or any of the ingredients to make one, I’ll just celebrate in my own way. Perhaps a can of Scotch broth and a wee dram. Maybe a poem or two for good measure.
