Anatomy of a Haggis

January 25 was Burns Night here in Scotland. Burns Night is a holiday which celebrates the birthday of Scotland’s favorite poet, Robert Burns. Burns is celebrated for his use of the traditional Scots language in his writing. Prior to his works, the language had largely been abandoned by the “educated” classes, who wished to be seen as more sophisticated (i.e. English) then the “backwards” residents of the highlands and the islands. Burns’ writing brought the language back into respectability, although English is still more widely spoken (And yes, Scots is in fact a unique language. The Scottish Parliament says so).

Anyway, back to the holiday. The traditional way to celebrate Burns Night is with a traditional Scottish feast. What, you ask, is a traditional Scottish feast? Well, I’m glad you asked. A traditional Scottish feast includes: cock a leekie soup; haggis, neeps and tatties; a dram of whisky and cranachan for dessert. Which probably means absolutely nothing to you at all. So, let’s begin at the beginning. Cock a leekie soup is a basic chicken soup with leeks in it. Haggis I will explain in a moment. Neeps and Tatties are turnips and potatoes, which are traditionally served mashed (separately). The whisky requires no explanation. Cranachan is a combination of whipped cream, oatmeal, fresh berries and whisky, served a bit like a parfait.

The center of the feast is, of course, the haggis. Haggis is a quintessentially Scottish food, and, to be honest, I don’t think many other people would eat it. If you’re squeamish, you might want to skip this next bit, because I’m about to explain what, exactly, a haggis is. Haggis, when prepared traditionally, is sheep offal (specifically heart, lungs, and liver), suet (beef fat), oatmeal, nuts or other grains, and combination of spices, all stuffed inside a sheep’s stomach and boiled for three hours. In case you were interested, it is impossible to find haggis in the United States because of two reasons: first, all imports of British meet products have been banned since the BSE outbreak in the 90s, and second, because the FDA bans the use of sheep’s lung in consumer products. It is likely, however, that only the Scottish expatriate community mourns this fact. I don’t think many Americans would willingly eat sheep offal.

Now that I’ve made a few derisive statements about haggis, I feel the need to redeem it. There is nothing wrong with haggis. In fact, I like the fact that more of the animal is used after butchering. Just because they’re the least desirable cuts of meat doesn’t make them inherently gross. Also, I can advocate for the actual edibility of haggis. It tastes just fine, the texture is much like any sausage, and except for attempting to remove the skin after cooking (which is something I always have a hard time with) fairly easy to cook (and no, I did not make my own haggis, I bought it from the butcher’s down the street). I can see how it would become a staple food, especially for poorer people who can’t buy the nicer bits of meat.

Originally written for the Scripps College Off-Campus Study blog