Haggis, Neeps and Tatties
Recipe by Graham
Haggis, Neeps and Tatties is the Scottish "national dish" and, though some people scoff at its simplicity, it's actually darn good. In fact, I achieved the status of "living legend" with my my grand-daughters as they witnessed me on a "haggis day" devour haggis for breakfast, lunch and dinner. (Part of a full Scottish breakfast, as a meal at lunchtime, and as a starter in the evening!)
Haggis is a dish containing sheep's heart, liver and lungs, minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, salt and stock, simmered for approximately three hours. Although its description is not immediately appealing, haggis has an excellent nutty texture and delicious savoury flavour. Haggis is traditionally served with "neeps and tatties" (Scots: swede, yellow turnip or rutabaga and potatoes, boiled and mashed separately) and a "dram" (a glass of Scotch whisky) or, as I've done it here - a whisky sauce.
If you can't find haggis in your local stores, you can make your own
Haggis 
Ham and Cheese Pancakes (Crêpes) Ingredients for Haggis, Neeps and Tatties
Currently displaying quantities in US Imperial Measurements
How to Cook Haggis, Neeps and Tatties
- Make Creamed (Mashed) Potatoes (using half of the butter) then set aside and keep warm.
- Meanwhile, peel the swede/turnip and cut into cubes about 1" (2.5cm) across. Place them in a glass dish, add two tablespoons of water, cover with cling film and microwave on high for 6 minutes. Agitate the dish to mix the turnip and add another spoon of water if required then microwave on high again for a further 3 minutes. Drain off the water then add the other half of the butter and the tablespoon of double cream (heavy cream). Mash until smooth. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside and keep warm.
- For the sauce (which you can also make while the tatties and neeps are cooking), add 50ml of whisky to a hot saucepan and set it alight (please be careful as the flames can get very high). The purpose of lighting the whisky is to burn off some of the alcohol, otherwise the sauce will be too bitter. After about 10-15 seconds add the double cream (heavy cream), season with salt and freshly ground pepper then reduce the heat and allow the liquid to reduce to a nice thick consistency (do not allow the cream to boil). Once the liquid has reduced (usually by half), take it off the heat and use it to pour over the Haggis, Neeps and Tatties
- For the haggis, the simplest way is to cut open the envelope, roughly break up the haggis into a glass bowl, cover with clingfilm and microwave for about 6 minutes, stirring once. The haggis is already cooked, so it only needs warming through.
- If you don't have a microwave, you need to strat with the haggis before the vegetables. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, carefully add the haggis, then reduce the heat to very low and simmer for 75 minutes, topping up with water if necessary. (If you can't get a 2lb (900g) haggis, 2 x 1lb (450g) will work just as well).
- To serve, place about 7oz-9oz (200-250g) of haggis into the centre of each of four serving plates. Spoon the neeps and tatties alongside and drizzle over the whisky sauce.
To serve Haggis, Neeps and Tatties as a starter course, reduce the quantities above by 50% - 60%. When serving, use a 1½"-2" (4-5cm) diameter circular pureed food mould. Add the haggis first (about one third of the required height) then add a layer of turnip (again, about one third of the required height) and then a layer of potato (for the final one third). Top off with the whisky sauce or Onion Gravy if you prefer.- If you can't get a tall mould, use a glass to "cookie-cut" the ingredients, then carefully stack them one above another.
GRAHAM'S HOT TIP:
When making the whisky sauce, if, after reducing it, it's a little too bitter, add a sugar cube and stir well to dissolve. It will sweeten the sauce slightly without spoiling the taste.
Reviews of Haggis, Neeps and Tatties
| November 18 2014 That was brilliant! I've seen these packs of haggis in my local supermarket and never known what to do with them. I'd also heard of haggis neeps and tatties but didn't really know what it was. Both problems are now solved! The only comment I would make is that the turnips give off a LOT of water which you need to drain off and squeeze out as much as you can. I microwaved them for longer than the recipe said, to get them soft and easy to mash. The end result was a great starter (I did exactly what the recipe said, and used cooks rings to "stack" the three elements). The whisky sauce was the clincher.. excellent - full of flavour and just made the whole presentation. Definitely one to repeat. Marita (6 reviews) |
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