Typical Burns supper, as you'd make at home for your family in Scotland (not
some fancy restaurant or touristy nonsense you'd get in Edinburgh with
whisky sauce and neatly piled up tiny layers). Big, heaping dollops of
haggis, neeps and tatties.
The haggis, for me, has to be lamb. If it's not lamb, it's not haggis.
Unfortunately, most supermarkets ones these days are made from pork. The
only one you'll get in a supermarket that is made from lamb is Macsweens.
We could've gone for a big 2kg+ one in natural casing, but we've ended up
with 2 x 400g, and 3 x 200g in synthetic casing just because we bought a few
over a couple of days. This is for 3 adults. Plus reserves in the fridge, as
I'll want leftovers later tonight and tomorrow, and maybe Monday.
Other brands, like M&S (made by Macsweens, but with pork, not lamb), Simon
Howie, and the worst of all, Halls, are absolute nonsense made from pork. If
you're buying one, read the ingredients and avoid pork ones like the plague.
Go to a butcher if you like, but Macsweens has beaten every haggis I've had
from a butcher by miles. By all accounts, it's veggie one is decent too.
Only accompaniments are mashed neeps (turnip to us, swede to the English,
rutabaga to the Americans), and tatties (potatoes). No messing about. Big
chunks of butter, plenty black pepper and salt. Hand mashed – none of this
blended smooth wallpaper paste mashed potato that seems to be a thing. Mash
should be a bit lumpy, tons of butter, and there should be more pepper than
seems feasible in the neeps.
Haggis is wrapped in foil, baked/poached in oven in a dish with 2cm water
for about 1hr 15mins. We used to steam it in a big pot, but you risk the
skin splitting. Oven's easier. Microwaving it is an option but a complete
abomination and results in dried out gubbins and you'd be a total numpty to
settle for that.
Serving is simple – big dod of all three on a plate. No messing about again.
No sauce needed – that seems to be a new thing. A good haggis should be nice
and moist. For us, the neeps tend to be the thing everyone wants twice of
compared to mash.
Good, honest food.
by Cam_Sco