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Burns Night
And what better opportunity than this to raise a glass and prepare some hearty, Celtic fare for your friends and loved ones.
Probably most famous for writing Auld Lang Syne, Rabbie Burns also wrote many classic poems including: A red, red rose; A man's a man for A that; To a mouse; The battle of Sherramuir and many, many more.
Despite preferring to write in his native style, Rabbie's appeal was worldwide. Influencing such creatives as John Steinbeck, Bob Dylan and JD Salinger. He also featured on the very first Russian commemorative stamp, in 1956, as a hero to the working class.
As with so many people in the 1700s, Rabbie died young, aged 37. Which only makes accomplishment of leaving behind such a resilient and enduring legacy, all the more impressive.
A traditional Scottish haggis recipe
Of course, it wouldn't be Burn's night without attempting to recreate a traditional haggis with tatties and neeps. So, if anyone is brave enough to take on this recipe or would like to share their own family menu on social media #mycssc, especially any vegetarian versions, we'd love to see how you celebrate this Burn's night.
And for those of us who'd rather leave it up to the professionals, there's dozens of restaurants you can visit through tastecard, who are experts in Scottish food. The Rosehip and Princes Street Brasserie in Edinburgh, to name but two.
Ingredients
- 1 sheep's stomach or ox secum, cleaned and thoroughly, scalded, turned inside out and soaked overnight in cold salted water
- heart and lungs of one lamb
- 450g/1lb beef or lamb trimmings, fat and lean
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 225g/8oz oatmeal
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground dried coriander
- 1 tsp mace
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- water, enough to cook the haggis
- stock from lungs and trimmings
Method
- Wash the lungs, heart and liver and place in a large pan of cold water with the meat trimmings and bring to the boil. Cook for about 2 hours.
- When cooked, strain off the stock and set the stock aside.
- Mince the lungs, heart and trimmings.
- Put the minced mixture in a bowl and add the finely chopped onions, oatmeal and seasoning. Mix well and add enough stock to moisten the mixture. It should have a soft crumbly consistency.
- Spoon the mixture into the sheep's stomach, so it's just over half full. Sew up the stomach with strong thread and prick a couple of times so it doesn't explode while cooking.
- Put the haggis in a pan of boiling water (enough to cover it) and cook for 3 hours without a lid. Keep adding more water to keep it covered.
- To serve, cut open the haggis and spoon out the filling. Serve with neeps (mashed swede or turnip) and tatties (mashed potatoes).
