Haggis

[eskidavies]

Ive never had haggis so bought one today from morrisons,any suggestions on what to have with it will be greatly appreciated.

[Pooh]

I love a good haggis but I am not sure that a Morrisons one will be up to much, it should have come with some sort of cooking instructions but they normally need to be simmered gently in a pan of water for 1/2 hr to 2 hrs depending on the size of the haggis

[eskidavies]

Pooh said:

I love a good haggis but I am not sure that a Morrisons one will be up to much, it should have come with some sort of cooking instructions but they normally need to be simmered gently in a pan of water for 1/2 hr to 2 hrs depending on the size of the haggis

Its not actually morrisons its a simon howie make, on the packet it looks like its been served with swede and spud mash.

http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/tesco-price-compari...

[crmcatee]

it's not swede - it's neeps.

Yup - haggis neeps and tatties are the order of the day.

You could have some gravy on the side as some people find it dry to eat.

Oh and a whisky of your choice

[Porkbrain]

Traditionally it would be served with mashed swede and mashed spuds, and the Howie one is OK, had one a couple of weeks ago.

[Mobile Chicane]

Because it's quite large, round and 'dense', there can be a tendency to undercook haggis.

Horrible food poisoning being the result. Don't slavishly obey the instructions on the pack.

I'd steam the beastie and stick a meat thermometer in it to be sure. Internal temp needs to be 60C.

[andym1603]

Haggis is already cooked, all you are doing is reheating it. Simmer in a pan for an hour and it
will be okay. Do not puncture the skin with a thermomoter during cooking or the pressure that
has built up will force the haggis out into the water rupturing the skin in the process.
Have it with mashed potatoes, turnip and a whisky sauce. Then enjoy.

[Mobile Chicane]

andym1603 said:

Haggis is already cooked, all you are doing is reheating it. Simmer in a pan for an hour and it
will be okay. Do not puncture the skin with a thermomoter during cooking or the pressure that
has built up will force the haggis out into the water rupturing the skin in the process.
Have it with mashed potatoes, turnip and a whisky sauce. Then enjoy.

I know masses of people who have had horrible food poisoning from haggis. I know it's cooked, but re-heating it is an inexact science.

The 'hole' made by a temp probe is so negligible to be not worth fretting about.

[Kays vRS]

Yep, with neeps and tatties is the best way.

I've also eaten with with new potatoes and gravy in a Yorkshire pudding, which works well too.

[andym1603]

Mobile Chicane said:

I know masses of people who have had horrible food poisoning from haggis. I know it's cooked, but re-heating it is an inexact science.

The 'hole' made by a temp probe is so negligible to be not worth fretting about.

Dodgy cooks?

[Porkbrain]

eskidavies said:

Ive never had haggis so bought one today from morrisons,any suggestions on what to have with it will be greatly appreciated.

And do bear in mind that all the people saying have it with turnips, or neeps, are Jocks

Jock - turnip = English - swede

[stevensdrs]

I wonder if Mobile Chicane has ever "cooked a haggis" or indeed ever eaten it. I would be interested in the list of names of the poor souls poisoned by said beastie.
Haggis is already cooked and will only go off if stored incorrectly. Stabbing it with any implement during reheating will cause it to burst it's skin leaving you with a greasy mess in the pan.
For those wishing to try haggis with minimum effort, buy tinned haggis made by Grants. You can boil the tin or empty the contents into a bowl and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Haggis is best served with mashed Potato and bashed Neeps.

[eskidavies]

Neeps and tatties ,swede and mash or potch whatever you want to call it ,will be then, with a jug of gravy.

also putting it all in a giant yorkshire sounds like a good option.

[Mobile Chicane]

andym1603 said:

Mobile Chicane said:

I know masses of people who have had horrible food poisoning from haggis. I know it's cooked, but re-heating it is an inexact science.

The 'hole' made by a temp probe is so negligible to be not worth fretting about.

Dodgy cooks?

So why not use a temp probe to be sure, rather than rely on generic timings for a product of unknown density and size?

<politics> Ach, I can see why 'we' would want to get rid of you lot.</politics>

Argumentative buggers

[Janluke]

Most people up here take it out the skin break it up a microwavable container and nuke it. Then eat it with mashed spud and neeps(mashed swede). I've eaten haggis all my life and can't tell the difference between steamed and microwaved

If you've not had it before it can be a wee bit dry so a nice onion gravy works well with it although thats considered sacrilegious in many Scottish households.

If you have any left over a haggis and cheese toastie is quite nice

[andym1603]

Yes, you could use a probe on the bagged or microwave types to be
sure. But on a real Haggis I would not use anything that punctures the skin.
You could however use an infrared probe.

I only argue when I know I am right. It's the easiest way.
Andy..

[Porkbrain]

After having a haggis explode and take over the kitchen I gave up the simmer/boil option a long time ago.

So I nuke them in the microwave, either 'proper' haggis with mash and swede, neeps for the Jocks :-), but as I love the stuff I also keep a few cans of the Grants tins in the cupboard which can be nuked with peas then scoffed with bread and butter.

Maybe I'm odd but it is a really quick 2 minute scoff in the evening.

[sherman]

I have always wrapped the haggis tightly in tinfoil before boiling for 45mins- 1 hour. I would never pierce the haggis with a probe whilst cooking as it will all spill out. There is a lot of pressure from the juices inside the haggis when its cooking and you will end up with haggis soup if you release all this pressure.

It is Haggis, Neeps and Tatties

Good uses for leftover haggis (such things are rare)

Haggis and Cheddar cheese Baked potato
Chicken Balmoral (chicken breast stuffed with haggis covered in whisky sauce)
Haggis fritters (Battered/Bread crumbed haggis deep fried)

[paulmurr]

Mobile Chicane said:

Because it's quite large, round and 'dense', there can be a tendency to undercook haggis.

Horrible food poisoning being the result. Don't slavishly obey the instructions on the pack.

I'd steam the beastie and stick a meat thermometer in it to be sure. Internal temp needs to be 60C.

Haggis is already cooked when you buy it, all you need to do is heat it through. Wrap the beastie in a few layers of foil and put it in a bain marie in the oven at about 160 or 170* for an hour or so. This is for a haggis that would feed four.

Serve it with champit neeps and tatties and pour over a healthy measure of your favourite malt or have a whisky and peppercorn gravy on the side.

[DocJock]

No whisky poured over. No gravy.

That's just over-embellishment of a perfectly good peasant dish.