Experiencing Scottish Cuisine

HaggisBlood Sasage-IMG_1470Continuing with my feeling that eating the foods the locals eat helps one experience the region, I have tried, on more than one occasion, both blood sausage and Scottish haggis.  Is there any other kind?  The haggis is traditionally made by the butcher in town who closely guards all his special ingredients and cooking methods.  What is common in all haggis is it mostly consists of a sheep’s innards, the heart, liver, lungs, esophagus and other various parts.  You are supposed to put a bowl under the esophagus while cooking to catch the drippings as it usually hangs out of the cooking pot, not completely fitting inside.  This mixture is boiled for numerous hours whilst you are soaking the cleaned and rinsed sheep’s stomach in cold water for up to ten hours.  The boiled innards are then sewn inside the stomach with some oatmeal added to absorb the liquid.  All this is then cooked for three more hours.  Don’t forget to poke a few holes in the stomach to let air out when cooking.  Traditionally it is served with neaps and tatties, or blended turnips and mashed potatoes.

The blood sausage contains four cups of pig’s blood per normal recipe size recipe.  It is generally a breakfast item, served with eggs.  Cheers!