Bashed neeps and haggis

Sarahsaver

My son LOVED the haggis, no neeps for us just tatties, cant stand swede.

(childhood trauma induced by mum's 'bung-it-all-in-the-pressure-cooker' veg mush!
Never knew haggis had lungs in it!

smokey112

As much as I love being Scottish I cannot eat haggis - sorry

My OH and his son love it and I will probably make it for them at the weekend
with tatties and neeps (or I may wait till it is reduced in the shop and make it then)

Ang
x

arkonite_babe

Curry_Queen wrote:

Too late!!!!! ... I'm not saying a word :silenced: :rotfl:

Makes a change :rolleyes:

Skint_Catt

Hi all,

My OH has always had Haggis Neeps & Tatties with his Dad on St Andrews Day (30 Nov), but now he lives with me and I would like to do this for him.

Firstly, where can I get a Haggis? I can't get to a specialist butchers before the weekend, but do any of the big supermarkets sell them?
How do I cook it?
Is the neeps and tatties JUST mashed turnip & potato? Or is there anything else added?

Catt xx

poodlehorse

Neeps are generally swede rather than turnip but just boil them up and mash with butter and plenty of pepper. Mash is just mashed potato yes. HAggis, our local supermarkets do haggis but we are in Scotland so not sure if that is just a local thing but around this time you would think they would do it. Maybe have a look at Asda/Tesco online to see if they have it locally to you. M&S are bound to do haggis I would think.You could have them delivered to you but not much time for that now. I remember boiling the haggis when I was little but now I just open it up and shove in a casserole and micro it. Bear in mind neeps take ages to cook so cut them quite small - I always forget and am left waiting for them to cook.

Skint_Catt

Ok, mashed swede with pepper, thanks.
I think I remember my OH's dad last year boiling it wrapped in foil.
According to My Supermarket Asda, Tesco and Sainsburys do a Halls Haggis for £1.35. I can't remember the favoured one they had last year, but as its the two of us I'm sure Halls will do!

Thanks poodlehorse!

C xx

Stephen_Leak

Traditonally, "neeps" used to be mashed turnip. However, even though I am part Scottish, I have to say that it tastes absolutely revolting. This might be why most people use mashed swede instead nowadays. I would also concur with the advice to cut it up into really small bits so it keeps up with the potatoes.

Halls' haggises are basically one pound of spiced minced meat and oats in a plastic rugby ball. However, the real thing is a whole different "beastie" and, frankly, a PITA to cook. Therefore, the Halls' ones are a perfectly acceptable alternative and are excellent value for money - which makes them taste all the better to anyone with tartan DNA. I always did ours in a small dish in the microwave as well - just follow the instructions on the bag. A tip: check the sell by dates - ASDA have a sneaky habit of putting the new ones at the back.

Don't forget the "wee dram" to go with it. And how's about Atholl Brose or Cranachan for dessert?

PS. If it all goes according to plan (and there is no reason why not - even Mr BE could manage two pans of boiled & mashed vegetables, plus "zapping" some minced meat in a microwave), don't forget Burns' Night on 25 January.

Skint_Catt

Thanks Stephen,

It's only me and OH so a small one will be mroe than enough! I know when his Dad used to get one it would feed 4 for seveal days and there was only three of us then! Our Asda never stocks a lot of anything so I may need a trip to the next town to get one from Tesco Extra.

I remember the saluting of the Haggis with a dram - last year his father got v drunk and fell down the stairs and was carted off to A&E in an ambulance on Burns night - I'd like to get some Clynleish as its where the family was from, but I think our bottle of Grants in the cupboard will have to do for St Andrews night! :beer:

Those deserts sound good, but again I will prob wait for Burns night for the 'whole hog' celebration!

C xx

Stephen_Leak

It is a very strange looking meal though. I can never resist the urge to serve it up in three hemisperical "dollops" - one dark brown, one pale cream and the other orange!

Fen1

Most supermarkets sell haggis south of the border. A quick and easy way to cook haggis is to take it out of the plastic wrapping so that you are left with the meat mix. Put the meat mix in a bowl, add a little bit of water (1 tblspn is enough), put a lid on it, and stick it in the microwave for 5 mins, stirring halfway through ( the stirring bit is important as you don't want the edges to get dry).
I like to stir a bit of butter through the haggis after it's cooked.