Title: Haggis #3
Categories: British Lamb Offal
Yield: 6 Servings
| 1 | | Sheep's stomach, thoroughly cleaned |
| | | The liver, heart, and lights (lungs) of the sheep |
| 1 | lb | Beef suet |
| 2 | lg | Onions |
| 2 | tb | Salt |
| 1 | ts | Freshly ground black pepper |
| 1/2 | ts | Cayenne or red pepper |
| 1/2 | ts | Allspice |
| 2 | lb | Dry oatmeal (the old-fashioned, slow-cooking kind) |
| 2 | | Or 3 cups broth (in which the liver, heart and lights were |
| | | Cooked) |
| | | Utensils |
| 4 | qt | Pot with lid |
What you need: Canning kettle or a large spaghetti pot, 16- to 20 quart
size with a lid to fit it Meat grinder Cheesecloth What to do: If the
butcher has not already cut apart and trimmed the heart, liver and lungs,
do that first. It involves cutting the lungs off the windpipe, cutting the
heart off the large bloodvessels and cutting it open to rinse it, so that
it can cook more quickly. The liver, too, has to be freed from the rest.
Put them in a 4-quart pot with 2 to 3 cups water, bring to a boil, and
simmer for about an hour and a half. Let it all cool, and keep the broth.
Run the liver and heart through the meat grinder. Take the lungs and cut
out as much of the gristly part as you easily can, then run them through
the grinder, too. Next, put the raw beef suet through the grinder. As you
finish grinding each thing, put it in the big kettle. Peel, slice and chop
the onions, then add them to the meat in the kettle. Add the salt and
spices and mix. The oatmeal comes next, and while it is customary to toast
it or brown it very lightly in the oven or in a heavy bottomed pan on top
of the stove, this is not absolutely necessary. When the oatmeal has been
thoroughly mixed with the rest of it, add the 2 cups of the broth left from
boiling the meat. See if when you take a handful, it sticks together. If it
does, do not add the third cup of broth. If it is still crumbly and will
not hold together very well, add the rest of the broth and mix thoroughly.
Have the stomach smooth side out and stuff it with the mixture, about
three-quarters full. Sew up the openings. Wrap it in cheesecloth,so that
when it is cooked you can handle it. Now, wash out the kettle and bring
about 2 gallons of water to a boil in it. Put in the haggis and prick it
all over with a skewer so that it does not burst. You will want to do this
a couple of times early in the cooking span. Boil the haggis gently for
about 4 or 5 hours. If you did not have any cheesecloth for wrapping the
haggis, you can use a large clean dishtowel. Work it under with kitchen
spoons to make a sling with which you can lift out the haggis in one piece.
You will probably want to wear lined rubber gloves to protect your hands
from the hot water while you lift it out with the wet cloth. (You put the
dish cloth in the pot only after the haggis is done; you do not cook the
towel with the haggis as you would the cheesecloth.) Note: Even if the
butcher has cleaned the stomach, you will probably want to go over it
again. Turn the stomach shaggy side out and rinse. Rub it in a sinkful of
cold water. Change the water and repeat as many times as necessary, until
the water stays pretty clear and handling it does not produce much sediment
as the water drains out of the sink.