Haggis and Whisky Feast in Scotland

We just returned from a wonderful 3 day trip to Edinburgh. Despite living fairly close (Dublin, Ireland) for several years, Bell and I had yet to venture up to the land of great whisky, castles, rugged golf and the elusive loch ness monster. We had an action packed long weekend that saw us climb picturesque Arthur’s Seat, visit amazing Edinburgh Castle, the lavish Palace of Holyrood (the Queen of England’s residence when she visits Edinburgh) and we went underground to see how people lived up to the late 1800’s. Edinburgh was also a haggis and whisky feast for us. In honor of all the great recipes we’ve received for our international recipe competition, this post is dedicated to Scotland’s national dish...Haggis!

Scottish haggis burger, Haggis and whisky feast!
Sliced haggis on top of a burger= quintessential Scottish pub food.

What Haggis is Made From?

Haggis is a sausage that consists of a sheep’s heart, liver and lungs mixed with onion, oatmeal, suet and spices. It was traditionally cooked inside a sheep’s stomach casing. But these days much of the haggis served is encased in a traditional sausage lining. If you think this doesn’t sound so appetizing, ask yourself this…Do you like hot dogs, bratwurst or kielbasa? Do you know exactly what they are made from? Most people don’t and they prefer it that way. I travel with a mantra of would Anthony Bourdain eat this? It’s good to keep an open mind because otherwise you miss out on some tasty food, and in my opinion haggis is one of them.

haggis and pork sausage, Haggis and whisky feast!
Haggis and pork sausages with fries instead of mashed potatoes. The Scottish were very accommodating to my lactose intolerance.

How Haggis is Typically Served in Scottish Pubs

Haggis typically comes with sides of neeps and tatties. Neeps are turnips and tatties are mashed potatoes. I couldn’t enjoy my haggis like this because I’m lactose intolerant and neeps and tatties have butter in them. Another common Scottish pub dish that I could not try is Balmoral chicken. This is chicken breast, wrapped in bacon, stuffed with haggis and covered in a creamy whisky sauce. I really wanted to try this and am very disappointed that my stomach sucks.

A pyramid of canned haggis in a Royal Mile shop, with the ghost of Haggis lover's past lurking. Haggis and whisky feast!
A pyramid of canned haggis in a Royal Mile shop, with the Ghost of Haggis Lovers past lurking.

As one friendly Scottish server told us “I think haggis goes well with anything.” Maybe not with your breakfast cereal (unless it’s porridge and that’s very debatable) but I enjoyed Scotland’s national dish in a variety of ways- topped on a hamburger (with a side of single malt whisky), in a traditional looking sausage mixed with pork and on top of a phenomenal shredded pork sandwich from one of the most amazing fast food restaurants we’ve ever stumbled upon.

Oink – Amazing for Pork with Haggis Stuffing

Oink is fantastic for a fast and simple lunch in Edinburgh. In an age where you can go out and have a menu with 100 mediocre dishes to choose from- Oink does ONE thing awesome. They roast an entire fresh pig that rests on display in the front window and you can have your pork sandwich topped with either haggis stuffing or onion and sage stuffing and one of four kinds of sauces. They don’t even have side items outside from what comes in the sandwich. It’s simple, quality fresh fast food done awesome. The world needs less McDonald’s and more businesses like Oink!

Oink packs so much awesome pork that you can barely see the optional haggis.
Oink packs so much awesome pork that you can barely see the optional haggis stuffing.
Oink = the way fast food should be.
Oink = the way fast food should be.

Bell isn’t a picky eater, but haggis isn’t really her bag. Neither was whisky, but our trip to Edinburgh allowed her the opportunity to gain a greater appreciation for great whisky and discover some types that she enjoys. It’s very difficult to find haggis outside of Scotland which is a shame. If I could, because of my dietary restrictions, I would prepare balmoral chicken but make the whisky cream sauce using goats milk and use soy butter in the mashed potatoes.

Stay tuned for tales of the world's greatest whiskey collection!
Haggis pairs wonderfully with an excellent Scotch too!

Would you try Scotland’s national dish? And if you’ve been and have tried it, how would you prepare it at home? 

More of Our Articles on Edinburgh

How Not to Climb Arthur’s Seat

Scotch Whisky Experience in Edinburgh

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Author

  • Alex&Bell

    Alex and Bell originally met while solo traveling after finishing university in 2002, in Brugge, Belgium. Alex grew up in the USA and Bell hails from Australia. During our nearly 20 year marriage we've lived around the world, including spending six years living in the Netherlands and Ireland. We have traveled to nearly 70 countries and enjoy giving readers authentic and quality travel tips. Alex is an award winning travel journalist and travel planner, who also freelances for other outlets. Bell is an award winning PhD scientist who currently works for a non-profit lung cancer advocacy research organization called Lungevity. Happy travels and if you have any questions leave a comment or drop an email!

12 thoughts on “Haggis and Whisky Feast in Scotland

      1. Still slightly less calories than white bread and a lot less than pasta (sorry, as an Italian, my frames of reference are indeed pasta and pizza!)
        I would consider that amount of fat as healthy, if it came from plants or fish, but unfortunately it’s not the case….. well Northern Europe’s traditional food is not very related to plants! 🙂

        1. Interesting points of reference Tuscan!…Yup, here in Northwestern Europe we rely heavily on potatoes to round out a rich meaty dish! 🙂

  1. ohmygod!!! haggis!! I keep telling people how awesome Haggis is. And people will lean in and say: “yeah, haggis? tell me more.” And then I say: “it’s made from sheep’s lung,” and at that precise moment everyone loses interest.

    Why doesn’t anyone believe me. Haggis is delicious.

    1. I know right! Haggis is awesome! People are too quick to judge! I think it’s better that people just try it and not know what’s in it and then make the decision after the fact. I read that the USDA banned the selling of sheep’s lung in the USA back in the 1980’s. Funny that the USDA bans things like this, delicious unpasteurized French cheeses, etc.- yet injecting animals with ridiculous growth hormones is ok. If the USDA cared about Americans eating quality food, maybe they should ban TGI Friday’s! 🙂

  2. Love the Anthony Bourdain mantra. I’d definitely like to try haggis someday. Great photos too! Do you have any of your views from Arthur’s Head?

    1. Thank you Angela! Yes it’s a good mantra as a traveler and I wish it was easier to get haggis…even in Ireland. We have lots of photos of Arthur’s Head that we’ll be sharing in the near future. Thanks for asking! 🙂 Slainte!

    1. Thanks Gayle! Glad to read so much positive feedback about people interesting in trying haggis…And yeah, so glad we stumbled on Oink while in Edinburgh! 🙂

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