Haggis, Black Pudding, White Pudding

Haggis, a traditional Scottish dish, is – according to Wikipedia – made of the following ingredients: sheep’s heart, liver and lungs, minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally boiled in the animal’s stomach for about three hours. Today the dish is prepared in a casing rather than an actual stomach. MacSween sells cooked haggis, and we only need to remove it from the outer plastic bag, wrap in foil and re-heat it.

Traditionally served with neeps and tatties (cooked turnips and potatoes), haggis is always present on Burns Supper, when Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns, is commemorated. In Jakarta, you can find it in St. Andrews Ball. I can’t remember seeing it in Highland Gathering, but check the chief’s tent, probably they have it. Or try to make it using BBC recipe. We had our haggis at Marriott Dalmahoy last weekend for breakfast (!) and it was superb.

Black pudding is a sausage made by cooking blood (usually from pig) with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled (again, borrowed from Wikipedia). And just like its name, its colour is totally black. The Stornoway black pudding is regarded as one of the top gourmet puddings in Britain.

Black pudding is traditionally served as a part of full English/Scottish/Irish breakfast with baked beans, mushroom, bacon, eggs, (normal) sausage, breads, hash browns, and tomato. Not all necessarily must be in your plate though. It also can be served deep friend in a batter with fries as an alternative of fish & chips.

White pudding is very similar to black pudding, but without blood in it. The sausage is made of pork meat and fat, suet, bread and oatmeal. Earlier versions (pre-1990) often had brain matter (sheep) added as a binding agent, according to Wikipedia. And just like black pudding, white pudding is served in a fish & chips shops or as a part of full breakfast. However white pudding is more light brown rather than white, as you can see it on the far left, next to tomatoes, on the plate in the picture.

If you cringe thinking how could Scots eat it, remember that Indonesians and Asians eat practically everything, from head to feet, from eyeballs to… balls.

Picture of black pudding is borrowed from here. Picture of white pudding is borrowed from here.