Haggis

Haggis is a traditional Scottish dish, celebrated as a mark of Scottish identity (the 'great chieftain o'the puddin' race'). Originally, it was prepared by boiling the the liver, lungs and heart of a sheep, mincing the result and mixing with chopped onions, toasted oatmeal, salt and pepper and stock, stuffing the mixture into a sheep's stomach, and boiling again. These days haggis is generally prepared in a sausage casing, rather than a sheep's stomach. Oddly, there are vegetarian versions.

Haggis is commonly accompanied by "neeps and tatties" (boiled swede and potatoe, mashed). It is served as the main course of a Burns supper; in formal suppers, its entrance into the dining hall is accompanied by bagpipes, and its ingestion is accompanied by liberal amounts of whisky.

A "haggis supper", as bought from fish and chip shops in Scotland, comprises a haggis deep-fried in batter with an accompaniment of chips (fried potato wedges) with, according to taste, a sprinkling of 'sat and sass' (salt and sauce - comprising a mixture of vinegar and brown sauce). Scotland has one of the highest rates of adult obesity in the world.

"Ye Pow'rs, wha mak mankind your care,

And dish them out their bill o fare,

Auld Scotland wants nae skinking ware

That jaups in luggies:

But, if Ye wish her gratefu prayer,

Gie her a Haggis!"

(last verse of [[Robert Burns' 'Address to a Haggis')

The USA banned the import of haggis in 1989 as a precaution against bovine spongiform encephalitis (BSE, or 'mad cow disease'). The ban was lifted in 2010.