Author: Jaden

I would be lying if I said that haggis was not looming over me throughout my trip to the UK. The dish is inherently unappetizing to Americans, as offal, or organ meat, is often looked down on as… awful. However, offal is commonly consumed across the world and is seen by many as a delicacy. This is in part due to its more perishable status than muscle meat, as well as the limited amount of organs per animal. According to Gastropod co-hosts Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley, there was even a historical, hilariously misguided belief that eating the brain would increase intelligence, the heart, courage, and the testicles… well, you get the idea. Regardless, haggis has risen to become offal’s poster child, as well as Scotland’s national dish. Yet, the origin of haggis remains unclear, with the current belief being that it comes from Scandinavia. As we were informed at the Haggis Experience, the concept of boiling offal within an animal’s entrails is not unique, seen in many countries and cultures. Regardless, in the modern day, haggis has been undeniably claimed by Scotland. I found it on the menu of almost every single restaurant I visited in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Although I was tempted to try it many times, I decided to hold out for this final big class experience.

In a poll conducted by haggis manufacturer Hall’s of Broxburn, a third of Americans believed that the haggis is a real animal. Rather than clearing this up, Scots instead take immense delight in further fueling this ridiculous misconception, coming up with many false tales about the wild haggis. Our guide through the Haggis Experience, Seamus, was no different. His humor was greatly appreciated as we began preparing the meal. Although it is normally easy to eat cleanly prepared meat and conveniently ignore its gruesome origins, I did not get that same luxury at the Haggis Experience. We were first shown the pluck, the sheep’s connected heart, liver and lungs. The pluck was then chopped up and grounded up alongside an onion, before being stuffed inside a cow’s stomach. However, this stomach is not for consumption, only a vessel to boil the meat within. In fact, many no longer use stomachs at all, but synthetic casings that are easier to mass-produce. Although offal usually spoils quickly, the process of boiling haggis allows it to be preserved for much longer. Thrown into the mix were also oats, salt, white pepper, mace, and even garam masala, adding an unexpected Indian flair. These were the ingredients included in this particular recipe, but it is worth noting there is no singular correct recipe for haggis. In fact, according to Seamus, many haggis recipes are closely guarded secrets saved for competitions.

It was the moment of truth, and surprisingly, the most unappealing portion of the plate was not the haggis. It was the neeps and tatties. The mashed potatoes and mashed swede, a close relative of the turnip, are often served alongside haggis. However, our dish instead had the swede substituted for sweet potato… my least favorite food. Period. However, if I was going to give haggis an honest try, I was certainly not going to let this unwelcome intruder stop me now. Biting into the haggis, I found the taste itself surprisingly familiar. It was the same dry, salty, inoffensive taste of the black pudding I had tried back during our full English breakfast. Both contain a high amount of iron, where the similar flavor likely originates. Visually, the meat was ground up enough that it was equally inoffensive. Throwing some whiskey sauce on top provided much-needed moisture, although this practice has only become popular within the last 30 years. In the end, I cleaned the plate… yes, I even finished the sweet potato. After finishing the meal, we were rewarded with another Scottish staple for dessert, cranachan, a delightful mix of raspberries and cream.

In the end, the experience was nothing wild, even for someone as squeamish as me, barely able to get through the dissections back in biology class. In reality, the graphic images my mind had been conjuring up throughout the trip were all unrealistic exaggerations. There was nothing more inherently violent about haggis than the butchering and slaughtering needed for the preparation of any cut of meat. So, as with many things in life, the difference is entirely perspective. After all, is drinking the milk of another animal really any less weird when you stop to think about it? Yet, the staggering impact of dairy goes without saying. It just so happens that offal currently has an awful reputation in the United States. It’s about time it got some good PR. Setting biases aside, offal can be prepared to be just as appetizing and appealing as any other food when done properly. Haggis isn’t a food to point and laugh at, but a lesson to be learned, a lesson Scotland is teaching us by pointing and laughing at us. Offal is the way of the future, not the past. So, maybe next time, chopped liver doesn’t have to be… chopped liver.

Just down the street from our lodgings, The Calthorpe Arms immediately called to me: a vibrant green storefront filled with flowers and crammed with crowds, as many sat outside to enjoy the rare sunny London weather. Noticing the densely packed pub, I lacked the confidence to approach at first, an outsider, but I finally found my opportunity with our class excursion for the Sunday Roast. After all, it is tradition to go to one’s local pub for the meal. Venturing inside at last, the interior was no less appealing than the exterior. The walls were adorned with paintings, all celebrating the restaurant’s rich history, established nearly 200 years ago in 1831. Yet, the billiards table and wooden-block propped windows also revealed its nature as a humble establishment, serving the common man. Finding a secluded spot on the second floor, we immediately felt at home, with 80s and 90s hits from the United States blaring… according to our server, a complete coincidence. There was no denying that the space was incredibly cozy, but what about the food itself?

The menu offered three options for the Sunday Roast: beef, the historical go-to, chicken, only recently rising to challenge it, and a surprise third contender, lamb. Looking for a protein boost after some long jetlagged days, I went with the chicken. According to chef Elaine Lemm, in medieval times, Britain had a distinct reputation for ravenously consuming meat, even labelling their own royal bodyguards as “Beefeaters.” Unsurprisingly, it is in this era that the Sunday Roast originated, a simple, sizable cut of meat saved for Sunday, the day of rest. However, the reasons behind the roast go deeper. By buying a single large slab of meat at the beginning of the week, the leftovers could then be used throughout the rest of the week, thrown into smaller dishes like pies. Simply put, the Sunday Roast was a family’s source of sustenance for the entire week, and although it is mostly carbs, it still contains a full collection of nutrients.

Yorkshire pudding, a puffy, bready baked pudding, was also employed as a starting dish for the roast, a cheap and filling option meant to eliminate appetite early on, helping to preserve the meat for the remainder of the week. Food writer Elliott McDonald even shares a story that was circulated to emphasize this importance, with Yorkshire pudding purportedly being used to stave off the vicious hunger of Viking invaders, protecting their valuable meat. Now, with the greater availability of meat in modern times, Yorkshire pudding is now served alongside the roast, rather than beforehand. The pudding provides much of the carbs found in the meal, with protein and fat found in the meat, and especially the thick gravy poured on top. Overall, the meal can even fulfill your calorie requirements for the entire day depending on the portion size, and my serving at the Calthorpe Arms was certainly pushing it. I couldn’t finish, as good as it was.

Including a side of vegetables like cabbage or broccoli has also grown increasingly common throughout the decades, rounding out the nutritional value with minerals and vitamins. In terms of vegetables, the star of the show, the carb-heavy potato, did not emerge as a staple until after the intense rationing of World War II. And although our meals also contained some stuffing to add further carbs, they were notably missing cauliflower and cheese, a more recent mainstay of the Sunday Roast, the British parallel to mac and cheese. Regardless, the meal was delicious, and the portions humongous. It certainly could have fed me for the week!

With electric ovens becoming widespread in the early 20th century, families could now prepare the Sunday Roast themselves, rather than relying on their local pubs. Yet, Lemm reveals that a massive crowd still continues to show out. As such, the value of the Sunday Roast comes not from the filling meal alone, but the fulfillment of the tradition, of meeting as a community. The Calthorpe Arms is more than just a pub, it is a community center, and although the eight of us were perhaps only passive observers of this culture, we certainly felt welcomed into the family. Hearing the American music, seeing the Elvis sign hanging above the bar, it was all a reassuring reminder that the United Kingdom is just as fascinated in our culture as we are in theirs. Heading back out onto the street… I felt a bit less like an outsider. So, if you happen to notice an alluring pub during your own travels to London, why not take a look?