I’ve only ever had tinned haggis, not freshly made. (I was going to make it once, only I couldn’t find a sheep’s stomach.) Now I’ve discovered there’s such a thing as vegetarian haggis.
Ar? 
What’s the point?
Anyway, how does vegetarian haggis taste, compared to yummy internal-organ haggis?
Bwah? Vegetarian haggis is like, like… I can’t even find something to compare it with. Perhaps making an elaborate preparation of textured vegetable protein imitation chicken and then frying it in lard or something – it defeats the whole point.
What do they use for the stomach to cook it in?
Soy-based sausage casing?
I’ve had vegetarian haggis; it’s basically a highly-spiced mix of nuts, oats, soya, vegetables and flavourings; the one I had was in an ovenproof plastic casing - a bit like a tough plastic roasting bag.
What’s the point? In my case, Burns night with a family that won’t eat mammals - a lot of people expressed horror at the idea of celebrating Burns with a veg haggis.
It was… well, OK, I suppose - it wasn’t really much like haggis though.
I’m thinking about offering to make a non-mammalian, but non-vegetarian version next year - perhaps using chicken livers and turkey (or duck) - sewn up in a turkey skin casing, something like that.
Heh. Here’s a link to traditional haggis recipes; I thought it might be fun if some Americans could weigh in with their gut(pun intended) reaction to this bit:
…put the windpipe over the edge of the pot, draining into another receptacle.
Yours or the slaughtered’s?
I’ve had it. It was kind of … blah … much improved when we added soya sauce.
What’s the point? I guess the same reasons as any other veggie version of traditional dishes: because vegetarians want to participate in Burns Night too. (I would imagine it’s the same with Tofurkey, although I’ve never tried that.)
Now, some veggie versions of traditional dishes are downright tasty, if the traditional dish is nice because of its preparation instead of its content. For instance, Kung Po Tofu is spectacular (just substitute deep-fried tofu for chicken). I’ve had divine veggie chicken balls, which are special because of the sauce and the recipe - there’s really no reason it should be processed chicken instead of some veggie substitute inside those things.
Vegetarian windpipe, on the other hand … I think I can do without that.
They’re spermolicious!
I don’t think you can get real haggis in the US since it’s forbidden by the USDA to sell sheep lungs.
There are about 50 thousand carnecerías around here (Houston) that I’m sure one could purchase lungs from.
My favorite veggie food is soyrizo- the veggie chorizo. Because we all know that what vegetarians actually miss most is eating greasy lymph nodes.
I’m veg, but I’m not a big fake-meat fan (few veg’s are) but I can see having fun with a veggie haggis. Fake meat isn’t an everyday thing, it’s a “Wow, look at this bizarre product” thing.
It can be fun to go to some of the vietnamese buddhist places though. They have a centuries old tradition of making fake meat for monks who don’t eat meat but still want the tastes of the stuff they grew up with. You can get all manner of vegetarian bizarritiers- veg oxtail, veg kidneys, veg tripe. Even vegetarian fish with fake little bones.
Maybe veggie haggis is what you put inside a non-violent pinata.
OK, I’ve been trumped. Twice now, I’ve seen a deli in my city’s Jewish neighborhood advertise “vegetarian liver”. Vegetarian haggis is worse and may be in the category of Things Man Was Not Meant To Know.
On the other hand, I recently read about a restaurant on the South Side which sells what it calls the “Tofishy”, a vegan alternative to the massive deep-fried-fish sandwiches which are so popular around here. The reviewer called it “vegan crack” and mentioned the place was difficult to review because it was difficult to consider having anything else there. If I were a vegan, or even a vegetarian, I’d be checking it out. I might do so anyway.
CJ
(I wish there was a “Shocked and Delighted” smilie.)
In fact I am such a vegetarian. Most veggies miss things like turkey or bacon. Not me, though: I miss spicy, fatty, salty sausage. (Must be the Mennonite part of me). Yum yum yum.
I am intrigued by this so-called soyrizo and, if it is available in Canada, I will find it. Oh yes. Thanks for the tip.