Originally published in Unfiltered #77

Words: Kosa Monteith

Whilst no one can deny the delicious allure of a traditional Burns Supper with haggis, neeps and tatties, a more climate-appropriate alternative may be your new favourite rendition, Melbourne member Kosa Monteith writes.

A midsummer Burns Night does not lend itself kindly to a hot mash of tatties and neeps, creamy whisky sauce and the traditional centrepiece of haggis, steaming and spilling its rich, stodgy bounty onto a candlelit platter. How can you do justice to this significant event in the Scottish (and Scotch!) calendar when the feast is seasonally wrong for a sweltering, sunny summer’s evening?

Lean on the other great Scottish tradition, of course: deep frying.

Deep-fried Haggis dumplings are the preferred riff of our household’s combined Scottish and Australian heritage. Our long-time favourite producer is Pacdon Park — local makers and brilliant people. These surprisingly simple dumplings are deliciously crunchy on the outside and gooey in the middle, dipped in a smoky whisky mayo. It’s a truly Scottish celebration of summer, honouring both our beloved Robbie, and the “Great Chieftain o’ the Puddin-race” itself.

Haggis Dumplings with Smoky Whisky Mayo

Smoky Whisky Mayo

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons Kewpie mayo (non-negotiable: it needs the creamy sweetness).
A generous teaspoon of hot English mustard.
5 teaspoons smoky, peaty Islay whisky — (something like Cask No. 53.394: Smoke and mirrors, or Cask No. 4.314: Sitting in the sauna to bring out the sweetness).

Method:

Mix. Adjust to taste, depending on whisky flavour. Cover and keep in fridge.

Haggis Dumplings

Ingredients:

One haggis (Pacdon Park recommended).
One packet of large wonton skins (larger will be easier to fold).
Vegetable oil for deep-frying.

Method — Assembling The Dumplings:

Cut your haggis down the middle and open it up.
Using a teaspoon, scoop out about 10g of haggis.
Roll the 10g of haggis into a ball with your hands.
Repeat until you have enough haggis balls — only you can be the judge of that.
Take a wonton skin and lay it flat on a board.
Place a haggis ball in the centre.
Using a small bowl of water, wet your finger and moisten two sides and a corner of the wonton skin so that it will stick to the opposite, dry side.
Fold so that the wet side meets the dry and it sticks in a triangle shape. Press firmly along the edges to seal.
Take the two opposite corners of the triangle.
Wet one of the points and fold and press them together so they stick.
Place on a plate and cover with a clean damp towel to prevent drying out.
Repeat until you have made enough dumplings.

Method — Cooking The Dumplings:

Fill a pot to about 5cm with vegetable oil and heat to 185 degrees Celsius (use a meat probe or other kitchen thermometer for this). Maintain this temperature to prevent smoking or soggy dumplings.
When the oil is heated, drop a few dumplings in (about 3–5, depending on the size of the pot).
Cook for 2 minutes on the first side, then flip and cook for 45 seconds–60 seconds on the other side until bubbly and golden, but not dark.
Scoop out and drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper
Repeat for all dumplings.
Serve with the whisky mayo and non-traditional tatties (potato crisps) and pickles — here we’ve gone with radish, whisky-pickled carrots and brussels sprouts.
Grab a dram, address the dumplings and dig in.

Unfiltered Magazine is The Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s premium whisky knowledge magazine delivering quality content exclusively to members in an immersive multimedia format monthly. To view Unfiltered #77 in its entirety (as well as all back issues), log in and access the members’ portal or join The SMWS today — the world’s most colourful whisky club.