Haggis & Tattie Scone Tacos
Haggis and tattie scone taco with neep, sriracha & coriander purée, pickled red onions and a whisky & chive crème fraîche.
A haggis and tattie scone taco with neep, sriracha & coriander purée, pickled red onions and a whisky & chive crème fraîche. A tattie scone, folded warm, holds haggis better than a soft taco holds carnitas — this is the recipe nobody asked for and everybody needs.
Tattie scones are roughly 80% potato to 20% flour — that high-starch, low-gluten ratio means they fold without cracking. Haggis brings fat, spice and depth. Sriracha-neep purée balances the iron-rich offal with sweet neep and chilli heat.
- →Fat carries flavour. The butter in the tattie scone dough and the haggis fat in the pan spread their flavour through every bite instead of leaving it patchy.
- →Acid and salt finish the job. The pickled onions are what turn cooked ingredients into a finished plate.
- →Contrast keeps the plate interesting. Crisp haggis, soft scone, sharp pickle and cool crème fraîche stops rich food becoming one-note.
Common Mistakes
- ✗Using wet tatties or overworking the dough. Both make heavy, tough scones.
- ✗Crowding the haggis into a lukewarm pan. It steams instead of crisping.
- ✗Over-seasoning before tasting. The haggis and pickled onions already bring plenty of salt and acidity.
- ✗Building too early. The wet toppings soften the scone, so assemble just before serving.
Tips & Tricks
- →Use floury potatoes, add the flour while they are warm and handle the dough lightly.
- →Roll the scones to about 5 mm. If they crisp instead of staying pliable, lower the heat. Keep the cooked scones wrapped in a tea towel. The potato starch helps them fold without cracking.
- →Drain the neeps thoroughly and return them to the hot empty pan to evaporate excess water. Use a stick blender if available. If using a jug blender such as a Vitamix, fill it no more than halfway, vent the lid, start slowly and work in batches. Keep your face and hands clear because steam pressure can force the lid off and cause serious burns.
- →Measure the whisky before flambéing. Never pour directly from the bottle. Keep your face back and a lid nearby. If the flames become unsafe, cover the pan with the lid — never use water.
- →Use full-fat crème fraîche and add its whisky one teaspoon at a time.
- →Drain excess brine from the pickled onions and build the tacos at the last moment.
Flavour Twists
Replace part or all of the haggis with black pudding for a richer, earthier flavour.
Swap the whisky & chive crème fraîche for a mustard crème fraîche.
Add crispy bacon for extra salt and crunch.
Substitutions
- Crème fraîche→ Greek yoghurt can replace the crème fraîche in the whisky & chive topping.
- Apple cider vinegar→ White wine vinegar can replace the apple cider vinegar in the pickled red onions.
- Sugar→ Brown sugar can replace the white sugar in the pickled red onions.
Tattie scones are best fresh but reheat well in a dry pan for 30 seconds a side. Cooked haggis crumble keeps 2 days in the fridge — re-crisp in a hot pan.
Haggis provides a warm peppery spice rather than intense heat. The sriracha in the neep purée provides the chilli kick. The pickled red onions balance the richness with acidity.
"O my Luve is like a red, red rose / That's newly sprung in June, / O my Luve is like the melodie / That's sweetly play'd in tune."
— Robert Burns — A Red, Red Rose, 1794
Some say it's wrong. Some say it's brilliant. Both are correct.
Method
- 1
Boil and rice the tatties
Peel, chunk and boil 500 g floury potatoes in salted water until soft and tender. Drain hard, then steam-dry over the empty hot pan for a minute. Pass through a ricer or mash smooth.
- 2
Make the dough
Mix the warm potato with 50 g melted butter and 1 tsp salt, then sift in 90 g plain flour and 10 g potato starch. Bring together with your hands until just smooth. Don't overwork — gluten is the enemy here.
- 3
Roll and cut
Roll out on a floured board to ~5 mm thick. Cut 12 cm rounds (saucer-sized). You should get 6.
- 4
Dry-fry the scones
Heavy pan, medium-high, no oil. Cook each scone 2–3 minutes per side until golden-brown spots appear. Stack and wrap in a tea towel to keep warm and pliable.
- 5
Boil the neeps
Salted water, until very tender. Drain hard.
- 6
Blitz hot
Safety — hot blending. Use a stick blender if you have one; keep the head fully submerged before starting and after stopping to avoid splatter. If using a jug blender, never fill more than halfway, remove the centre cap and cover with a folded tea towel to vent steam, start on the lowest speed and work in batches. Hot liquid builds steam pressure fast and can blow the lid off and cause serious burns. Keep your face, hands and children well clear. Add the drained hot neeps with butter, sriracha and half the coriander. Blitz smooth. Adjust salt.
- 7
Finish
Stir through remaining torn coriander leaves so you get pops of fresh green.
- 8
Crumble and crisp the haggis
Hot dry pan. Crumble the haggis straight into the pan and fry until piping hot with crisp edges. Keep the pan on the heat and add the pre-measured single malt whisky from a small cup. On gas, carefully tilt the pan so the whisky vapour catches from the flame. If cooking without a gas flame, use a long lighter. Stand back and keep your face clear — don't burn your eyebrows — then let the flame die naturally.
- 9
Pack the jar
Slice the onion thin (mandoline if you have one). Pack into a sterilised jar with the thyme, peppercorns, bay and chilli flakes.
- 10
Warm the brine
Small pan: vinegar, water, sugar, salt. Heat gently, stir until dissolved — don't boil.
- 11
Pour and wait
Pour hot brine over the onions, fully submerged. Cool to room temp, then fridge. Ready in 1 hour, brilliant after 24, keeps 3 weeks sealed.
- 12
Loosen the crème fraîche
Bowl. Stir the crème fraîche with a fork until smooth and just-pourable.
- 13
Add whisky a spoon at a time
Stir in 1 tsp first, taste, then add the second. You're looking for warmth, not booziness.
- 14
Chives + season
Fold in chives. Pinch of sea salt. Crack of white pepper. Taste. Adjust.
- 15
Rest 5 minutes
Let it sit while you finish the dish. The flavours marry — chive flavour bleeds into the cream.
- 16
Build
Warm tattie scone. Spoon over the neep, sriracha & coriander purée. Pile on the crispy haggis. Top with pickled red onions and a spoon of whisky & chive crème fraîche. Fold. The first test one you can eat over the sink in secret — that's the guilty pleasure of being a cook — then serve the rest when you're happy.
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