🇺🇸 American-Style Haggis

Beef, Oats & Pine Nut Loaf

A hearty, savory, textured dish with crispy beef, nutty steel-cut oats, and aromatic veggies, baked into a sliceable skillet loaf. Inspired by my 2025 trip to Scotland.

🛒 Ingredients

Base

1¼ lb ground beef (85/15)
1 cup steel-cut oats
1 medium onion
2–3 ribs celery
1–2 medium carrots
2–3 cloves garlic
¼ cup pine nuts
3 cups beef broth
1 tbsp olive oil or butter
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 egg (optional)

Spices

1 tsp kosher salt
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp allspice

* Serves 5

🧑‍🍳 Instructions

Toast Oats & Pine Nuts

In a dry skillet, toast steel-cut oats over medium heat until golden. Set aside. Toast pine nuts separately until lightly browned and set aside.

Prep Veggies

Rough-chop onion, celery, and carrot. Pulse in a food processor until oat-sized, don’t overdo it. Separately chop garlic and combine spices

"Smash-Burger" Beef

In a large cast iron skillet, press small chunks of beef into a hot, dry pan. Let brown undisturbed for 2–3 minutes per side. Break into oat-sized crumbles. Cook in batches if needed. Remove and set aside.

Sauté Veggies

In the same pan, sauté onion, celery, and carrot over medium heat until soft (6–10 min, depending on chop size). Add garlic and all spices, and sauté 1 minute more.

Simmer Oats

In a saucepan, simmer oats in 3 cups of broth according to package directions until chewy, not mushy. Add more broth if needed to prevent sticking, but keep the mixture fairly dry.

Combine

In a large bowl, combine beef, veggies, oats, pine nuts, Worcestershire, and egg (if using). Mix gently but thoroughly. The mixture should hold together when pressed.

Bake & Broil

Pack the mixture firmly into the same cast iron skillet. Bake at 400°F (200°C) for 15 minutes to set. Then, broil for 2–5 minutes until the top is golden and crisp.

Rest & Serve

Let rest for 5–10 minutes before slicing. Serve with mustard, pickles, or roasted vegetables.