Crappit heid facts for kids
Crappit heid is a traditional Scottish dish made from a boiled fish head. It's stuffed with a mix of oats, suet (a type of fat), and the fish's liver. In the old Scottish Gaelic language, it's called ceann-cropaig.
This unique dish comes from the fishing villages in the North, Hebrides, and North-Eastern parts of Scotland. People started making it around the 1700s. Back then, money was hard to come by. Fishermen would sell the best parts of the fish, like the fillets of cod or haddock, to make money. But they kept the other parts, like the heads and livers, to cook for their own families. This way, nothing went to waste!
What is Crappit Heid?
Crappit heid was a popular meal for lunch or dinner in these fishing communities. To make it, they would take the head of a large fish, usually a cod. First, the fish head was carefully washed and all its scales were removed.
Then, it was filled with a special stuffing. This stuffing was made from:
- Oats
- Suet (animal fat)
- Onion
- White pepper
- The liver of the same fish
After stuffing, the opening of the fish head was sewn shut or held together with small skewers. Then, it was boiled in seawater until it was cooked through. People usually ate the finished dish with potatoes or other root vegetables that were in season.
Changes Over Time
Later on, some people started changing the recipe a bit. Instead of boiling the fish head in seawater, they used a special cooking liquid called a court bouillon. This liquid is often made from fish stock and onion. Sometimes, the liquid left over from cooking was even served as a soup before eating the fish head itself.
Why It's Rare Now
Crappit heid used to be a very common dish, but now it's quite rare. Like many old traditional recipes, it's not made as often anymore. One reason is that cod livers are harder to find these days. You can usually only get them if the fish was caught by local fishermen using lines.
Even though it's not common, crappit heid is a very nutritious meal. It's packed with carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and even cod liver oil, which is good for you!
