Beef liver..

[Kayelle]

I know that most people turn up their nose about eating liver and I don't expect to change any minds about that.

Now that's out of the way, there are those of us who really enjoy it once in a while. I prefer calf liver and up until last night, I haven't had it in years, although it was on the menu weekly when I was a child as I was anemic and it's a great source of iron.

The supermarkets used to sell it in those white tubs and they often contained poorly cut and uneven slices so you never knew what they contained. Now they offer a much better alternative...(see picture).
Anyway, the trick is to not over cook it or it will be tough and have a nasty texture and flavor. Simply season it with salt and pepper, dust it with flour and quick fry it till it's perfectly pink tender. Bacon grease is best, and the sides of bacon, onion and fried potatoes make it all worthwhile.

Anybody else like liver?

 

[Andy M.]

I don't hate it. I do like chicken livers better.

 

[Just Cooking]

I don't have opportunity to have liver and onions often but, when I do, I jump at the chance..

My SIL (first wife's sister) makes the best I have ever eaten.. She makes them for me a few times a year.. She uses bacon fat and the onions and liver are delicious..

I cannot duplicate the dish and Jeannie won't eat it.. Fortunately, diners here have it on the menu, once in a while..

Ross

 

[CharlieD]

I don't hate it. I do like chicken livers better.

Ditto.
But calf liver is not bad either.

Best way to make beef liver is by using beefstrogonoff recipe. sauteing live in the sour cream. And never ever over cook it. Then it is not bad.

 

[pepperhead212]

I love liver, and I have eaten beef, calves, pork, lambs, and chicken livers, more than any, because of its availability. It is also the most tender, though you do have to clean it up a lot. Beef liver is the tough one, with a lot of membranes and sinews to clean out. Pork liver is usually fairly clean, and stronger than chicken and lamb, but milder than beef. I find that those tougher ones are better braised, and the first time I tried the pork liver in chipotle sauce, I found that it needed about 40 min. of simmering to tenderize - usually made with chicken livers, they are ready after 5 or 6 min on high heat, to cook the sauce down. But was that ever delicious! The stronger flavor of the pork liver was even better, and I found this out by accident, because I threw the dish together, because some friends came over, and I had only one thing that I was going to eat.

Another thing I was just thinking about last night was a chicken liver paté, that I haven't made for years, and I don't know why! I thinking about things that I put on those rye breads that I bake, and that immediately came to mind. The recipe was from an old NYT cookbook, to give you an idea of when I started making it! It has a totally unique flavor, which comes from the épices fines, duxélles, and cognac. Also has 2 oz each of butter and cream cheese blended in with it, so it's not for someone watching their cholesterol! But ooooohhhh, is that stuff good.

Then there are those duck livers! I used to save those, when I'd cook a duck, and make a simple omelette with it the next morning. The benefits of being the chef!

I like liver so much that the first time I saw pork spleen, in an Asian market, I bought some, since it looked like liver. It was milder than even chicken livers, and was very clean - almost nothing to trim from it. But it is very mild.

 

[Kayelle]

Interesting post Dave.

I've never tried livers other than beef, chicken, and duck. I like them all. We always roast several whole ducks for the holidays, and the livers make fabulous Pate'. Last season, our domestic duck order was missing the livers and I was furious. Now I'm thinking about chicken livers for classic back to the 60's Rumaki.
https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/rumaki-106255

 

[taxlady]

I really enjoy liver. I hated it as a kid. My mum tried making it different ways and with fancy sauces and I always hated it. One day, several decades ago, I was at a resto and ordered a rib steak. They grilled it over charcoal. They served the steak with a wiener and small piece of liver as an appetizer. Those were charcoal grilled too. I was going to skip the liver, but decided to give it a taste. I was shocked. It was delicious. My mother overcooked liver.

I have enjoyed liver ever since then. I have had beef, pork (my favourite), chicken, moose, snowshoe hare, and porcupine liver. The porcupine liver was good once and tasted of pine the other time. It depends on what it has been eating. Didn't much like the pine flavoured liver. I'm not crazy about chicken liver. I usually find it's drier than I like. I also really like liver pâté. I have made a Danish style of liver pâté called "leverpostej". It was really tasty, but it was a gory mess to make it and it stank up the house while it was baking.

 

[caseydog]

A few years ago, after a botched medical procedure left me bleeding inside, I was on a high iron diet for a few weeks. If I drowned the liver in hot sauce, I could get it down.

Sorry, not part of the liver fan club.

CD

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I love liver! It's difficult making it for one. I hope I can find the brand and packaging you show KL. Otherwise, I have been ordering it at a local restaurant, a couple times a month.

 

[Kayelle]

I love liver! It's difficult making it for one. I hope I can find the brand and packaging you show KL. Otherwise, I have been ordering it at a local restaurant, a couple times a month.

I was thinking of you PF, as I know you like liver too. That new packaging is ideal, and I hope you can find it somewhere. The individual slices are thin and really perfectly convenient. I'm glad I made two slices for myself, but one would have been enough really.

 

[Vinylhanger]

I love liver and onions with mashed potatoes. Liver sandwiches are yummy.

Only one in the family that likes it, so it's a rare treat.

 

[pepperhead212]

Here's that recipe I was thinking of making again:

Chicken Liver Paté

1/4 cup(s) shallots; minced
3 tb butter; OR chicken fat
3/4 lb chicken livers; cleaned
1/4 tsp épices fines
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves; minced
1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
1/3 cup(s) cognac
1/4 cup(s) duxélles; (optional, but not really)
4 oz butter; softened
4 oz cream cheese; softened

A. Cook the shallots in the butter or fat in a 12" skillet over med-low heat for 10-12 min., until very tender, but not browned. Add livers, épices fines, thyme, and salt, increase heat to med-high, and cook 2-3 min., until livers are all stiffened, but still somewhat pink inside. Add cognac, heat briefly, and ignite. Let burn 1 min., then extinguish with lid. Stir in the optional duxelles.

B. Puree the mixture in the food processor, then add the cream cheese, followed by the butter, processing until mixed. Adjust seasonings, overseasoning a bit, since it will be served cold, then chill. May be frozen, but re-process after thawing, or it will be a bit grainy.


For about 1 c épices fines combine 1 tb each of ground bay, clove, mace, nutmeg, sweet paprika, and thyme, 1/2 tb each of basil, cinnamon, marjoram, sage, and savory, and 1/2 c white peppercorns, all ground up to a fine powder and strained through a fine sifter. This is a fantastic seasoning to use in patés and sausages, and I always keep a small jar on the door of my fridge, and the rest in the freezer.

 

[CWS4322]

My favourite is venison liver. When I lived in Germany, we ate liver a lot. The way we made it was to dredge it in seasoned flour, cook it in bacon or goose fat, pour a bottle of beer in, add apple, raisins, and onion. Still my favourite way to make liver.

 

[pepperhead212]

I forgot the venison liver! Years ago, a hunter friend would have a deer butchered, and he'd give me a bunch of "scrap Meat", to use in chili, and the liver, to make that liver in chipotle sauce. I just had to promise to have him over any time I cooked with it!

Oh yeah, I resized the chicken liver Paté recipe to be for 1 lb livers, which is what I usually find these days, frozen, in case anybody is interested. The 1/3 tsp amounts aren't really something most of us have spoons for, but you get the idea!

Chicken Liver Paté
1/3 cup(s) shallots; minced
4 tb butter; OR chicken fat
1 lb chicken livers; cleaned
1/3 tsp épices fines
2/3 tsp fresh thyme leaves; minced
1/3 tsp salt
7/16 cup(s) cognac
1/3 cup(s) duxélles; (optional)
5 1/3 oz butter; softened
5 1/3 oz cream cheese; softened

A. Cook the shallots in the butter or fat in a 12" skillet over med-low heat for 10-12 min., until very tender, but not browned. Add livers, epices fines, thyme, and salt, increase heat to med-high, and cook 2-3 min., until livers are all stiffened, but still somewhat pink inside. Add cognac, heat briefly, and ignite. Let burn 1 min., then extinguish with lid. Stir in the optional duxelles.

B. Puree the mixture in the food processor, then add the cream cheese, followed by the butter, processing until mixed. Adjust seasonings, overseasoning a bit, since it will be served cold, then chill. May be frozen, but re-process after thawing, or it will be a bit grainy.




For about 1 c épices fines combine 1 tb each of ground bay, clove, mace, nutmeg, sweet paprika, and thyme, 1/2 tb each of basil, cinnamon, marjoram, sage, and savory, and 1/2 c white pepeprcorns, all ground up to a fine powder and strained through a fine sifter. This is a fantastic seasoning to use in pates and sausages, and I always keep a small jar on the door of my fridge.

 

[CharlieD]

I ...chicken liver. I usually find it's drier than I like...

That’s interesting. Chicken liver is very tender and juicy if done right. The best way to do is fry it in a lot of butter with some sautéed onions. Start with onions and then add liver. No more than couple of minutes on each side. It should still be somewhat bloody when cut into. Love it. Try.

 

[Vinylhanger]

My favourite is venison liver. When I lived in Germany, we ate liver a lot. The way we made it was to dredge it in seasoned flour, cook it in bacon or goose fat, pour a bottle of beer in, add apple, raisins, and onion. Still my favourite way to make liver.

I am a bit stuck in the mud with liver. Floured and fried in a pan with onions and mashed potatoes is the standard way around our house.

However, I may give this a try to see if I can't get the rest of the family into it.

 

[Linda0818]

I love liver. My favorites are beef liver and especially chicken liver. But I do NOT like calves liver. Tried it a couple of times and just can't do it.

 

[Kayelle]

I love liver. My favorites are beef liver and especially chicken liver. But I do NOT like calves liver. Tried it a couple of times and just can't do it.

I'm really surprised that you prefer beef liver to calf liver Linda. I've never heard that before. Most people feel calf liver has a milder so called "cleaner" flavor and more tender too. Calf liver is harder to find so I was thrilled to find it in the new packaging.

 

[Linda0818]

I'm really surprised that you prefer beef liver to calf liver Linda. I've never heard that before. Most people feel calf liver has a milder so called "cleaner" flavor and more tender too. Calf liver is harder to find so I was thrilled to find it in the new packaging.

It's definitely harder to find. But when I ate it, I was like wow, this is boring. I guess I simply prefer that strong liver flavor and the calves liver just didn't have that for me.

 

[pepperhead212]

A friend of mine once had a yearning, if you want to call it that, for one of my liver dishes, which I usually make with pork liver (mainly because it's easier to clean than beef, and ALWAYS available in the Asian markets, at a cheaper price. She stopped by a neighborhood butcher, and all they had was calves liver, so she got it (and was chocked by the price. lol). I immediately saw what it was , and I told her that it wouldn't be quite the same, because of the milder flavor. She agreed, when she tasted it, and wondered why they charge more for it! I explained that it's from veal, which is always more expensive, and it still has some appeal from the days of classic French cooking, when that was the only liver used (besides duck liver, of course!) - beef liver was for the lower class.

That was the last time I have eaten that. Around here, calves liver is only found frozen, as a rule, in supermarkets, though Asian markets even have this! They love their offal!