Years ago, when I had iron anemia, I was forced to eat chicken and beef livers to increase my iron levels; and fortunately I learned to love them. My mother tried a variety of recipes to make sure I wouldn’t get bored, but by far my favourite way to eat chicken livers is the traditional Spanish style.
And although now I usually prepare them as a pate, every once in a while, I still like to dig into the whole organ meat, prepared just like my mother used to make them for me. (And she still does when we visit my parents.)
It’s simple and easy to make and within minutes, you can be enjoying a delectable dish that is very healthy for you. You can serve them with mashed potatoes or another tuber mash or even cauliflower mash/rice (although I find that the taste of the cauliflower can be overpowering for the chicken livers).
I ate mine as a salad over a bed of raw spinach and wild rocket (arugula). To make them more kid-friendly, try adding some apples, either raw or cooked with the livers.
- 350g chicken livers
- 1 medium red onion, cut julienne style or chopped
- 3-4 cloves garlic, slivered
- lard, about 2 tablespoons (you can also use olive oil or fat of preference, however the lard adds a special flavour to this dish)
- 3 leaves fresh sage, sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon Spanish pimenton (or paprika)
- 2 tablespoons dry white wine
- coarse sea salt, to taste
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- In a skillet, over low heat, melt the lard.
- Add the onion, garlic and livers.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken livers are almost done and almost no blood is left.
- Add the thyme, sage, pimenton and sea salt (to taste).
- Cook about 1 minute.
- Then add the wine and cook until the livers are completely done.
- Serve immediately with your favourite side dish or over a bed of greens.
- Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper, if desired.
- Garnish with pumpkin seeds for some crunch.
Yum! I use a lot of these flavors in my homemade sausage.