Today’s post in my series on organ meats uses Free Range Chicken Livers from US Wellness Meats.
Chicken livers contain high levels of retinol (preformed vitamin A). This type of vitamin A is ready to be used by the body, unlike beta-carotene, which the body must convert to retinol before use. Liver is also high in all the B vitamins, folate, riboflavin, selenium, EPA, DHA, and the most easily absorbable type of iron (heme iron).
I soaked the livers in water with lemon juice in it to take away some of the liver smell and taste, then I wrapped them in bacon (because bacon makes everything better) and fried them until the bacon was browned.
I’m going to be completely honest with you. I did not like these chicken livers. Something about the texture and richness of the liver was not appealing to me. While I know how nutritious they were, I couldn’t bring myself to eat more than two bites.
I’m still posting this recipe for those of you who DO like liver and for those of you who are willing to give it a chance. Maybe you will like them better than I did.
Bacon Wrapped Chicken Livers
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken livers
- 1 lemon (juice only)
- 16 slices bacon (uncured and sugarfree for AIP)
- 1 tsp lard (or other fat of choice)
Instructions
- Place the chicken livers in a glass bowl and cover with water. Add the lemon juice and stir gently. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 12 hours.
- Drain the chicken livers and pat dry. Wrap a slice of bacon tightly around each liver.
- Heat the lard in skillet over medium heat. When it is hot, add the wrapped livers. Don’t crowd the pan. You may need to work in batches.
- Cook for 3-5 minutes on each side or until the bacon is browned and the liver is firm, but still slightly pink in the middle.
No LARD — this will ruin the bacon/chicken liver flavor and put you into an early grave – no wonder you could not enjoy them
Cindy,
High quality lard has a very neutral flavor. It can be used in both savory and sweet recipes very successfully – it is my favorite for frying and also for pie crust. It combines very well with the bacon fat (essentially smoked lard) in this recipe.
Thank you for your concern over my lifespan, but rest assured that lard is a very healthy fat. It doesn’t cause inflammation like polyunsaturated fats do.It is heat stable, which means that it doesn’t oxidize easily. (Oxidation creates free radicals, which cause cell damage.) Saturated fats experience the least oxidation, polyunsaturated fats exhibit the most oxidation, and monounsaturated fats are in between. Lard contains approximately 40% saturated fat, 50% monounsaturated fat, and 10% polyunsaturated fat. The combination of saturated fat with the unsaturated fats protects the unsaturated fats from oxidation.
There is no evidence that saturated fats increase the risk of heart disease (source).
Saturated fat intake increases HDL cholesterol, which is associated with a lowered risk of heart disease (source).
Lard is moderately high in cholesterol, which is a good thing. If someone doesn’t eat enough cholesterol, their body has to make it for cell membrane health, hormone health, and brain health. By eating more cholesterol, we limit the burden on our bodies to make cholesterol. Low cholesterol levels have been associated with higher mortality rates (source), higher risk of depression (source), and higher risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (source).
I was anemic with my first pregnancy so I made myself learn to like liver by my second pregnancy. I made chicken liver and onions and ate a lot of sautéed onions with a little bite of liver. Eventually I grew to like it, just in time. 35 years later and I’m slightly anemic so I made liver last night. I still like it!!! I didn’t use this recipe but I floured it in keto friendly flours (coconut, almond) and ground pork rinds. I didn’t taste much difference from my original recipe.
Theresa, that’s great!
This recipe sounds wonderful ! I love beef liver cooked in bacon grease so chicken livers wrapped with bacon is a winner in my book !
Thanks Debbie! I hope you like them.