Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

5

I am wondering how much or what kind of organ meat i could get away with putting into the chilli I make for my wife without her noticing. She has already accepted that I put ground bison when she didn't like the idea of that. I usualy use one lb of grass fed ground beef and one lb of the bison. I was thinking of adding 1/2 lb of liver. I only remember hating liver as a kid, so I'm concerned about taste also. Will it blend in?

Edit: Boy I sure seem to not be able to ask a question around here without someone not getting my intent. I'm obviously not wording my questions well enough. Without adding my wife into the mix, is there a threshhold to the amount of organ meat I could incorporate into a pot of chilli without it overpowering the whole batch?

edited Feb 24 2011 at 4:54

asked Feb 24 2011 at 4:31

missionman
1,468●3●10

Hey MM, just wanted to let you know that I just couldn't resist my answer on the "How is babby formed" thread. I have no issues at all with you adding stuff into the chili. <3 – sherpamelissa Feb 25 2011 at 13:43

1

@missionman: because of melissa's comment on the "how is babby formed" thread, this will undoubtedly go down as a famous quote here on paleohacks – Jack Kronk Feb 25 2011 at 16:27

1

Wait, is this the paleo pickup lines thread? – Alfredo Apr 6 2011 at 18:45

I think "slipping" someone food without them knowing it is a lousy thing to do. Present her with evidence and let her make her own choice. – Lee Apr 6 2011 at 19:05

Eva · Accepted Answer · 2011-02-24 05:26:32Z UTC

Heart meat has a much more neutral flavor. LIver has a much stronger flavor. IMO, go with heart meat and you can add lot more without making much impact on flavor. The main prob is heart meat kinda tough and chewy. I fix most of this by cutting it into small pieces on the cutting board and then smashing each piece flat with the flat size of a cleaver or large knife. This mechanically tenderizes the meat and makes it much less tough without adding any unwanted extra flavors that might clash with the chili. Or you could probably grind up the heart meat and add tons of it in as the meat for the chili, maybe just add a bit of regular really fatty hampburger to add more fat into the mix.

Barb · Answer 2 · 2011-04-06 18:48:03Z UTC

2

I do this all the time! 1/4# liver to 1# ground meat- puree the liver and mix it in with the ground meat before browning. If your chili is spicey, heavily flavored like most chili, it's not very distinguishable at all. I do this with taco meat, meatloaf, meatballs, just about anything with ground meat. I recently had pork liver ground up with our ground pork (direct from the farmer that raised the pig, processed the pig and even made us brats :)) and we couldn't even taste it.

answered Apr 6 2011 at 18:48

Barb
789●2●5

1

Sounds great. Up to now I've used conventional chilli powder from the bulk section. I find it too salty though, so I looked for a homemade alternative. I searched google and found plenty of course, but I think I will try Alton Brown's mixture next time. At least I will be able to control the salt content. – missionman Apr 6 2011 at 19:10

a great place to buy spices is "the spice house". They're in the chicago area and in milwaukee, but they sell online. Their stuff rocks. – tartare Apr 6 2011 at 23:09

WordVixen · Answer 3 · 2011-04-06 17:38:42Z UTC

I know this is a bit late, but I wanted to jump in with my experience.

I recently made chicken heart chili (cut it into little pieces- I don't have a meat grinder), and it was really good! Strangely, the texture was actually better after I froze the leftovers and cooked them again weeks later. You know how you shouldn't freeze most meat more than once because it affects the texture? I think in the case of tough meats like heart, it may be beneficial.

Anyway, when I was cooking the leftovers, I lightly cooked a turkey liver in another pan, cut it up with the spatula, and mixed it in with the chili. Aside from a few larger pieces, I couldn't taste it.

So, my recommendation is to add a little heart meat, preferably ground, or chopped really small, and just a little mild liver (turkey or veal- at first, turkey is more meaty than chicken but milder than beef- ditto for veal), pre cooked, then crumbled up small. Add at the end or the flavor may permeate the whole dish.

The chili spices seem particularly well adapted to covering up other strong flavors.

In theory, kidney should be good too, but it needs to be soaked in something acidic (lemon, vinegar, baking soda) first.

amanda · Answer 4 · 2011-02-24 20:19:46Z UTC

Is there any way you could do a small test batch for just you to try before bringing your wife into it? I ask because over the holidays I decided to play hide-the-liver with myself while the boy was out of town (omg--these double entendres are hard to avoid!) in an attempt to get more offal into our diet and I still gag when I think about the results (and get sad when I think about how much food I had to throw away.) I added pureed beef liver to beef and bison meatballs cooked in tomato sauce and, with just a little liver added, the entire batch tasted like eating bile-dominant vomit. Gross. I was glad that I did a solo trial run though because if I had served my boyfriend that abomination it would have put the brakes on the offal train forever which would be sad. Now I'm waiting for another night alone to try out some other potentially more neutral tasting recipes that feature organ meats.

Travis Culp · Answer 5 · 2011-02-24 19:12:02Z UTC

I personally really detest the taste of liver. I've tried chicken and lamb liver and I just end up throwing it out. The smell and taste are just disgusting. This is coming from someone who eats natto nearly every day. I can eat pounds of chicken hearts, gizzards, lungs etc. though. Cardiac muscle, aside from being slightly more chewy, is basically the same as skeletal muscle and the other organs genuinely taste good.

But you have me thinking that chili might be the perfect way to incorporate liver into my diet without tasting it. I eat pretty strongly flavored cuts of pastured lamb, but frying up liver in the same manner is too much for me.

Yoga Lvr · Answer 6 · 2011-02-24 13:07:55Z UTC

0

This sounds like something MY hubby would ask! ;0) lol Offal is supposed to be super healthy and he wants me to try it soooo badly, but as a former vegetarian, I am lucky not to gag while preparing chicken breasts :) Good luck! oh, and don't use a meat grinder on the liver... it just gets gooey and nasty (that's how I found out what he was up to!!... teeheehee)

answered Feb 24 2011 at 13:07

Yoga Lvr
81●3

	lol Tell him to cook the liver first, then crumble it! It's also great to use when making bone broth- then you can fish out the cooked liver and crumble it then. – WordVixen Feb 24 2011 at 20:01
	Huh, I've been making bone broth for years and never thought to incorporate organ meats. Any tips on this? – Jennie Feb 24 2011 at 20:54
	Whoops, just saw this comment. Jennie- I literally just throw the organ meats in with the bones when I'm making the broth. I often cook a whole chicken in the crock pot and do it then (no loose bones to mess it up), but they sell special stock making bags (just mesh cotton bags) to put bones in for stock. You could try that and keep the organ meat on the outside of the bag, bones inside, so that the meats won't get lost in the bones. Not usually a problem for beef though- big bones and all. – WordVixen Apr 6 2011 at 17:26

The Quilt · Answer 7 · 2011-02-24 05:19:29Z UTC

2

I put in order goose liver, Beef Liver and beef heart because of its nutrient density in all my chili. Wife knows it but kids dont.

answered Feb 24 2011 at 5:19

The Quilt
27.4k●1●13●82

sounds complicated... do you buy those all separately and store them in the freezer? – rafi Feb 24 2011 at 6:25

Pete · Answer 8 · 2011-02-24 05:15:12Z UTC

If she is willing to accept the Paleo Chili you making now.. even with Bison? Go with it.

IMO.. why push the limits?

Bud.. you are crossing the line..

Be upfront on what you are serving..

BTW - I do like organ meats and would be willing to try Bison if cooked right.

No more. · Answer 9 · 2011-02-24 05:11:41Z UTC

2

Chicken liver is way easier to mask than beef liver. I put about a half a pound in my chili and don't really notice it (that's to about 2lbs of other meat).

answered Feb 24 2011 at 5:11

No more.
5,534●2●11●40

rafi · Answer 10 · 2011-02-24 04:45:18Z UTC

13

Is this thread title a euphemism or what?

answered Feb 24 2011 at 4:45

rafi
979●1●7●16

Hilarious comment in all this seriousness! – paleoprimal Feb 24 2011 at 13:43

Haha, I was gonna say that!! – Carly Feb 24 2011 at 13:43

Well I was actually gonna say, does anyone else read this like an innuendo?! :D – Carly Feb 24 2011 at 13:44

1

paleohacks.com/questions/24760/… – familygrokumentarian Feb 25 2011 at 16:46

Keith · Answer 11 · 2011-02-24 04:43:25Z UTC

9

Lies are no way to win someone over.

answered Feb 24 2011 at 4:43

Keith
450●2●3

9

I second this. If my man were to slip me some organ, I'd at least like some advance warning. – Kaz Feb 24 2011 at 4:46

2

I'm not trying to lie so much as I want to add it myself for the nutritional aspects. My wife even prescibes to the ignorance is bliss philosophy. – missionman Feb 24 2011 at 4:47

1

sometimes it's the only way to get spouses/kids to try something new. Ignorance is bliss is so true. Who among us has never eaten a packaged food, turning a blind eye to what's really in it? – W8liftinmom Feb 24 2011 at 21:01

Slipping organ meats into wifes chilli

11 Answers