Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I'm no epicure, but the taste of liver has become really tedious for me lately. The last time I stood salivating in front of the butcher's counter I noticed that they made a lot of different types of sausage in house. I asked the fellow if he'd make up a batch of custom sausage with 1/4 of the meat as beef liver and he said it'd be no problem. I opted for the "mild Italian" seasoning and got the 5lb minimum.

Anyway, I grilled some up a little while ago and I'll be damned, it tastes nothing like liver. I had to examine it to make sure it really had some in it. I think this addresses not only the palatability issues with liver, but also the excessive nutrient density. If you, for example, want to eat your roughly 100g per week (as recommended by Paul Jaminet in the PHD) you could just have a day where you eat one of these with each meal (or one a day for a few days), and it will be spaced out so that the absorptive capacity of your intestines isn't saturated.

The trick is to find a market that is already making sausage and selling liver and talking them into making a batch. I was turned down a few times before this.

I'm tempted next time to do 2 out of the 5 pounds as liver, but I don't want to fly too close to the sun on liver-y wings.

flag	asked Oct 27 2011 at 18:42 Travis Culp♦ 39.6k●1●32●132

+1 for the title. I happen to LOVE liver, especially good chicken liver paté and properly cooked lambs liver. Not so crazy about sausage, though... – Dragonfly Oct 27 2011 at 18:47

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In a world gone mad, one liver-liking-lady goes up against the sausage faction. – Travis Culp♦ Oct 27 2011 at 18:50

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Oh also if you have them make you some there are a few liver sausage methods that call for pre cooking the liver. I did not do this. I ground mine raw and I think that was the better way if messier - I think that too much cooking would sap some nutrition but I don't really know it that's true. – none Oct 27 2011 at 19:37

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Right now, some form of liver sausage is the way to go for me too. – Chickenosaurus Rex Oct 27 2011 at 20:01

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If 40-50% liver doesn't taste like liver, then I'll go ahead and up the amount next time. I'm pretty sure they used raw everything for this. The good thing about sausage is that it's self-contained to an extent that keeps most of the nutrients from escaping into the pan or whatever. I suppose some vitamins are degraded, but I'm more after the minerals. – Travis Culp♦ Oct 27 2011 at 20:28

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Beth-WeightMaven · Answer 1 · 2011-10-27 18:47:27Z UTC

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I get my liver via US Wellness' braunschweiger. Yum!

answered Oct 27 2011 at 18:47

Beth-WeightMaven
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	I was gonna say that most products like that have questionable preservatives/ingredients, but that one looks totally legitimate. – Travis Culp♦ Oct 27 2011 at 18:49
	I suppose it's kind of expensive though...the stuff I got worked out to 5-something a pound. – Travis Culp♦ Oct 27 2011 at 18:51
	If you can get someone to make sausage with grass-fed liver, that works! Me, I'm happy to pay the extra for the quality and to have it sent to my door ;). – Beth-WeightMaven Oct 27 2011 at 18:57
	I have some in my freezer that I need to thaw. – Chickenosaurus Rex Oct 27 2011 at 20:00
	I know this is an old thread, but I just tried US Wellness braunschweiger for the first time this week, and it was so delicious I wanted to do a giddy little dance, knowing that I could eat liver so happily. – Violet9 Apr 19 2012 at 1:11

Nutritionator · Answer 2 · 2011-10-27 22:03:31Z UTC

Sounds delicious. I need to find myself a good butcher so I can put that suggestion to use.

I have a pot of chili simmering as I type this, lots of chopped veggies and tomatoes, 2 lbs of grassfed ground beef and one lb of grass fed beef liver ground up and mixed in. Can't taste the liver one bit and I will never, ever, EVER get sick of chili when it's cooler out. It's my favored mode of liver transportation since I can't stand the taste of it on its own either.

Nance · Answer 3 · 2011-10-27 18:48:46Z UTC

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Very cool! I happen to like liver, particularly with a "topping" of bacon, but I know many others don't. LOL must be my type O blood? (just kidding)

answered Oct 27 2011 at 18:48

Nance
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Well, I'm a Taurus so eating beef liver is tantamount to cannibalism (don't tell the Minotaur). – Travis Culp♦ Oct 27 2011 at 18:52

I definitely attribute your taste for liver to the blood type diet ;) Can't stand the stuff but I haven't tried it with almighty bacon yet, have a recipe? – Nutritionator Oct 27 2011 at 22:05

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I do have a very simple recipe. Start by frying bacon at moderate temperature; takes a while to achieve crispiness without excess browning. Set the crispy bacon aside and slow-fry the liver in the bacon fat; it only takes a minute or 2 per side. If desired, chop and caramelize onion in the remaining fat/juices. Serve in layers--liver on the bottom, bacon in the middle and onions on top. Tip: If this batch of liver is not ideally tender, right after you flip it over you can toss in a little water and cover quickly. This steaming helps to remove any strong liver flavor. – Nance Oct 27 2011 at 22:59

Can't wait to try it, thanks! – Nutritionator Oct 28 2011 at 0:01

Huey · Answer 4 · 2011-10-27 21:34:52Z UTC

I can't believe how recently I would have joined the liver-hater chorus here. Couldn't stand the stuff when I was mostly carbs. How things change. Gimme any liver now, I love it.

Anyway, I did try calve's liver recently (calf's liver?), and it is milder than beef liver. Not my cup of tea, but try it if you get a chance.

I Think I’ve Found an Excellent DeLIVERy Method

4 Answers