3 Ways To Clean Chicken Livers - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow How to Clean Chicken Livers PDF download Download Article Learn to wash, trim, and prepare your chicken livers for cooking 21 Recipe Ratings | Success Stories Co-authored by Marrow Private Chefs

Last Updated: December 10, 2024 Approved

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  • Soaking Livers in Cold Water
    • |
  • Removing Connective Tissue
    • |
  • Buying, Storing, and Cooking
    • |
  • Q&A
    • |
  • Tips
|Show more |Show less X

This article was co-authored by Marrow Private Chefs. Marrow Private Chefs are based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It is a chefs’ collective comprised of an ever-growing number of chefs and culinary professionals. Though regionally influenced primarily by coastal, traditional southern, cajun, and creole styles and flavors, the chefs at Marrow have a solid background in all types of cuisine with over 75 years of combined cooking experience. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 93% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 149,822 times.

Chicken livers are a cheap but nutritious type of meat. To prevent them from tasting bitter and to make sure they cook properly, it’s important to clean them correctly before you cook them. Soaking the livers in cold water and then removing any connective tissue will give you clean livers that are ready to cook.

How do you clean chicken livers?

  1. Start by soaking the livers in cold water for about 15 minutes.
  2. Drain the water and pat the livers dry with a paper towel.
  3. Use a knife to cut off connective tissue (white or pink stringy bits) from the livers.
  4. Cook and eat your livers or freeze them for later.

Steps

Method 1 Method 1 of 3:

Soaking Livers in Cold Water

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  1. Step 1 Place the livers in cold water. 1 Place the livers in cold water. Fill a glass bowl with cold water – not as cold as ice water but colder than room temperature. Place the livers in the cold water. If possible, don’t lay them on top of one another.[1] [2]
  2. Step 2 Let the livers soak. 2 Let the livers soak. You should leave the livers in the cold water for about fifteen minutes. This gives the water time to coagulate the blood, which will make it easier to remove.[3] Advertisement
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 3 Drain the bowl. After fifteen minutes, hold the livers in place and dump the water out of the bowl.[4] [5]
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 4 Pat the livers dry with paper towels. Take one liver out at a time and pat it dry with a paper towel. Make sure you blot both sides of the liver. If you find some of the blood is stubborn, you might have to wet a paper towel and wipe the blood off.[6] [7]
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Method 2 Method 2 of 3:

Removing Connective Tissue

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 1 Lay out the livers. Lay out all of the livers you’re trimming so that they are flat. This might require that you unfold the livers, as they often come out of the container balled up.[8]
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 2 Look for connective tissue. Livers have connective tissue running through them, similar to what you might find on a chicken breast. This tissue is usually white or pink and is stringy.[9]
    • You should also look for any greenish parts on the liver, as these will cause the liver to taste bitter.[10]
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 3 Trim the meat away from the connective tissue. Using a sharp knife or scissors, trim the meat away from the connective tissue. This might take more than one or two passes with the knife, since each liver can have multiple areas with connective tissue.[11]
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Method 3 Method 3 of 3:

Buying, Storing, and Cooking Chicken Livers

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 1 Collect chicken livers from whole chickens. If you are in the habit of buying whole chickens, you'll actually be purchasing livers at the same time. Some chickens have multiple hearts and multiple livers, so you might get more than one per chicken.[12]
    • Don't use livers in giblet gravy - it can give the gravy a bitter taste.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 2 Buy the livers from a butcher. You can buy whole livers from the butcher or the meat department of your local grocery store. These livers tend to be of a better quality than what you'd get in a whole chicken, since the processing of whole chickens means the livers might be mangled.[13]
    • Livers from the grocery store or butcher may come in a jar, or they might be fresh. Ask your butcher how they package them.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 3 Clean and freeze the chicken livers. Before you store the chicken livers, you should clean them so that they're ready to be used when you want them. Once you've cleaned them, lay them flat in a freezer storage bag and lay the bag flat in your freezer.[14]
    • Use the livers within three to four months of freezing them.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Clean Chicken Livers 4 Make chopped liver. The most popular way to prepare chicken livers is by making chopped liver. Melt 5 tablespoons (2.5 ounces) of fat (either chicken fat or butter) in a pan, then sauté 2 cups (16 ounces) of sliced onions in the fat. Remove the onions, but pour the fat back in the pan, and sauté 1 pound of chicken livers until they're brown on the outside and no longer pink on the inside. Mix the livers, onions, and 3 hard-boiled eggs together and chop them finely. Season with salt and pepper and either serve within two hours or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.[15]
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Community Q&A

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  • Question Sometimes I get sleek and shiny chicken livers, but other times some are looking like they're decomposing, resembling cottage cheese. Are these okay to eat? Community Answer Community Answer If these are packaged and you bought them recently, you could check with the employees at the meat counter. If you are really unsure, then do not eat them. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 6
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Tips

  • The livers might sometimes come attached to the chicken hearts still. You can remove those by cutting through the connecting tissue. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 1
  • If you also want to cook the hearts, you should remove the fatty tissue from around the heart, cut it open, and remove any blood clots inside of it. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 2
  • A really sharp knife or pair or kitchen scissors are the best tools for cleaning chicken livers. Thanks Helpful 4 Not Helpful 3
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References

  1. ↑ Marrow Private Chefs. Private Chefs. Expert Interview
  2. ↑ https://delishably.com/meat-dishes/how-to-cook-chicken-livers
  3. ↑ https://delishably.com/meat-dishes/how-to-cook-chicken-livers
  4. ↑ Marrow Private Chefs. Private Chefs. Expert Interview
  5. ↑ https://delishably.com/meat-dishes/how-to-cook-chicken-livers
  6. ↑ Marrow Private Chefs. Private Chefs. Expert Interview
  7. ↑ https://delishably.com/meat-dishes/how-to-cook-chicken-livers
  8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0Pb39AI2Nw
  9. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0Pb39AI2Nw
More References (6)
  1. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/techniques/cleaning_chicken_livers
  2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0Pb39AI2Nw
  3. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/08/nyregion/food-the-saving-grace-of-chicken-livers.html
  4. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/08/nyregion/food-the-saving-grace-of-chicken-livers.html
  5. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/08/nyregion/food-the-saving-grace-of-chicken-livers.html
  6. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/08/nyregion/food-the-saving-grace-of-chicken-livers.html

About This Article

Marrow Private Chefs Co-authored by: Marrow Private Chefs Culinary Experts This article was co-authored by Marrow Private Chefs. Marrow Private Chefs are based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It is a chefs’ collective comprised of an ever-growing number of chefs and culinary professionals. Though regionally influenced primarily by coastal, traditional southern, cajun, and creole styles and flavors, the chefs at Marrow have a solid background in all types of cuisine with over 75 years of combined cooking experience. This article has been viewed 149,822 times. 21 votes - 93% Co-authors: 4 Updated: December 10, 2024 Views: 149,822 Categories: Chicken In other languages Spanish Portuguese German Japanese
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Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 149,822 times.

Reader Success Stories

  • Helen Smith

    Helen Smith

    Feb 22, 2022

    "How to look for the connective tissue and get it out, soak livers in cold water. My only addition is instead of..." more
More reader stories Hide reader stories Share your story

Did this article help you?

Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Marrow Private Chefs Co-authored by: Marrow Private Chefs Culinary Experts Co-authors: 4 Updated: December 10, 2024 Views: 149,822 93% of voters found this recipe helpful. 21 votes - 93% Click a star to add your vote Helen Smith

Helen Smith

Feb 22, 2022

"How to look for the connective tissue and get it out, soak livers in cold water. My only addition is instead of..." more Anonymous

Anonymous

Mar 9, 2024

"This whole time I thought chicken livers just tasted bitter. I'd take them out the packet, rinse them as..." more Darleen Gillyard

Darleen Gillyard

Nov 4, 2017

"The instructions were plain and simple, enough for me not to "fear" cleaning them. I need them for a..." more Donna Martin

Donna Martin

Feb 4, 2020

"Your advice was very helpful and gave me confidence to prepare the fresh livers for freezing. Thanks." Anonymous

Anonymous

Jul 11, 2017

"The step on removing the connective tissue helped." Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories

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