Many would turn their noses up to offal, which is such a shame as if cooked well it can be very tasty. I love liver, even as a kid I found it tasty; yes I was a weird child but it was a favourite of mine.

I have cooked this for friends who were determined they hated liver but were soon convinced by this recipe. Plus, chicken livers are extremely cheap and under used, they are also full of vitamins, protein and iron…. give it a go, you’ll never know unless you try.

This was a recipe of my mum’s, I think I have pretty much remembered it the way she cooked it, it tasted great and brought back happy memories.

Ingredients:

280g chicken livers

1 tbsp. plain flour

1 onion, finely diced

1 celery stick, finely diced

3 cloves of garlic, grated or crushed

1 cup risotto rice

1 tsp. paprika

170ml red wine

1 pint hot chicken stock

1 tbsp. Worcester sauce

A handful of sliced mushrooms (optional)

1 tbsp. butter

100g parmesan

Handful of fresh herbs; can use oregano or thyme

Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Olive oil for frying

Extra virgin olive oil for serving

Method:

Remove any fat from the liver and slice.  Sprinkle over the flour and season well with salt and pepper, then toss in the flour to coat each piece.

Heat the oil in a non stick pan, add the livers and brown each side.  Once they have a nice dark colour remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the onions and celery to the same pan, add a little more oil if needed. Cook gently until soft but not browned.

Add the garlic and the rice, sprinkle in the paprika and mix well.

Once the rice is translucent pour in the red wine, on a medium heat let this bubble away for a few minutes.

Next start to ladle in the stock, a spoon at a time, stirring as you go letting the liquid be absorbed by the rice. After a couple of stock scoops add the Worcester sauce, the herbs, mushrooms and the liver.

Keep stirring the pan and ladling in the stock.  It should take around 20 minutes to cook, the rice should still have a little bite. Taste for more seasoning; I usually add a lot of cracked black pepper to mine.

Once cooked turn off the heat, add the butter and the parmesan, do not stir just pop a lid on and let it sit for a few minutes.

Then remove the lid stir in the cheese and the butter.

Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, an extra sprinkle of herbs and shavings of parmesan.

 

Enjoy xxx

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