Just the phrase “liver and onions” is enough to make many recoil. But that doesn’t need to be the case! There are plenty of fantastic ways to make this a delicious dinner everyone will enjoy.
The trick for us was to cook it all in one pan: Cooking the onions first left behind plenty of flavor that the liver soaked right up. To season, we used cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and of course salt and pepper. In the end, we boiled down some sherry in the pan, scraping off the fond from the pan to create a fantastic sauce when poured over the liver. Keep reading below for this surprisingly good recipe…
Chicken Liver and Onions
(makes 4 servings)
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil
- 3 onions, sliced
- 1/2 cup button mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 sprig rosemary, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/4lbs chicken livers, each cut in half
- 3/4 cup sherry
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Directions:
- In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add the onions, mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon salt, rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated and the onions are browned (about 15 minutes). Add the garlic and stir until fragrant (about 30 to 60 seconds). Remove from the pan and place on a serving platter.
- In the same frying pan, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Season the livers with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Place the livers in the pan (in two batches if necessary) and cook for 2 minutes. Turn and cook until well browned, about another 2 minutes. Remove the livers from the pan and place them on top of the onions.
- Return the pan to the heat without cleaning it and add the sherry. Boil rapidly, scraping the bottom of the pan to dislodge any browned bits for 1 minute. Pour the sauce over the livers and onions and toss with the fresh parsley.
- Enjoy!
Recipe adapted fromFood and Wine