Before you run away screaming, hear me out. I know, it’s chicken livers. They are crispy and spiced but, still, liver. There are some people who genuinely enjoy them, but I think it’s fair to say the majority of us just are not instant fans.
I know for me, I grew up around liver-loving people. Fried liver and onions, chopped liver, pate – they ate all of it, frequently, and loved it. I tasted and tasted but could just never acquire a taste for liver in any shape or form. Truthfully, it just grossed me out.
As we have gotten more and more into a real foods lifestyle, I can’t keep from hearing how nutrient-dense and amazing pastured chicken liver is for you. After hearing this mantra over and over for a year, I decided I was going to find a way to eat these things occasionally.
I experimented and tried a lot of recipes. I pureed livers into burgers (um, yeah, I don’t advise doing that!), made Pates and even tried my mom’s famous Chopped Liver with a new attitude and open mind. None of it really worked for me.
One day a couple of months ago, I was making my Paleo Oven Fried Chicken for dinner and as I was breading the chicken, it crossed my mind that this crispy, spiced crust might not only work on the chicken livers but make them tasty enough that even I would eat them once a month or so.
After playing around with the spice ratios and trying oven-baking vs. pan-frying, I developed this Crispy Spiced Chicken Livers recipe. I like to serve them hot with a side of Lemon Garlic Two-Ingredient Aioli for dipping.
If you are already a liver lover and haven’t had a crispy, spiced liver, I think you will love them. If you are in my camp and looking for a way to not only eat more livers but also ENJOY them, I am hoping you will at least give them a try!
NOTES:
- I used a combination of almond meal (ground raw almonds with their skins on) and blanched almond flour (finely ground blanched and skinless almonds). You can make your own almond meal if you have raw almonds and a food processor.
- Bob’s Red Mill sells “Almond Meal/Flour“, which is actually blanched almond flour. They also just released a new product called “Natural Almond Meal/Flour“, which is almond meal. Confusing right?
- I have reheated these and do they OK but are best when first cooked. I don’t suggest a microwave (the crust will get soggy) but rather a non-stick frying pan or a frying pan over medium heat with a bit of oil or butter in it to heat through and crisp them back up.
- Some people swear by soaking chicken livers in buttermilk to clean them. I tried that but with coconut milk mixed with apple cider vinegar (aka vegan buttermilk) and I didn’t notice any difference for this dish. It just added an additional step and wasted ingredients.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
Crispy Spiced Chicken Livers. Paleo. Gluten Free. Offal Recipe.
- 1 pound pastured chicken livers trimmed and patted dry
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 3 Tablespoons virgin coconut oil
Begin by trimming the chicken livers (strings) and cutting them into evenly sized pieces (2 to 3" long). Pat dry with paper towels and set aside in a glass bowl. Beat egg and pour over chicken livers. Gently mix until well distributed.
Combine almond flour, almond meal and spices in a shallow dish that will be used for dredging. use a fork to mix until all spices are incorporated and all lumps are gone from the flour.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Once hot, add 1 Tablespoon of coconut oil (I used 3 Tablespoons total as I divided the 1 pound of chicken livers into 3 batches and used 1 Tablespoon of oil per batch.).
Using your hands, dredge 1/3 of the chicken livers in the flour mixture until well coated and gently place one by one in the frying pan so that they are not crowded.[img src="https://i2.wp.com/www.everydaymaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/IMG_0486-533x400.jpg" alt="" width="533" height="400" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-11773"][img src="https://i2.wp.com/www.everydaymaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/IMG_0488-533x400.jpg" alt="" width="533" height="400" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-11774"]
Cook, undisturbed, for 4 to 5 minutes. Gently flip and cook an additional 3 to 4 minutes on the other side. Try not to keep moving them around so you don't disturb the crust. Remove to a wire rack to cool and continue repeat until all of the livers are cooked.
TIPS: These cooking times are for the size I mentioned (2 to 3" long). If your livers are much larger or very thick, adjust the cooking time accordingly. Enjoy!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
Southern Boy here and I grew up loving fried chicken liver. Made these for my wife and kids and it was hit for sure.
LOVE!! So happy to hear it – thanks for taking the time to let me know!
Delicious! I was searching for a Keto-compatible recipe for chicken livers, so skimped on the almond flour & ground almonds; also used avocado oil to fry it in – but wow – what a terrific aroma and crispy texture – thank you!
Yay!! So glad to hear it Deborah – thanks for taking the time to comment and rate this recipe!
I can’t wait to try this recipe – I love chicken livers! Has anyone tried air frying them? I’ve recently become obsessed with my air fryer. .
Hey Brooke! I haven’t but I bet they would be awesome.
I tried this wonderful recipe and baked them at 350 deg. for about 45 minutes. Loved the spices in the mix!!!
Fantastic – so glad you loved them!
If you have a burner on your outdoor gas grill try that to avoid the pops. I did and it was perfect.
That is such a GREAT idea!!
I LOVE chicken livers, our 11 yr old girl likes them (we both LOVE chicken hearts too), but hubby hates liver. I have made fried livers before with crispy outsides (various nonwheat breadings and no egg) but my question is this – how in the world do you deal with the spattering and popping from the hot-enough iron skillet? This might sound weird to ask, but I was splattered several times the last time I cooked them over a month ago (including on my face and upper chest) and a small burn on my forearm has only recently healed completely. 🙁 I have a mesh cooking screen with a handle, but I can’t figure out how to protect myself while putting the livers in the skillet and then when I turn them later.
Oh my gosh Sandra! That sounds pretty horrible. I also use a splat screen. Like this one — Splatter Screen. Then you can turn the heat down to low just to flip them and return to the higher cooking heat once you put the screen back on. Hope that helps!
If you take a fork and poke holes in the chicken livers while raw they won’t pop and splatter. I learned this year’s ago from my mother in law. It really works. Poke lots of holes!
Great tip!
I just made these and was pleasantly surprised. I will admit that I was absolutely terrified to try these. I ate live once…beef liver…and it tastes like the devil himself. These however were like eating very rich chicken thighs. I am still working on the mind game of eating liver, but if someone served these to me and told me they were chicken thighs, I wouldn’t hesitate. I made this garlic lemon aioli. http://www.healthfulpursuit.com/2012/11/rosemary-sweet-potato-wedges-with-skinny-garlic-aoli/
So basically if you are scared to eat liver, make these. They are not disgusting and are so healthy. Your body will thank you.
Oh my gosh Susan – yes, beef liver is tough! So glad you liked this recipe and the aioli sounds awesome!
I’m planing to make them. What sauce did you use with them?
I like to serve them with this Lemon Garlic Aioli! http://www.everydaymaven.com/2014/how-to-make-aioli-with-tessemaes/
Seems like this has been a popular recipe this week! To anyone who thinks they will take too long to make and will be messy, neither of those assumptions are true. I knocked them out in about ten minutes (and ate them in about two). Also, for those on AIP, I dredged some in just the almond mixtures (no eggs) and you couldn’t tell one type from the other. Just make sure the really press the livers into the mixture. The aioli was excellent, but it does contain eggs.
Great to know about omitting the eggs! Glad you liked it and thanks for commenting 🙂
Could I just use non-dairy milk instead of eggs?
Sure Deborah but the coating may not stick as well to the livers.
I made these today, and they are so awesome!! I couldn’t stop eating them. I subbed out 1/2 a cup of tapioca starch for the blanched almond meal, and I fried them in tallow. AMAZING! Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
So glad you loved them Heather! Seriously, pretty much the only way I can eat liver and enjoy it. Thanks for commenting to let me know 🙂
Could these ever turn out without eggs? We can’t have eggs in our AIP diet, but this sounds wonderful!
I followed this pretty precisely and could not achieve crispness. Is too little heat the likely culprit?
Sounds like lack of heat or that your oil was not hot enough when you put them in!
Made these last night as my hubby loves liver of any kind. Me not so much. I had picked up 3 packs of chicken livers recently so decided I needed to find a new recipe for them. I even loved these! So easy! Thanks!
Hi Patti! So glad you BOTH loved them 🙂 Thanks for the feedback!
I love chicken livers! For many years I have gotten them at a tavern. They are crispy and delicious! When I have a chicken liver attack, I go straight to that tavern! I have never made them myself! Your recipe inspired me! I don’t think the tavern chicken livers had cayenne pepper, garlic powder or oregano, but the amounts in your recipe are small enough that they may add a lot of unrecognized flavor without overpowering the goodness of the livers!
I am going to try it! Stay tuned!
Can’t wait to hear how they turn out Sherry!
Great recipe! My chicken livers came out of the pan looking exactly like the illustration with a terrific, spicy flavor, Cajun-like. I intend to try this coating on fish and chicken fillets as well. I believe the recipe would work well with them also. Many thanks!
So glad you enjoyed it Mark! The coating will definitely work on chicken and robust fish. I based it off of this recipe that I use for chicken!
Made this tonight. I didn’t have almond meal or almond flour so I painstakingly grinder almonds by hand. Even then, I only had 1/2 a cup max so I used seasoned breadcrumbs for the other half. (sorry to butcher your recipe!). Followed the rest of the directions — I don’t like liver but I made these for someone else and I actually really liked these. He liked these so much also.
Glad you found a way to make this work for you and that you all liked them!! 🙂
Sweet breads crispy fried are always amazing! I’m not running from this recipe in fear of liver.
Nice! If you make it, let me know what you think Amanda 🙂
I’ve been wanting to try liver because it’s so nutritious but I’ve been way too chicken (please excuse the pun)! This recipe for them looks so good that I think I’m ready to give it a try 🙂
Let me know what you think when you try them Brittany!
My comment seems to have disappeared so I’ll try again. I wonder if a combination of regular all purpose flour and panko bread crumbs would be a good substitute for the almond meal/flour.
Not sure why it disappeared! Yes, I think that would work really well. Use the AP flour in place of the almond flour and the Panko in place of the almond meal. Let me know how it turns out 🙂
My whole family loved liver, but I couldn’t stand it. Don’t get me wrong, the smell was fantastic, but I couldn’t get behind the taste. But this might be different, this looks irresistible!
Sounds a lot like me! Try these and see what you think 🙂
You know, I always said I didn’t like liver but last year realized that I really hadn’t ever tried it…just assumed I wouldn’t like it. I made homemade liver pate and we devoured it. Who knew? So I know for sure we’d gobble up crispy chicken livers. This is inspired, Alyssa!
Thanks Hannah! It really does seem to be either love / hate. I have a hard time with the texture of pate but can see how people love it!
I love chicken livers, fried crispy like that is even better. when I was a kid, my dad used to make chicken liver dumplings and then fried them in bacon grease. and chicken liver dumpling soup. yum.
I am sure your liver dish is delicious but I am one of the majority not fan of liver.
I hear you Norma – it’s not the easiest taste to get used to!
This is one of those dishes that I never prepare myself, but love at restaurants. Weird, I know. These look wonderful — thanks.
I LOVE chicken livers. My grandma used to make them for me with this same method (AP flour instead of almond meal) and I could eat the whole platter by myself if she didn’t stop me.
I love chicken livers and I am thankful for this recipe. I cannot wait to try it.
Awesome Susan – hope you love it!
I seriously love me some livers and these sound amazing. I will have to sneak these onto the dinner plate and not tell Jim what they are! 🙂
Can’t wait to hear what you all think!
Well I’m glad with all that experimenting, you finally found a way to enjoy them! I bet you could trick a lot of people into eating liver by frying it and not telling them what it was…
I think you could Joanne trick some people but liver does have a unique taste!