Liver is a real superfood and it can be delicious too. This super tasty recipe for beef liver with sweet potatoes and onions will convince you. Filling, nutritious, easy to make, and budget-friendly, this recipe merits a spot in your dinner rotation!
Liver: a real superfood
Liver is one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can eat. As our ancestors well knew, liver (and other organ meats) is full of powerful nutrition that helps keep us strong, both physically and mentally.
Liver is an excellent source of high-quality proteins, the most concentrated natural source of vitamin A, one of the best sources of folic acid and vitamin B12, an incredible source of iron, copper, zinc, selenium, and choline.
This exceptional combination of nutrients is beneficial for everyone’s health and can really help fight anemia and fatigue. Eating liver is also so important for pregnant women, growing children, and those recovering from illness. Find out more about the health benefits of liver and other organ meats here.
Eat liver regularly but don’t eat too much
While consuming liver is extremely beneficial, more is not always better and you can actually eat too much liver.
The main risk is related to the extremely high vitamin A content in liver. Just two ounces (~50 grams) of liver contains 356% of your daily recommended value of Vit A!
Vit A is essential for proper functioning and health, but excess Vit A consumption is toxic and causes a condition known as hypervitaminosis A, whose symptoms vary from headache, nausea and vomiting (acute toxicity) to changes in skin, hair, and nails, abnormal liver test results, and birth defects (chronic toxicity).
So as a rule of thumb, you should eat no more than a quarter pound (approximately 100 grams) of liver once or twice a week. This dose guarantees all the precious nutrients in liver without any risk of toxicity. However, be extra careful if you’re taking Vit A supplements (which I do not recommend taking anyway) so that you don’t overdose on Vit A! Chicken liver is lower in Vit A than beef liver, and can be a suitable alternative in this case.
Consuming liver is also very beneficial for babies (after 6 months old) and growing children. For babies, limit the quantity to a couple of teaspoons once or twice a week, and increase as the child grows.
Sourcing good quality liver
If you have been following along, you know that I’m a huge advocate of buying local meats from grass-fed, pasture-raised animals that are not treated with hormones or antibiotics. When buying liver, sourcing the best quality is even more important!
Always make sure that the liver you buy is fresh, and comes from healthy animals raised in the best conditions.
Don’t let the liver intimidate you!
Beef liver has a fairly strong flavour and a funny texture that is not appreciated by most modern people.
I was one of them! I actually used to find liver pretty disgusting and didn’t eat any. When I started my journey to improve my health, and especially after I got pregnant, I made an effort to eat my weekly dose of liver, aware of its many health benefits. I remember that I used to cover the grilled liver in mustard to mask the strong taste!
Since then, I got used to eating liver and I actually grew into liking its taste and texture. I now really look forward to my weekly feed of liver. As a funny fact, liver has been one of my toddler’s favourite foods since he was a baby. He truly loves it no matter how it’s cooked (and he even likes it raw!).
If the taste of liver is really not for you, however, there are a few tricks to mask it (without covering it in mustard!) and ways to eat this superfood anyway. Here are a few:
- Chose lamb, veal, or chicken liver instead of beef for a milder taste
- Soak the liver in lemon juice or milk before cooking, or cook the liver with milk to make the taste milder
- Don’t overcook your liver so that it doesn’t turn into a piece of rubber
- Cook the liver with strong-flavoured foods such as onions (a classic), or add plenty of spices or herbs to cover the taste up. This super tasty beef liver with sweet potatoes and onions is a great option!
- “Hide” the liver in recipes such as ones made with ground meat (add ~1/3 pound of liver for each pound of ground meat) or into homemade sausage
- Try frozen liver. Cut frozen liver into small pieces and swallow them with water just like pills. If you feel brave, you can even try eating the frozen liver. It’s truly delicious and it has a chocolatey taste!
You can find out how to cook the best pan-fried beef liver in this post!
Ingredients for this super tasty beef liver with sweet potatoes and onions
- 1 pound (500 grams) grass-fed beef liver
- 1/2 onion
- 1 sweet potato
- 3 tablespoons (30 grams) grass-fed butter
- 1/2 cup milk or bone broth or water
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Green onions, rosemary, and other herbs
- Garlic (optional)
How to make this super tasty beef liver with sweet potatoes and onions
Step 1: Finely chop the onion, and cut the liver and sweet potato into chunks.
Step 2: Heat a stainless steel or cast iron pan over medium heat and add the butter.
Step 3: Once the butter is melted, add the onions and garlic (optional) and let it sauté for a couple of minutes until soft, stirring with a wooden spatula to avoid burning.
Step 4: Add the liver chunks and sauté again until all the liver turns lighter.
Step 5: Add the sweet potato, chopped green onion and rosemary (or other herbs), and season with salt (and spices of choice).
Step 6: Add 1/2 cup of milk or bone broth or water and stir everything together to combine.
Step 7: Cover the pot with a lid and let it cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft. Stir occasionally and add more liquid if needed.
Step 8: Once the potatoes are cooked, remove the lid and let all the remaining liquid reduce, stirring frequently to avoid burning.
Step 9: Serve hot, garnishing with fresh green onions or other herbs.
Notes
Liver is cut more easily when is still partially frozen so don’t let your frozen liver thaw out completely.
If you are new to eating liver and/or you don’t like its strong taste, use milk in this recipe instead of broth or water: milk makes the taste of liver less strong and sweeter. Of course, this only applies if you can tolerate dairy.
To cover the taste even more you can add any herb and/or spice, fresh or dry, as well as garlic.
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Super Tasty Beef Liver with Sweet Potatoes and Onions
Ingredients
- 1 pound (500 grams) grass-fed beef liver
- 1/2 onion
- 1 sweet potato
- 3 tablespoons (30 grams) grass-fed butter
- 1/2 cup milk or bone broth or water
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Green onions, rosemary, and other herbs
- Garlic optional
Instructions
- Finely chop the onion, and cut the liver and sweet potato into chunks.
- Heat a stainless steel or cast iron pan over medium heat and add the butter.
- Once the butter is melted, add the onions and garlic (optional) and let it saute for a couple of minutes until soft, stirring with a wooden spatula to avoid burning.
- Add the liver chunks and saute again until all the liver turns lighter.
- Add the sweet potato, chopped green onion and rosemary (or other herbs), and season with salt (and spices of choice).
- Add 1/2 cup of milk or bone broth or water and stir everything together to combine.
- Cover the pot with a lid and let it cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft. Stir occasionally and add more liquid if needed.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, remove the lid and let all the remaining liquid reduce, stirring frequently to avoid burning.
- Serve hot, garnishing with fresh green onions or other herbs.
