Chicken Livers With Caramelized Onions is a classic, easy, and nutritious recipe, ready in less than an hour. Chicken livers are cooked in a pan with onions and spices and served with your favorite side dish.
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Why You'll Enjoy This Recipe
I assume that if you reach this page, you must be a chicken liver lover. You probably have memories of your grandma or somebody in your family cooking liver once in a while.
My grandma, for example, the German one, used to cook pork or beef liver in butter, served with homemade potato bread. I still have the memory of that taste. We used to dip fresh chunks of bread into the delicious drippings from cooking the liver. It was unbelievably tasty! I was under ten years old when that happened, which is an unusual food for a child that young.
However, I was lucky enough to be exposed from an early age to different foods. In fact, we didn't have much choice. It was the food from the plate or nothing. We didn't have much, and I saw around me how people were used to not wasting food.
I don't know about you, but I love chicken liver. I do not make it often enough, but it is always a good day when I find fresh, organic ones, and I can cook them. Chicken livers are super delicious when cooked in butter or olive oil, nutritious, and a cheap way to provide proteins in your diet.
Main Ingredients
This chicken liver recipe requires just a few ingredients. For full amounts and instructions, check the recipe card at the end of this article.
- Chicken livers: Make sure you buy raw chicken livers from a safe source and from healthy chickens. I usually buy organic chicken, liver, or pasture-raised chicken livers. The darker the color of the liver, the healthier the animal!
- Milk: You need dairy for this recipe; a plant-based milk will not work.
- Seasoning: Salt, ground black pepper, marjoram and thyme are my favorite.
- White wine: White wine is not mandatory but adds acidity and flavor to the dish. Don't worry about alcohol, as it evaporates during cooking. If you don't want wine at all, use the same amount of chicken broth or water.
- Red Onion: This is my favorite, but you can also use white or yellow onion.
- Olive Oil: Use olive oil or any other vegetable oil or some butter.
- Parsley: For garnishing.
How To Make This Grandma's Chicken Livers Recipe
Step 1: Clean and Soak the Chicken Livers: Rinse the fresh chicken livers in cold water to remove any impurities. Trim away any visible connective tissue or fat. Place the cleaned livers in a bowl and pour enough milk to cover them entirely.
Expert Tip
Soaking chicken livers in milk is a game-changer! It mellows the flavor, removes excess blood, and eliminates that metallic taste some people dislike. To do this, pour enough milk to cover the livers, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes before cooking.
After soaking, drain the livers and rinse them thoroughly with fresh water to remove any residual milk. Pat them dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture.
Step 2: Cook the Onions and Chicken Livers
Slice a large onion and heat oil or butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion slices to the pan and sauté until they become translucent.
Add the chicken livers to the pan and sauté them with the onions, stirring occasionally. Season with salt, pepper, thyme, and marjoram. For extra flavor, pour in a glass of white wine or chicken broth (or just water).
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the skillet, and let the livers cook until tender and the liquid has almost evaporated.
Finish by sprinkling fresh, chopped parsley over the dish. Serve warm and enjoy!
How to Serve Chicken Livers with Caramelized Onions
Serve the sauteed chicken livers with caramelized onions as the main dish with French Fries, a salad, or mashed potatoes. Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
More recipes to enjoy
- Pan Fried Fish- Grandma Style
- No Breaded Fried Chicken Thighs- Grandma's Style
- How To Make Real Potato French Fries- Grandma Style
- Caramelized Onion Tart
- Lemon Rice With Wine
📖 Recipe
Chicken Livers With Caramelized Onions
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pound chicken livers
- 1 cup milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon marjoram
- ½ teaspoon thyme
- ½ cup white wine your taste
- 1 red onion chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or 1 tablespoon butter
- parsley for garnishing
Instructions
- Grab a bowl and pour some milk over the chicken livers enough to cover them.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- After soaking the livers in milk, rinse them a few times with clean water until you remove all milk. Remove the excess water with paper towels.
- Add some oil to a skillet and chop an onion. Add it to the skillet and cook them until translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken livers and sauté them together for another 5 minutes.
- Add salt and pepper, thyme, marjoram, and a glass of white wine (or water).
- Cover the skillet and let the liver cook on medium-low heat until it is cooked through and soft but not mushy and the liquid in the pan is almost evaporated.
Notes
How To Know When The Chicken Livers Are Cooked:
You’ll know chicken livers are perfectly cooked when they’re firm on the outside but still slightly soft and creamy on the inside. Here's how to check:- Visual Check: The outside should turn from a deep reddish color to a light brown or tan. Inside, the liver should no longer be bloody but have a faint pink center.
- Temperature: Use a meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature reaches 165°F (74°C) for safety.
- Texture: When you press lightly with a fork, they should feel tender but not mushy.
Sue says
Looking for the 4 star reviews i gave this four stars and the site won't let me retract. Haven't cokked this yet but might.
Joy says
Would this recipe still taste good without wine?
What can i add instead?
The Bossy Kitchen says
You can add a little bit of chicken broth or water.
SUE OWENS says
Is this correct that 1/2 pound chicken livers will serve 4. I usually serve this dish as main dish.
The Bossy Kitchen says
Hi Sue, Actually, it was a typo in the recipe. It is 1 1/2 pounds. Sorry about that, but thank you for noticing that.
Janet says
I did not soak the livers in milk when I made this recipe.I fried the livers in butter and coconut oil. I did not have any white wine so I used broth and in addition to the spices listed I added turmeric and cumin. Delicious. I will make this again. Thank you for the recipe.