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Updated: The GREAT AIP-Friendly Liver Recipe Round-Up!

AIP Liver Recipe Round Up
The original pic STILL works!
The Updated GREAT AIP Liver Recipe Round-Up

The original version of my GREAT AIP Liver Recipe Round-Up was published back in July 2015. Year on year, it remains one of my most popular posts. I find this both unsurprising and reassuring.

Unsurprising, because we AIPers know liver to be one of the most nutrient-dense of foods available to us, and reassuring because, despite this, liver still holds a bit of an ‘ick-factor’ for many. It’s good to see folks move beyond the ‘ick’!

AIP-land continues to experience growth in bloggers and AIP-friendly liver recipes. This is my oft-updated liver recipe round up!


Of all the things the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) has taught me – and the list is long – eating more organ meat is definitely up there in the top five. It may even nudge into pole position.

It’s THAT important

I know there will be dissenters among you. I accept that, for some, the ‘ick-factor’ is just too high to overcome.

But! – for those of you prepared to experiment, this post is for you. I urge you to increase your intake of liver.

My partner, David, enjoys liver just as much as he enjoys a good steak

I’m not kidding. He really does.

Did you know that, in general, organ meats are between 10 and 100 times higher in nutrients than corresponding muscle meats? (i)

AIP Liver Recipe Round Up

Even if this statistic was limited to only (!) 10 times higher, that would be enough to encourage me to eat more organ meats. 

And when you consider that grass-fed dry-aged sirloin retails for between AU$57.00 and AU$63.00 per kilo*, and happy lambs fry (liver) is $AU$18.50 per kilo* or happy chook liver is just a little steeper at AU$24.00 per kilo*,  I’m hard-pressed to find a reason why we shouldn’t aim to eat liver (and other organ meats) at least a couple of times every week. It’s one of my personal AIP goals.

Some people object to consuming liver under the mistaken belief that it is a storage organ for toxins in the body. They are sort of half right, but not about the storage bit…

It is certainly true that one of the liver’s roles is to neutralise toxins that make their way into your body (things like drugs, chemical agents and poisons). But, it doesn’t store these toxins. Rather, if your body can’t eliminate a toxin, it is more likely to accumulate in the fatty tissues and nervous systems.

AIP Liver Recipe Round Up

Even if this statistic was limited to only (!) 10 times higher, that would be enough to encourage me to eat more organ meats. 

And when you consider that grass-fed dry-aged sirloin retails for between AU$57.00 and AU$63.00 per kilo*, and happy lambs fry (liver) is $AU$18.50 per kilo* or happy chook liver is just a little steeper at AU$24.00 per kilo*,  I’m hard-pressed to find a reason why we shouldn’t aim to eat liver (and other organ meats) at least a couple of times every week. It’s one of my personal AIP goals.

Some people object to consuming liver under the mistaken belief that it is a storage organ for toxins in the body. They are sort of half right, but not about the storage bit…

It is certainly true that one of the liver’s roles is to neutralise toxins that make their way into your body (things like drugs, chemical agents and poisons). But, it doesn’t store these toxins. Rather, if your body can’t eliminate a toxin, it is more likely to accumulate in the fatty tissues and nervous systems.

Liver is known to be one of the most concentrated sources of vitamin A of any foods. The great Chris Kresser even refers to it as ‘nature’s most potent superfood’.

Liver also contains loads of important vitamins and minerals, is an outstanding source of Vitamin D, Vitamin B12 (and other B-Vitamins), copper, potassium, magnesium, phosphorous, manganese, and iron, which is in a form that is particularly easily absorbed and used by the body. These nutrients provide the body with some of the tools it needs to get rid of toxins.

So, why aren’t you eating more liver?

I tend to take a bit of a Masterchef  ‘Mystery Box approach to cooking my liver. Bacon and onion feature often. Usually, there’s some variety of wilted leafy greens – think spinach, silver-beet or rainbow chard. If David is lucky, I’ll whip up a mash of some description. And, there’ll be a bone broth gravy.

It must be said that Bella, the poodle, loves liver night, too! Raw for her, thank you very much.

In an effort to broaden my liver recipe repertoire and get you eating more liver, I’ve rounded up some of my best suggestions for this nutrient power-house… Today I bring you my AIP liver round up!

Pâté has got to be one of the best ways to increase your liver consumption, I think. It’s tasty. It’s portable. It’s wonderful as a snack smeared onto apple slices, or with the more traditional carrot and celery sticks or cucumber slices..

[Top tip: Pâté freezes remarkably well. Make a double batch and freeze it in little ready-to-serve glass containers or ramekins. They will only take a couple of hours to defrost!]

AIP Liver Recipe Round Up
Mum's World Famous in NZ Chicken Liver Pâté
Clear Filters
Click on the pink button & join the In-Betweener crew today!
Click on the pink button & join the In-Betweener crew today!
POULTRY Liver Pâté
Lamb and Beef Liver Pâté
Poultry Liver Mains
Hidden Liver Options
AIP Liver Recipe Round Up
My Tomato Free Ragu Bolognese (which David reckons is better than the original)

There are, of course, secret squirrel**  ways to hide liver.

I really hope this selection encourages you to increase your liver intake!

…but, if I haven’t, here’s one last offering for the squeamish: DIY Pastured Liver Pills from the good fairy of liver solutions – Samantha at the Unskilled Cavewoman.


* Prices from the Feather and Bone – List of Everything

**no relation to Sophie over at A Squirrel in the Kitchen!

(i) Chris Kresser – Liver: Nature’s most potent superfood

First published October 2015

AIP Liver Recipe Round Up

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Comments (12)

What is it about men and liver? They do seem to love it, while we ladies need to work at it. Great roundup, Joanna! I’ve pinned it.

Thanks lovely Eileen!

I think you’re right – in my informal, unsubstantiated survey of peeps I know, it was overwhelmingly the blokes who fancy liver.

I agree with you here Eileen, men seem to find it easier. I don’t think it’s the “ick” factor, because plenty of men do the cooking and don’t have an issue with it. I think it is different taste buds, or something like that.

Love it! Great fan of beef liver, all of the rest? Meh! LOL Gonna work my way through every single one of these this year. Thanks!!

May the force be with you, lovely Cheryl!

That is a seriously evocative photo of liver at the top of this post~. Well done!

Ha! Small confession, Petra – it’s not mine. My talents lie in other areas… But thank you for noticing 🙂

Great round up Joanna. I have always loved all things liver, as a child we ate liver regularly. Went quiet there a bit in my 20’s and 30’s with the occasional liver noodle stir fry but it is definitely back on my weekly meal plans these days. Gets hidden in meatballs, patties and meat sauces but then I also hide heart in those too! Must give a shout out to Rachel Bryants Ultimate Liver Haters pate which has apple in and this is my new fave 🙂

Hi Amanda!

Thanks for the heads up on Rachael’s pate. I’m going to give that a go on your recommendation! 🙂

I’m struggling with it. The chicken liver in the Pork and Liver terrine I can do. But I tried the Hidden Offal swedish meatballs in The Paleo Approach… I just couldn’t eat it. My husband had no problems! I diluted them further by adding another 2kg mince and a very strong no-mato sauce, and I can now eat them, but it is like forcing down bad-tasting medicine. I made a fantastic steak and kidney pudding last week, using just one lamb’s kidney with every possible morsel of ‘core’ cut out, added to 1kg of beef and I could still taste that kidney! It’s not the look that bothers me, it’s the taste. It just has such a strong metallic taste.
I think it is a bit like that horrible red lettuce leaf – some people like it whereas others find it repulsive. It doesn’t look bad, in fact it looks quite pretty. And I don’t have any “ick” factor about eating red lettuce leaves, but my taste bads have given it a firm NO WAY!
I am a “supertaster” and can pick out flavours in an unknown dish, so maybe it has something to do with that? I don’t know, but I really really really struggle with the organ meats. On the other hand, I love bone marrow, and adore oxtail. But I guess they aren’t as nutrient dense.

Incidentally, do you know if chicken liver is as good for you as the other animal organs? I was just wondering because I know we aren’t supposed to eat chicken as often as the other animal meats because of the different omega ratios, but does this apply to the liver of a chicken (or duck or goose for that matter)?

Hey Melanie of the divine terrine!

How interesting!

Like you, I am no fan of kidneys. I will walk a mile to avoid them, so you are not alone there. I do, however enjoy liver. Why do you think you can eat it in the terrine?

As for chook (or poultry) versus ruminants liver, certainly I think it is a good rule of thumb to alternate. Cicken is higher in Omega 6, but ANY grass fed, happy liver is better for you than none. Of that, I am sure.

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