CHEEP CHEAP LUXURY: Chicken liver — nutritious and delicious but divisive

Chicken liver is cheap, chic, wholesome and probably prophetic.

Chicken livers are divisive. Some folks – myself included – can’t get enough of them. Others are unable to see past their role as an internal organ filtration system for a bird’s body. There are also a startling number of people with childhood horror stories in which they were forced to eat badly cooked, grey, gritty chicken livers under the guise of “good for you”.

Far be it from me to trample on anyone’s formative food trauma, but as a liver lover I feel honour-bound to make the case for this much-maligned meat. No ingredient should be condemned for crimes committed against it in kitchens long past, and the chicken liver’s role as a biochemical sorting system is not nearly as nasty as the naysayers imagine.

Yes, it is an organ that processes substances carried to it in the blood, but it is not hoarding toxins like a sinister sponge. Harmful compounds are broken down or prepared for removal. By the time a chicken liver gets onto a plate what remains is prize, not poison: heme iron, folate, preformed vitamin A, B vitamins, selenium and zinc, all packed into one of the most nutritionally dense pleasures available to the omnivorous eater. Together, these vitamins and minerals support tissue repair, red blood cell formation, energy metabolism, immune function and neurological health.

As with almost all potent foods, moderation matters. Chicken liver contains high levels of preformed vitamin A. Also known as retinol, it can be harmful, especially during pregnancy, where excessive intake has been associated with risks to foetal development. The purine content means that people with gout may need to limit their liver consumption. Those managing cholesterol should be mindful too. There is a slight risk of campylobacter if the offal has been stored incorrectly and undercooked, but do not be alarmed, dear reader. The point is not to banish chicken livers but rather to respect powerful pleasures. Cooked correctly and enjoyed in sensible portions as part of a varied diet, they are gloriously nourishing nuggets of savoury splendour.

Speaking of splendour, economical epicureans take note, chicken livers are the ultimate luxury-on-a-budget ingredient. Their opulent taste and mouthfeel stand in delightful contrast to their status as one of the cheapest sources of high-quality animal protein. Saving cents translates into saving the planet. We all understand that there is an environmental burden associated with meat farming. Poultry generally has a lower greenhouse-gas footprint than beef, lamb or pork