Organ Meat

sarena kopciel · 12-24-2007, 07:04 PM

Ok so now that I eat meat for over a year now, I once again, for many months now, love chicken livers. These I can get Kosher organic. Kosher is a religious requirement for me. The brand says they start them on grass but finish them on grain. I know this isnt the best, but, that's what is available to me.

Now I am wondering and starting to be interested in other organ meats since reading how tasty they are from Scotty, Jay, now Kim and Susie and others. But these I cannot get in any way shape or form organic and Kosher. I can probably get Kosher beef tongue but it definitely would be from traditional cows. I am concerned that the organs would have an accumulation of the hormones. How right am I?

Should I just forget the thought of other organ meats or is it OK to buy these if loaded (possiblly) with meds/hormones?

Ale Dileo · 12-25-2007, 12:14 AM

when i cannot provide grassfed animals I go for the younger ones, like lamb or calf liver.

Bo Bolund · 12-25-2007, 02:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sarena kopciel

Ok so now that I eat meat for over a year now, I once again, for many months now, love chicken livers. These I can get Kosher organic. Kosher is a religious requirement for me. The brand says they start them on grass but finish them on grain. I know this isnt the best, but, that's what is available to me.

Now I am wondering and starting to be interested in other organ meats since reading how tasty they are from Scotty, Jay, now Kim and Susie and others. But these I cannot get in any way shape or form organic and Kosher. I can probably get Kosher beef tongue but it definitely would be from traditional cows. I am concerned that the organs would have an accumulation of the hormones. How right am I?

Should I just forget the thought of other organ meats or is it OK to buy these if loaded (possiblly) with meds/hormones?

What do you do with your chicken liver?
Any recipes?

sarena kopciel · 12-25-2007, 05:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bo Bolund

What do you do with your chicken liver?
Any recipes?

Generally I just saute a lot of onions and garlic with olive oil and toss in liver for a bit. Then I add some salt and pepper. I tried adding in Za'taar, (wfs)a middle eastern spice mix last week and it was great! I also added in the other day a box of fresh baby spinach (chopped roughly first). No one in my family was the wiser, which worked perfectly!!

Frank Needham · 12-25-2007, 07:05 AM

This is related but not exactly in the same vein as kosher organ meats. In my immediate area there are lots of Latino markets (Vegas in about 30-40% Hispanic). I like a lot of the meats they use so we sometimes visit when the need arises. They sell lots of offal. Primarily things like beef liver, tongue, tripe, and various other cuts from the carcass that caucasian folk don't usually eat. Chicken and pork parts too. But, the prices are very reasonable on this stuff. I bought smoked pork there yesterday for $2.29/lb ?! Try that at your favorite butcher. Bought beef liver also for $1.29/lb. Didn't care for it though but that is probably due to how I attempted to cook it more than anything else. I'm not too sure of the hormone level in these products might be but would be interested to know. If anyone has any input, anecdotal or otherwise, I'd be interested to hear it.

Susie Rosenberg · 12-25-2007, 05:25 PM

I wouldn't recommend eating the liver of any animal that isn't organic and grassfed.

Cows raised on feedlots have fatty livers from the abnormal way they are fed, and fatty livers are diseased livers. The fat-infiltrated stage is what preceeds cirrhosis and end-stage liver failure.

Plus, any animal routinely fed antibiolics and non-organic feed will have drug and pesticide residues in their livers--which processes those chemicals--and in their body fat, where those compounds are sequestered and stored.

Tongue is different. It doesn't get fatty deposits like the liver nor does it play a metabolic role in clearing drugs and pesticides from the body, so I can say it's at least no worse for you than the skeletal muscle of the cow, and may even be a notch better.

But I really think eating commercially raised beef or chicken liver is not a good choice.

Susie

Frank Needham · 12-26-2007, 05:57 AM

Being curious I googled "eating beef liver" and found this from Weston A Price: http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/liver.html
Seems to be some pretty solid info on what type of liver to eat and several suggestions on how to prepare it.

Garrett Smith · 12-26-2007, 05:59 AM

Sarena,
I definitely agree with Susie on the liver, get it grassfed or organic (both if you're really lucky!) or don't bother.

As for tongue, it's a very low-fat cut, so it would be a good choice if one was going to be eating grain-fed non-organic. That being said, the tongue doesn't really fall under "organ meat", as it is a muscle. I have never heard of any differences nutritionally (advantage-wise) of tongue over muscle meat, so I'd say go with grass-fed muscle meat over grain-fed tongue. If you want some variety, go for it every once in a while!

That's a great article on liver, Frank. For those who don't read it, the main thing is that the liver is a processing organ, it's not a storage place, or else our livers would keep growing with accumulated toxins our whole lives. However, in a grain-fed hormone+antibiotic -fed cow, the liver is likely fatty and sick, which means it would be accumulating toxins--possibly at a higher rate than normal fatty tissue due to the general affinity of the liver for toxins so it can process them.

Wish you had more luck with the kosher availability.

Jay Cohen · 12-26-2007, 07:58 AM

Frank;
Many thanks for the great link.
Now I see how I can make a Liver shake, along with other great recipes.

Kelly Moore · 12-26-2007, 11:32 AM

A word of caution if you try the "raw liver pill" idea in the Weston Price article: make sure the frozen liver "pills" are a little thawed before swallowing them. I nearly choked to death one night after trying to swallow several of the frozen treats. The square beasties froze together forming a ball in my throat while swallowing and I came close to expiring in my apartment.

I managed not to panic but being strangled by frozen pieces of liver from the inside out isn't fun. The "pills" managed to soften up just enough that I was able to force them down, but I experienced narrowing tunnel vision plus a sore gut from unsuccessful self Heimlich. I hate to imagine what the cops/EMTs would have thought if they had found my body with hunks of raw liver lining my throat....

After that experience I cut the frozen liver into pills and allowed them thaw during my workout. A little on the chewy and slick side, but no longer life threatening.