Lemon & Herb Beef Liver

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Elevating Humbleness ...

This round is not for the faint of heart. We are combining three big and robust flavours for a very fast, mid week supper with no fuss or any finicky doo-dah’s.

Fresh lemon juice suppresses the distressing, metallic bitterness of the beef liver while the pieces of stir fried lemon result in brief bursts of acidity to really liven things up a bit. Rosemary and thyme supports our now distressed liver whilst the cream smoothes all the rough edges and brings a spot of harmony to the brawl.

Interestingly, acidity (and sometimes saltiness) is the foil for bitterness in the culinary world and not sweetness as one might intuitively suspect. Sometimes our taste receptors surprise us unexpectedly.

LEMON & HERB BEEF LIVER

– PRINT RECIPE –

Recipe yields:	Preparation time:	Difficulty level:
2 Portions	± 30 minutes	Easy!

Special Equipment Required:

1 x Medium large flat bottomed wok pan

Ingredients:

Red cabbage, sliced to preference	180g / ± 500ml
Carrot, julienned	60g / ±125ml
Fresh lemon, thinly sliced cross wise & cut into small wedges	1 slice
Sunflower oil	15ml
Dried rosemary	5ml
Dried thyme	5ml
Beef or calf’s liver, pre-cleaned & prepared	250g
Sunflower oil	15ml
Robertsons Barbeque Spice	2.5ml
Fresh lemon juice	45ml
Fresh cream	45ml
Salt	5ml
Black pepper, freshly ground	1.2ml
Optional: Dijon style mustard	5ml

Method:

1.      Rinse the liver well under cold, running water. Dry thoroughly with kitchen paper towels. Slice evenly into long strips, one finger wide and thick. Ensure that the strips are as close as possible to equally thick and wide. Cut the strips into two finger wide lengths. Transfer to a nonmetallic bowl, add the barbeque spice, mix through, cover and set aside until needed.

2.      Heat the oil in the wok pan over medium high heat and add the cabbage, carrot, lemon pieces, rosemary and thyme when hot. Stir fry vigorously until the cabbage start to wilt and soften and the herbs are fragrant. Transfer the vegetables to a clean bowl and keep warm until needed.

3.      Add the second portion of oil to the wok pan and add the liver in one batch when the oil is hot. Watch out for splattering oil. Sauté the liver with frequent turning until it stops throwing off liquid but is still pinkish inside. Transfer the liver to the vegetables and keep warm.

4.      Add the lemon juice to the wok pan, reduce the heat to medium low and reduce the juice by half while scraping the sides and bottom of the wok pan with a wire whisk to lift any stuck or caramelised bits.

5.      Add the liver, vegetables, cream, salt, optional mustard and black pepper to the wok pan. Stir through and heat until the cream thickens slightly – approximately 3 minutes.

6.      Serve immediately over plain white rice, cous-cous or maize rice (with a dash of spice for rice in) accompanied by a chilled, semi-sweet Rosé.

Comments:

¨       Fresh liver should only have a faint, meaty odor. The texture should be soft but still quite firm when touched. It will be moist but should definitely not be slimy. Also, liver degrades quickly in a refrigerator but freezes well when it is inconvenient to prepare it. Thaw the frozen liver for 24 hours in a refrigerator.

¨       Thickly sliced supermarket or butchery liver should be rinsed under cold, running water before use. Pat dry with kitchen paper towels before working with it, as the wet liver is very slippery and difficult to cut into even pieces. Use a shaving sharp knife for clean, uniform slicing.

© RS Young, 2017

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Note:

Post updated on 2024.02.29 to include:

1. The updated Recipe for downloading as a PDF file, and

2. Recipe Title and Print Recipe, Recipe Index and Facebook & Pinterest follow links.