Weight Loss Surgery Cookbook

190 Part II: Now You’re Cooking! Healthy and Hearty Dishes

Discovering Lick-Your-Plate Liver Dishes

Come into this section with an open mind. Sure, as a kid you dreaded liver,

which no amount of ketchup could improve. But when liver is prepared cor-

rectly, you don’t need the ketchup bottle to get it down.

Calf and chicken liver are both tasty and can be cooked in similar ways.

However, calf liver can only be cooked until pink in the center or it becomes

tough and chewy, and chicken liver remains tender even when thoroughly

cooked. To cook, sautéing is recommended. Make sure the pan is hot before

adding the meat to allow it to cook quickly and stay tender.

Protein-rich liver is loaded with B vitamins, vitamins A and D, iron, selenium, and

zinc. However, it’s also very high in cholesterol. Ounce for ounce, chicken liver

is higher in cholesterol and iron than beef liver and slightly lower in calories.

Braunschweiger, or liver sausage, is almost double the calories of fresh animal

liver because it is very high in fat, and it has less protein, cholesterol, and iron.

If you’re a liver lover, limit your intake of any kind of liver to no more than

once a week because of the high cholesterol and vitamin A content. (Too much

vitamin A over a short period of time can cause hypervitaminosis A, which can

cause a host of ailments including liver problems and bone loss.)

Curried Chicken Liver

Chicken liver is tender and tasty, and sautéing it with spices makes it a hit. This dish

goes perfectly with whole-grain rice.

Stage: Soft foods

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings (4 ounces each)

5 teaspoons curry powder

(^1) ⁄ 4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 pinch saffron
1 tablespoon canola oil
(^1) ⁄ 4 teaspoon turmeric
(^1) ⁄ 2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 pound fresh chicken liver, washed, drained,
and trimmed
(^3) ⁄ 4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 Mix together the curry powder, cloves, onion powder, poppy seeds, and saffron. Set aside.
2 Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add turmeric, chili powder, garlic, and
ginger and sauté for 2 minutes. Add liver and the spice mixture and sauté for 3 minutes.