The Easiest Way To Consume Liver

I don’t know about you, but I wasn’t raised eating liver. Ever. It’s not something I consumed until I began eating paleo. And even then, it was at a paleo restaurant where ground liver was mixed into the meatloaf and you couldn’t taste it…and I had that ONCE. Up until the last couple months, I had one liver experience in my entire life. And I can understand why. If you’re not raised on it, liver doesn’t exactly smell great, it doesn’t have a great texture to handle, and in my personal opinion, it doesn’t taste great. The only way I’ve enjoyed liver in any capacity, and enjoyed is a definite stretch of the word, is through liverwurst. But I don’t always want to cook liverwurst up and sometimes I just don’t want to taste it in general.

Luckily the internet and instagram is a place filled with all things to help you learn and expand. So when I saw my friend Cait making “liver shots” and I saw that you could get all the health benefits of liver without having to taste it, I was all about that. Yes, I could take desiccated liver pills, but I love the idea of consuming real, raw liver, which is more bioavailable to the body. With this way of consuming liver, you don’t taste it, you don’t smell it, and you don’t have to deal with its interesting texture, but you do get all the health benefits. So let’s talk about those!

What Are The Health Benefits of Liver?

Liver is one of the most incredibly nutrient dense foods available. And that’s because it has almost every vitamin and mineral in it. Instead of taking supplements to get adequate b vitamins, iron, folate, copper…you name it…liver has it all in just a few bites. Some of my favorite minerals in liver include:

• Zinc to support your immune system and conduct with healing
• Copper to help with energy production
• Selenium to support brain development
• Vitamin A to help aid in proper vision, immune function, and reproduction

How Much Liver Should I Be Consuming?

The cool thing about liver is that you don’t need much of it to reap the benefits. I’ve seen pretty mixed opinions out there, but from my own trusted health professionals, you only need 3-6 ounces PER WEEK, which is not much at all! Here is a great article to learn more about that! And one of the best parts about consuming fresh liver and only needing a few ounces per week is that it’s much more incredibly affordable than other options, such desiccated liver pills.

What About Vitamin A Toxicity with Liver?

People get very worried about Vitamin A toxicity, but this is not a worry when you’re consuming only a few ounces per week. And Vitamin A in beef or chicken liver is much different than synthetic versions of Vitamin A. People often obsess over Vitamin A toxicity from consuming too much of it, but consuming too little can also do damage, as well. Bottom line – if you’re consuming only a few ounces per week, this is not something you need to worry about.

Where Do I Find Good Quality Liver?

Just like all meats, seafood, and eggs – quality is important. When I purchase beef liver, I purchase from US Wellness Meats. This has been a company I have trusted since I first started my own nutrition journey. All of their beef comes from 100% grass-fed and grass-finished cows. I also get my liverwurst from them and it really does taste great! If liver is intimidating to you, I highly recommend trying their liverwurst first! The most important thing is to look for grass-fed and grass-finished beef when finding beef liver, whether it’s at your local butcher shop, farmer, or online.

Now WTF is a “liver shot”?

Think of a liver shot as simply a frozen liver pill. Cut small pieces of liver, freeze, then take like a pill! So easy! Here is the full breakdown:

• If you get your liver from US Wellness Meats, it will come frozen. I like to keep mine in the freezer for another 14 days to ensure that any pathogens are killed. If your liver comes fresh, just be sure to freeze it for 14 days for the same reason.
• After liver is frozen, thaw liver.
• Cut the liver into small size pieces that are small enough to easily swallow.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper then place each small piece of liver onto the sheet. I used a small baking sheet so it could easily fit in the freezer and was able to use 1/2 pound of liver. Once all the liver is on the baking sheet, place in the freezer to store.
• Now all you have to do is grab a few piece of liver out each day, take them just like a pill (swallowing quickly), and you’re good to go! I like to take mine when I’m drinking my daily smoothie so I can drink it down with water and finish with a delightful smoothie. No liver taste required! You can also use a food scale to measure out amounts to help you hit your 3-6 ounces per week.

I hope you found this post helpful and I hope it gets you consuming liver on a weekly basis so you can reap the benefits of the vitamins and minerals in every “shot”!