Calf’s liver

Dec1

– what the doctor once ordered became a little treat for me –

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When I was a child, so my mother told me, I was diagnosed with “mild Anaemia” – which luckily lasted only for a short time.

I cannot remember if and what kind of medication our Doctor prescribed – but two things for sure I do remember until this day: I was supposed to eat liver and drink a glass of red wine with a raw egg !!! A number of you might think this would put me off totally of all those three items, but no, I began to like liver dishes prepared by my mother – the red wine/egg thing was something else. Don’t get me wrong I do like red wine and I do love eggs, but not together in a glass !!!!

So today I like to share one of my favourite liver dishes, it will only take 40 minutes from start to finish – this includes soaking the meat for some 20 minutes in milk.

I used the following:
Some beautiful calf’s liver, cleaned and cut finely into slim slices

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2-3 x onions, thinly sliced
½ x a tray of Champignons, wiped with a dry paper towel and sliced

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Some flour
Some milk for soaking the liver
Bouillon using 1 x Knorr Beef- (or Vegetable-) cube
Some cream
3 x Tbsp good Vegetable oil
2-3 x tsp of grainy mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Before starting to prepare onions, mushrooms etc., soak the liver in some milk for up to 20 minutes (there is no scientific basis for doing so, my meat smelled and looked beautifully fresh, the reason might be, because my mother always used to do this).
After this, rinse the meat and pat dry.

In a wide pan heat half of your oil and on medium heat brown your onions. Add the Champignons, mix and continue. Remove from pan onto a plate, add some salt and pepper and keep aside.

Now add the remaining oil into the pan and when hot add the dried slices of liver – sprinkle some flour over this and stir everything gently for a minute before adding onions and Champignons and mustard and again stir. Pour some of your bouillon and bring quickly to a boil for a few seconds. Switch flame off and carefully add cream, mix gently and check once again on pepper and salt.

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That’s it – ready – enjoy.

Guten Appetit,

Namaskaram
Carina

31 thoughts on “Calf’s liver”

  1. Oh, dearest Carina – I am not supposed to be on!! But did we ever have similar paediatricians and mothers listening to them!! OK: daily raw egg with cognac was a ‘given’ from when I can remember; ‘open your mouth, dear !’ . .[and remember I am more of JS age than yours!!] – remember standing up each morning to receive the ‘supplement’!! And we ALL had calves liver because we supposedly had ‘mild anaemia’ [perhaps we are still here because of that!!] . . . . actually have any of us ‘suffered’ . . . ::) !!! Had calves liver yesterday . . .,

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  2. 🙂 🙂 🙂 lucky you – in those days I did not care much for red wine, would have loved a decent cognac instead – I was typing this entry yesterday and wondered if you had the same treatment…..and so you enjoyed your liver!!! 🙂

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  3. Funny the things we remember. My mom used to make us healthy chicken livers (and spinach) which I still love but calf/beef liver was a bit too strong tasting for her and our taste. I remember egg yolk beaten with sugar until it was thick and creamy. I THINK it was supposed to be a nutritional supplement but the memories are vague. It’s interesting what we ate or were served when we were young. And what still remains in our diets.

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  6. hello AB – scary is when you remember things which you thought you had forgotten 🙂 🙂 – Eggs with sugar – noooooo !! only in custard, Chicken livers!! I love as well, used to make pate every week – using up a whole lot of really good Cognac – served with little hot buttered “soldiers” and a nice crisp green salad. I have some in the freezer, so tomorrow I will hopefully find some ‘spinach’ and then I will make them Saturday your Mom’s way. Thanks for reminding me.

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  10. I would easily follow a doctor’s orders to eat liver more frequently. Red wine with eggs, however, is a different matter completely. I don’t think I could do it. Separately, yes, but never together. Never have I prepared liver with mustard but I’m sure I’d love it. Next time …

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      • Now Carina and John: do NOT decry what you have not had!! Put one ‘safe’ raw egg yolk into a cup, whisk it a bit, add about 1 1/2 TB of cognac, mix and ‘down the hatch’ . . . .lovely mouthfeel and aftertaste! Or so I think. It was called ‘kogel-mogel’ in Estonia and every kid I knew had it: so much better than the ruddy codliver oil [ugh![] which arrived later in the day 🙂 !

  11. Eha, thanks but no thanks! If you don’t mind will skip on this ‘kogel-mogel’ 🙂 🙂 Oh, and I completely forgot for a while the special treat of codliver oil, ugh ugh ugh – still get shivers just writing about this. Tell, why was a certain generation of children so “tortured”??? But seriously – in the end it helped and we did grow up less fussy, or not? Anything with sugar for example came in very small doses, carrots – good for your eyes, garlic – also good, vegetables on the whole – very very good and then this “……you eat what is on your plate! You don’t want it now, ok leave it – can have it later for supper etc……” So tantrums at the table very soon died down and so peace for everyone! 🙂

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  13. Liver of any kind, as well as other organ meats, is something a person really likes or hates. We always ate organ meats at home growing up and I have always liked them. The trick is a good recipe.

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  15. This looks good. I enjoy liver and onions now and then, so this is a change. Funny though how one rarely sees a liver dish in restaurants, and if there’s one, it’s usually liver and onions.

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  16. Hm Karina, can not answer this really – maybe this does not fit into the common current trend (whatever that means) – but on the other hand I have in the past spoken to some (quite famous and well known..) Chefs on our travels and they all, without exception said, that privately they prefer and eat “normal” old-fashioned (to some) food like Mom or Grandma used to make. 🙂 🙂

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  17. I can not even imagine how the raw egg tasted with wine. Glad you got cured, and not put off either.I have never calf liver, but have heard it can taste really good. Maybe one day I will be adventurous enough to try it.

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