Deer Organs

[ATI]

I never messed with any deer organs before, but after some studying and research I'm going to try cooking the liver. Has anyone tried Liver and other organs? Do y'all soak them in ice water like the rest of the meat?

[glen]

I ate a piece of heart the other day. I’ll go back to my opinion. I Don’t Eat Gut Meat. Only gut meat I will eat unless starving is chicken gizzards.

[cehorn]

I tried deer liver once and wasn't impressed. I should probably try it again as it was a long time ago and my cooking skills have improved a little. I'll go opposite of Glen, in my opinion there isn't a better piece of meat than the heart. I have never had a deer heart taste bad.

[sv2100]

I'll eat the heart but not the liver, kidneys, etc. As a matter of fact, I have a couple vacuum sealed in the freezer I need to cook up. Thanks for the reminder.

[Greenheadless]

I personally think heart is the best cut on a deer.

Not sure I would do liver though.

[Lincoln Hawk]

A few weeks ago I tried fried heart and liver. The heart I would gladly eat again... the liver not so much.

[munchie]

I like the heart but do not like the liver. I had a gentleman on my last lease that ate it all to include the kidneys...

[diamond10x]

Heart and gizzard are muscle organs so I wouldn't classify them as eating organs. Same as eating tongue IMO, which is also good. The only way for any of these to not be good is to over cook them.

I eat the liver and kidneys usually depending on the animal and circumstances at time of death. Something else I try to save from most kills is marrow, doesn't get much better than fresh marrow spread over a piece of homemade sourdough toast. I've never understood modern society's disdain for organs as people survived on them for millennia. If you know how to cook them they can be appetizing for even the most picky eaters.


Since you asked about liver- peel the outside membrane/skin off. next slice into strips or cubes, but make sure to go against the grain. Slicing against the grain is important so that you cut across blood vessels, allowing you to trim out the larger ones as you don't want to cook or eat them. Kind of like chewing a harder sinew in my opinion. I'll then soak in water with lemon juice or milk. Usually let soak overnight in fridge. Rinse thoroughly once you remove them from the soak. Pat dry and then toss in the pan for whatever recipe you plan to make. Sauteed with onions is the classic but I prefer my livers in a marinera or white wine type sauces. My favorite recipe is this one my wife does with it sauteed in white wine and heavy cream poured over noodles. Also waterfowl and upland livers make great Pate.

[ATI]

what was it about the liver that y'all didn't like? Smell? Taste? Texture?

[ATI]

Heart and gizzard are muscle organs so I wouldn't classify them as eating organs. Same as eating tongue IMO, which is also good. The only way for any of these to not be good is to over cook them.

I eat the liver and kidneys usually depending on the animal and circumstances at time of death. Something else I try to save from most kills is marrow, doesn't get much better than fresh marrow spread over a piece of homemade sourdough toast.


Since you asked about liver- peel the outside membrane/skin off. next slice into strips or cubes, but make sure to go against the grain. Slicing against the grain is important so that you cut across blood vessels, allowing you to trim out the larger ones as you don't want to cook or eat them. Kind of like chewing a harder sinew in my opinion. I'll then soak in water with lemon juice or milk. Usually let soak overnight in fridge. Rinse thoroughly once you remove them from the soak. Pat dry and then toss in the pan for whatever recipe you plan to make. Sauteed with onions is the classic but I prefer my livers in a marinera or white wine type sauces. My favorite recipe is this one my wife does with it sauteed in white wine and heavy cream poured over noodles.

It's been in the ice chest for the past 4 days with the rest of the meat. I hope that has not ruined it.

Thank you for the details, that's kinda what I was looking for

[Geezy Rider]

I keep the heart and liver from all my deer and anybody else’s that don’t want them.
The heart is an excellent cut of meat. Sliced, seasoned and cook on a wood fire, delicious.

I was not a fan of the liver in the past because it was much stronger that beef or bison liver but I’d still keep it and feed it to my dogs. But now I’ve found a way to use it that I like.
Liverwurst.

Together they make for a very nice and nutritious meal.

[Ham]

I've never been a liver person due to taste and texture.
Heart now! Cube, season, fry hot and fast to make into street tacos.

[diamond10x]

It's been in the ice chest for the past 4 days with the rest of the meat. I hope that has not ruined it.

Thank you for the details, that's kinda what I was looking for

After reading, need to clarify, I'll soak in water with lemon juice OR just milk. An easy way to warm yourself up to liver would be a liverwurst or bratwurst recipe so that you have some other protein in there to mask the taste a bit if you're worried about it being too strong.

As long as it has been kept cold it should be fine. With organs its even more prudent for them to cool off than it is with meat as they will spoil much faster if left out.

[BertramBass]

I personally think heart is the best cut on a deer.

Not sure I would do liver though.

+1 Just had heart for dinner last night with onions. I like to season it with pepper and garlic salt, dip it in flour and fry it. YUM

[bloodtrailer28]

Absolutely love deer heart!! Liver not so much!