The Liver Files

This is an attempt to consolidate all the information floating in various places into one. Please add your sources to this and make corrections if Ive got something wrong. Send me the information so I can update: lyn122@yahoo.com

Part I: Liver - Why is it so Good for Us?

. Since history began, liver has ranked above all other offal as one of the most prized culinary delights. Its heritage is illustrious whether savored by young warriors after a kill or mixed with truffles and cognac for fine pates de foie gras. Innards and Other Variety Meats (San Francisco, 1974). Practically every cuisine has liver specialties. Some cultures place such a high value on liver that human hands cant touch it. Special sticks must move it. Liver is listed as one of the Eight Delicacies in the Li-Chi, a handbook of rituals during Chinas Han era (202B.C to 220A.D) Through most of recorded time liver has been the preferred food over steak by a large margin and regarded as almost having magical powers and a source of great strength. So what makes it so wonderful? an extremely high source of protein remarkable vitamin A content vit C vit A B vitamins one of the best sources of folic acid contains a highly usable form of iron contains trace elements such as copper, zinc chromium unknown anti-fatigue factor contains CoQ10 high source of purines The unknown anti-fatigue factor is described below: " Benjamin K Ershoff, Ph. D described a classic experiment in the
July, 1951, Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine, indicating that liver contains a mysterious anti-fatigue factor. He divided laboratory rats into three groups. The first ate a basic diet, fortified with 11 vitamins. The second ate the same diet, along with an additional supply of vitamin B complex. The third ate the original diet, but instead of vitamin B complex, 10 percentpowdered liver was added to their rations. After several weeks, the animals were placed one by one into a drum

of cold water from which they could not climb out. They literally were forced to sink or swim. Rats in the first group swam for an average 13.3 minutes before giving up. The second group which had the added fortifications of B vitamins, swam for an average of 13.4 minutes. Of the last group of rats, the ones receiving liver, three swam for 63,83 and 87 minutes. The other nine rats in this group were still swimming vigorously at the end of two hours when the test was terminated. Something in the liver had prevented them from becoming exhausted. To this day scientists have not been able to pin a label on this anti-fatigue factor."

The Supremacy of Liver (Prevention 1975)

Part II: How Our Liver Functions

This is an excellent in-depth introduction to the functions and design of our liver. http://janis7hepc.com/Your%20Liver%20Functions.htm

Part III: Our Native-Nutrition Site Recipes plus a Few More

Our NT Readers Recipes

Florabelas recipe: Marinate the liver in the fridge overnight with:
lemon juice or water with vinegar lots of garlic and bay laurel leaf

After marinating fry in olive oil and/or lard and/or butter until well done (really brown on the outside and slightly rose inside). Its wonderful! Kidneys work well with this recipe also. The key is marinating to take any bad taste out.

From Pia: The liver needs to come from a fairly young animal and be free of hormones and organically raised. Cover the liver with flour on both sides and bake with a little butter or ghee (very low heat, otherwise it will be hard). Add a handful of sliced onion, a little vinegar and water. Increase the heat (350 F) for a few minutes then cook for about 20 minutes at a low heat. You can add fresh mushrooms and at the end a bit of salt. Its usually served with noodles or rice. However any vegetable dish would work. From Paul B: I tried something new with beef liver that - marinate the sliced liver in red wine vinegar and a couple of tsps of honey for about 1 hour - slice up 1-2 onions and fry in lots of tallow and butter for about hour (until onions are small and brown) - pull out the onions and toss in the liver with a bit of the wine/honey mix. - fry quickly turning frequently and serve hot with onions and wine sauce and a side of Kim chi

From Sally R: My favorite cooked liver recipe is to slice the liver thin (no more than 1/4th inch) then dredge it in a mixture of almond flour, salt and lots of pepper. (Almond flour is just a replacement for those who dont eat grains.) .I usually cook up the whole liver at one time then either heat up the leftovers during the week, or snack on it cold. Its a great substitute for a power bar or other on the go meal.

From Chris M: The key is lots of garlic. Use lard to saut it, and add some olive oil when its closer to done. Dont overcook it. Use: - at least 5 cloves of garlic - 1 onion - plenty of spices of whatever you like Slice the liver up nice and thin, cook for about 5 minutes and flip around once a minute. Cook some bacon at the same time and cut into small pieces to serve on top of the liver.

From Daphne: Her moms delicious Jewish chopped liver recipe that doesnt taste like liver much at all ! -slice onion and saut in fat until golden. Throw into a food processor. - Saut lb of chicken livers in same pan until pink inside. Let cool and put into same food processor with onions - Add 2 hardboiled eggs to food processor. Process onion, liver and eggs to a consistency you like but not too fine. Keep some lumpiness. Add salt and pepper to taste. From Robin L: An old but excellent recipe: -1 lb cooked beef or chicken livers (she bakes to livers to make chopping easier) - 2 hard boiled eggs - 1 medium cooked chopped onion (sauted is fine) Mash and mix together with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate before eating. From Lynn E: I saut onions in a little butter/coconut oil, then toss in the liver (cut into big hunks)then toss all this into my food processor until its all just minced. Then I combine it with a hamburger dish.

From Cheryl K: I have a really yummy way to cook/fry liver. Cut it into small pieces and roll it in beaten egg then in nut flour. Then fry in hot coconut oil and salt and pepper to taste. Its out of this world!

From Lisa: I cook the onions first in bacon fat. Remove them, then quickly pan fry the liver in more fat. I cut my liver into small strips, say about 3 long and less than wide. Cook until almost solidly pink because once it turns brown the liver flavor is stronger. I love a big serving of kale & butter and a pile of fermented carrots with the meal. I soak my liver in lemon juice before I cook it in the bacon fat.

Other Recipes:
Liver recipes for kids: http://www.thelaboroflove.com/house/kitchen/mm/liver.html Calf liver recipes from the early 1900s: http://www.freerecipe.org/Main_Dish/Meat/Beef/Calf_Liver/ Medieval recipes: http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-MEATS/liver-msg.html Japanese recipe: http://japanesefood.about.com/library/recipe/blnirareba.htm Scandinavian recipe: http://www.foodiesite.com/recipes/2000-09/pate.jsp

Russian recipe: http://www.ruscuisine.com/cooking-recipes/index.php/meat-dishes/other/? recipe=110&offset=0 Lebanese recipe: http://www.lebaneserecipes.f9.co.uk/ChickenLiver.htm

Part IV: Liver Comparison Chart

From: Nutrition Almanac, by John D. Kirschmann
Beef Liver Amount Weight: gm Vitamin A Vitamin B1 Vitamin B2 Vitamin B6 Vit. B 12 Biotin Niacin Pantothen. Acid Folic Acid Vitamin C Vitamin E Calcium Copper Iron Magnesium Manganese Phosphorus Potassium Selenium Sodium Zinc Total fat Saturated fat Unsaturate d fat Cholesterol 1 lb 454 199130 1.16 14.79 14 363 454 61.6 35 .99 140 6.36 36 12.7 29.5 59 1.23 1597 1275 206 617 17 17.5 6.8 5 1360 Lamb Liver 1 lb 454 229070 1.81 14.9 1.36 472 454 76.5 32.7 .99 152 45 25 49.4 64 1.04 1583 916 236 19.6 6.9 6.63 1361 Veal Liver 1 lb 454 102060 .9 12.3 3.04 272 51.8 36.3 161 36 36 39.9 73 1510 1275 331 17 21.3 1361 Chicken Liver 1 32 6576 .044 .628 .24 7.35 2.96 1.98 236 10.8 3 .126 2.74 6 .083 87 73 25 .98 1.23 .42 .5 140 Duck Liver 1 44 17559 23.7 5 2.62 13.4 118 2.04 .63 .59 227 Goose Liver 1 94 29138 .528 .838 .72 6.11 40 7.07 23 245 216 132 4.03 1.49 1 Turkey Liver 1 102 18403 .062 2.21 .78 64.6 10.35 7.81 752 4.6 7 .512 11 21 .294 319 303 98 2.53 4.05 1.28 1.73 475

Part V: Eating Raw LiverGood Heavens!

There simply isnt much out there on this hummm...not a common SAD practice! So why in the world would a sane person even consider eating their liver raw? Most of the reasons are anecdotal with the primary one being that people who do consistently report how good it makes them feel..

Southern hunters have a tradition of eating the liver of their freshly killed deer as a manly thing to do. Argentina cowboys eat liver raw (and meat) raw or very rarely cooked. People who grew up on farms tell of eating the liver freshly warm from the animal and only lightly cooking it (and all the organs and glands) Gerson used raw liver tonics (probably based on Pottengers studies) in his original healing protocol with pancreatic cancer patients. This was dropped in 1989 later dropped this part of the protocol because of the unavailability of fresh clean liver without bacterial contamination. Now a crude liver extract injection or desiccated liver tablets are used in the current protocol. These were the only reference I could find on why Gerson used raw liver: 1. From: http://members.lycos.co.uk/clsusa/newpage0.html
As it is vitally important to introduce oxygen and potassium into the organism, the following additional nutrition is required: take at least two glasses of fresh calf's liver juice per day. The fresh (not frozen) calf's liver juice contains the highest amount of oxidizing enzymes, most of the minerals of the potassium group, especially a high content of organic iron, copper and cobalt, as well as hormones and vitamins in the best activated composition (as per Dr. Max Gerson). This calf liver juice is prepared of equal parts of fresh young calf's liver and carrots. Do not add any medication to liver juice in order not to change the pH of the preparation. Remember that it is essential to raise the pH of the total organism (i.e. on the cellular level) in order to eradicate the cancer. Higher pH means more alkaline, lower pH means more acid. means more alkaline, lower pH means more acid.

2. From: http://www.curezone.com/books/best/book.asp?ID=477
Juices of raw fruits and vegetables and of raw liver provide active oxidizing enzymes which facilitate rehabilitation of the liver. The Cure of Advanced Cancer by Diet Therapy: A Summary of 30 Years of Clinical Experimentation., Max Gerson, M.D.

The Neurs especially valued the livers of animals, considered so sacred that it may not be touched by human hands. . . It is eaten both raw and cooked. These tribes were noted for their fine physiques and great height Nasty, Brutish and Short by Sally Fallon, http://www.westonaprice.org/traditional_diets/nasty_brutish_short.html

The How-to-do-it of Eating Raw Liver

1. Paul Idol wrote an excellent guide called Eating Raw Liver 101 that can be accessed at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/message/20333 2. For the faint of heart raw liver eating wannabe see the frozen pill method at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/message/24197 3. The consistently used recipe for those who dont just want to tear off a hunk and chow

seems to be variations on a blended mix of liver, tomato juice, lime and lots of hot sauce. Following are the two recipes Sally Fallon gives in Nourishing Traditions. Pottenger Liver Cocktail
1 small chink pasture fed liver frozen for at least 14 days 4-6 ounces tomato juice dash of Tabasco sauce lime juice 1 tablespoon of whey Grate the liver to obtain 1-2 tablespoons. Mix with the tomato juice, whey and seasonings. Drink immediately.

Raw Liver Drink

lb raw liver frozen for at least 14 days cup cold water pinch sea salt juice of 1 lime cup freshly squeezed orange juice 1 tsp Rapadura 1 tablespoon whey Wash liver, chop finely and soak for 2 hours in water and sea salt. Press though a fine strainer. Mix with the remaining ingredients and drink immediately.

Can you get too much liver ?

YES (or maybe) given the power house of nutrition packed in it a bit of caution may be in order especially for vitamin A (retinol content). If you are concerned it might be worth looking over Michael Parkers extensive folder on retinol and osteoporosis, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/files/retinol %20and%20osteoporosis%20/, Chris Masters opinion on retinol, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/message/29135 and Dr. Marascos posts, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/message/29050, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/native-nutrition/message/29052 . (Although it appears the issues revolve around (1) synthetic vitamin A vs. natural and (2) the ratios of A and D.) The recommendation for eating livers appears to be between 6-12 ounces per week. After that some people have reported feeling poorly with headaches and joint pains.

Part VI: Liver References

The Supremacy of Liver, by Prevention Magazine, October, 1975 Nasty, Brutish and Short by Sally Fallon, Weston Price Foundation, 1999 http://westonaprice.org/traditional_diets/nasty_brutish_short.html Nutrition Almanac, by John D. Kirschmann, 1979