Simple Chicken Liver Stew with Mushrooms

A simple chicken liver stew is my idea of food heaven, featuring peas and mushrooms in a red wine sauce, and all in under 30 minutes!

It is the perfect frugal penny-saving dinner that is plenty hearty enough to fill bellies and maybe even delicious enough to convert offal sceptics!

Chicken Liver Ragu

I love this chicken liver recipe, it is simple, tasty, hearty and dirt cheap to cook.

Admittedly, offal recipes are not exactly the height of food popularity, but I love the stuff.

I have plenty of diverse offal recipes that include classic braised liver and onions, pan-fried lambs liver and onions, pan fried calves liver, peri peri chicken livers, liver curry, devilled kidneys and chicken liver pasta recipes!

The relative explosion of high-end nose-to-tail restaurants over the last decade also indicates there is a change afoot for some.

This recipe is full of big flavours. We have the iron-rich flavour of the livers, some mushrooms for earthiness and bling that up with sweet peas.

Finally, we wrap that up in a lovely red wine sauce.

This is also quick to cook, taking just 25 minutes; chicken livers do not take long to cook at all!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know when chicken livers are cooked?

There is much written about the safe cooking of food, so I will not rehash that.

The official safe internal temperature for chicken liver is 70°C (158°F) in the UK and Australia and 73°C (165°F) in the US, according to authorities.

There is a trend for cooking them less than this; you can make your own choice. However, please do not rely on how things look, liver cooked to 70°C will still be a little pink inside. Buy a meat thermometer and use it!

Can I use frozen chicken liver?

I have a friend who was excited by this recipe but could only get frozen chicken liver.

They work well but do need slightly longer cooking to tenderise. I am not sure why this is, but if you are using frozen liver, be prepared to cook a little longer.

What wine should I use?

The same old advice applies to wine; first and foremost, if you would not drink it, then don't cook with it.

I usually use either a Pinot Noir or a Gamay in this chicken liver stew. You want a dry red wine with a hint of acidity for the best results.

Serving Suggestions

I treat this simple chicken liver stew more like a ragu most of the time if I were honest.

The images here show it served with mashed potato. But I am just as likely to serve it with a cheesy polenta in a similar fashion to the way that I serve my mushroom ragu.

It is also awesome stirred through pappardelle pasta in the same way that I do with my venison ragu. Reduce the size of the chicken livers by about half if you are going to do this.

If you are not ready to give up on potatoes just yet, then spoon this over a jacket potato.

In fact, by way of a public service announcement, I have just discovered that you can cook baked potatoes in an air fryer, and they are outrageously good.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

• Hob/Stovetop.
• 30cm or 12" frying pan or skillet.
• Chopping board.
• Kitchen knife.
• A combination of weighing scales, a measuring jug, cups and spoons.
• Small mixing bowl.
• Stirring and serving spoons.