heart and liver

[dougedwards]

Just wondering if anyone keeps the liver and/or heart of a whitetail and eats it. If so, how would you cook it? I always discard the organs but am told that they are very good to eat. Does anyone have any experience with cooking and eating deer organs?

Doug

[ET]

Dougedwards

My hunting partner and I always enjoy a liver dinner from a fresh kill. He basically lets it sit overnight in vinegar and water. The outer layer of the liver becomes a grey color. Then he slices the liver into strips first and carefully trims off the outer grey layer.
The liver is then coated with a dry pancake batter mix before frying.
A separate pan is used for frying a large Spanish Onion cut into strips.

We have never done much with the heart yet. Below are a couple of recipes retrieved from my wild game cook book if your are interested in exploring this avenue.





Ed

[whelenman]

I've never brought one home but lately I've been on a beef liver and onions kick. I may have to bring a liver home and give it a try. I've got some doe tags for the next couple of weeks and you've given me an idea. I'll need to take a bag or container for the liver to get it home.

[ET]

Whelenman

One of the reasons I enjoy deer liver over beef is that it doesn’t have that strong taste as beef does. I never freeze liver as it looses the quality of taste I enjoy most when freshly done. If you like liver you will enjoy the deer liver. At least I do. ;D


Ed

[dougedwards]

ED......thanks for the recipes. I am wondering how difficult it is to slice off the grey outer layer from the liver?

Doug

[ET]

Nov 22, 2009 10:47:43 GMT -5 dougedwards said:

ED......thanks for the recipes. I am wondering how difficult it is to slice off the grey outer layer from the liver?

Doug

If you slice the liver into say 5/8" thick strip sections you just flip the strip sections on the sides and trim off the grey outer layer. Takes a few extra minutes and not difficult at all because it is not a thick layer to remove.

Ed

[whelenman]

I just put a couple of gallon zip lock bags in the jeep. We'll see what happens this week. I sure see a lot of deer livers become coyote and buzzard bait at camp.

[mountainam]

I save them all the time. I like Whelenman, Keep a couple of gallon bags in my back pack.I get them into those bags never letting them hit the ground. My wife and I make a type of sausage out of them. Every European country makes it ,they each have a different name for it. My grand parents were of Slovak decent. We were raised up calling it HURKA. It's liver and onions in a hog casing. The livers get sliced at 1/2" thick along with the hearts cooked for about 20 minutes.Cooled and ground with a 3/16 grinder plate. Six pounds of hearts and livers to three pounds of pork shoulder ground accordingly. We half cook 2 cups of rice and mix with the livers, shoulders and one pound of lard. Then add some salt , butcher pepper and marjoram and then push into a hog casing. We then vacuum seal into bags and freeze it. To use ,we thaw then fry in a skillet. It's the best with a couple of sunny side up eggs on top for breakfast. It's similar to scrapple if you've ever tasted that.

[bubbinator]

Over the years I have enjoyed lots of deer liver and onions! Last year I shot 7 pt buck in my yard and saved the liver(It was a good dbl-lung shot-DRT and all was intact). Deer looked older, teeth were showing wear. When I sliced it to fry it had pockets of dark looking blood in it. Computer check talked about Liver Flukes, a parasite, but not harmful to humans. We cooked a little bit to test that theory and the hound dogs ate good that night! Best deer liver I ever ate came from young does! (Ain't that the truth!)

[rick59]

Thanks ET,
The heart recipe looks like a good one, I brought 9 hearts home with me this year, I've never done anything with the liver but keep thinking I will someday.
I sliced one heart up at camp this year and just grilled it while doing some other cuts and it was good enough to eat so I kept the rest of the hearts hoping to find a good recipe and I think I just did.

[GMB54-120]

My buddy loves deer liver but i cant eat it anymore. I ate too much once and got sick. Now i cant even stand the smell of liver.

I do like the heart but mine usually have a big hole in them Its not too bad on the grill with garlic butter and pepper if you want a quick camp meal. Serve it on some toasted french bread.

[lineman]

i keep the hearts and have a pickle seasoning an make pickle deer hearts. post seasoning later.

[Rifleman]

When cooking deer liver I was always told to add the salt after done cooking as it would make the meat tough. I dunno, but that is a rule I always followed.

[AJ]

I look at it like dumpster diving for dinner. The liver is the filter for the body, why would I eat it? I will donate that part to the carrion so they too can benefit from my harvest.

[petev]

I have fried sliced heart with pancake mix for a batter. Liver cooked with sauerkraut (for about the last 10 minutes) takes alot of the strong flavor out. The liver is packed with nutrients.

[youp50]

+1 on the pickled deer heart.

Clean the heart, cut off the cartilage and fat on the top. Boil it till its done, maybe 45 minutes or so. Slice it about a quarter inch thick. Pack in a glass jar, alternate layers of heart and sliced onion.

Cover with brine. Brine is 1/2 c water 1/2c white vinegar 3 tbs sugar. Need more, make more. Add a ball of pickling spice about the size of a walnut. Use cheese cloth to make the ball. Put it in the refrigerator and give it a couple of weeks.

Onions take on an unpleasant appearance, close your eyes if you have to when you eat them, they are as good as the heart.

We have dedicated heart jars, recycled institutional sized ones. I may send some heart to you in one, but I better get my jar back. Mason jars are completely adequate. Just lose out on the banter and risk associated with lending a worthless jar.

[tootsie54]

Not a big liver fan but always chicken fry the heart. Tastes like blackstrap!

Bob

[voyager]

I keep my knife, field dressing gloves, deer drag, surgical gloves, all in a 1 gallon bag in my pack. The gallon bag is for the liver. We always have the liver the first night, fried with bacon and onions and some mash potatoes on the side. This has been our tradition for 30 yrs and look forward to my one liver dinner a year (Lord willin').

[10ga]

Liver from them milksucker beaneaters is good! Just a posted I slice and fry with onions/scallions/leeks and some pepper relish if any available, gravy to follow. Liver from mature deer becomes trotline bait for spring catfishing, have you ever priced liver or catfish bait in the market! Use the lights, lungs, for trotline bait too.

Heart is delicious, clean and brine.
1. Then make stuffing of choice, sausage and cornbread my favorite but most will work. Scoop out heart interior and stuff with prepared stuffing, top with bacon strips and roast in covered pan or in a "ham or turkey baking bag" with a little juice or wine.

2. Use to make "corned venison" like corned beef with brine, spices and sugar. Then boil and use as per corned beef with potatoes and cabbage or boil and slice for dinner plate or sandwiches. Good.

[1coyotemaster]

We eat the liver from yearlings but discard it from the older deer. We enjoy the hearts from all of them and pickled heart is delicious.

[scalian]

I used to save hearts for a guy i worked with. He would cook them up and slice them up and make sandwiches.

[bigwoods]

If you dont want to eat the heart alone, I have thrown them in with the burger meat. They grind as well as the rest.

[brokenxj22]

Thank you for this! I have been wanting to save the heart and liver, but wasn't confident enough to try it on my own without someone tell me it was ok. Will definitely give them a try next year.