Basic Liver Preparation
Equipment
- Boning knife
- Cutting board
- Nonreactive container
Materials
- 1 each liver or up to 5 pounds poultry livers
- 1 cup salt preferably Diamond Crystal
- 1 gallon water
- 8 grams pink salt optional
Instructions
- Stir together salt and water until salt is dissolved. If necessary, heat water to dissolve salt, and chill brine. Alternately, use spice brine recipe.
- Trim tough duct tissue, external fat, and tough external membranes (if present) and brine liver for up to 24 hours.
- Remove liver from brine and pat dry before using according to recipe.
Spice Brine
Brine with warm spices
Equipment
- Digital scale
- Frying pan or small sheet pan
- Spice grinder OR Cheesecloth and twine
- Stock pot
- Hi Temp plastic container (4 quarts)
Ingredients
- 1 quart water
- 1 quart ice water
- .5 cup salt
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 13 grams fennel seeds whole
- 4 grams coriander whole
- 4 each cloves whole
- 1 each bay leaf fresh if possible
- 11 grams black peppercorns whole
- 1 each star anise whole
- 28 grams thyme fresh, on stem
- 4 grams pink salt OPTIONAL
Instructions
- Toast fennel, coriander, cloves, peppercorns and star anise in frying pan over medium heat or 300 F oven until fragrant, not smoking. If grinding, do so now, or make a sachet with bay and thyme in cheesecloth and tie with twine.
- Combine water, salt, pink salt (if using), brown sugar, toasted spices, bay and thyme in stockpot.
- Bring brine to a boil, stir to ensure that salt and sugar have dissolved. Let simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let steep for 30 minutes.
- Add ice water to brine and ensure temperature is below 45 degrees before using.
- Store refrigerated up to 5 days.
Notes
Pink salt is used to fix hemoglobin in meat, for an attractive pink color. It also acts as a powerful antioxidant and antimicrobial. It is recommended for any preserved or cured meat product that will be cooked, and for pureed liver preparations.