Chicken Liver and Onions

I have a very poignant memory of chicken livers. Maybe it’s why I cook this chicken liver and onions often, too often for my husband and daughter’s liking.

Back home in the Philippines, we use free-range whole chicken for a dish called tinolang manok (stewed chicken in ginger). It’s a hearty soup-like dish made with ginger, green papaya slices and malunggay leaves. Since a whole chicken has only one liver and the liver is known for its nutrients, the piece is usually saved for the special child of the house.

My parents separated when I was five and my father remarried shortly thereafter. By the time I was 9, he already had 3 children with his second wife. On one of our visits to his house, their lunch menu was chicken tinola. We all sat down at the table-my half-brothers, my father, his wife, my aunts. There was rice and fried pork chops and desserts galore and of course, the soup. My father served the chicken tinola-and he placed THE LIVER on my youngest half-brother’s plate, cooing to him while he did! My brother was only three and as the baby, he naturally gets the most nutritious part. But I was only nine then, I didn’t understand. I just remember wanting so bad to go home to my mother’s house WHERE I would be the one who gets the chicken liver. Funny, and sad, how moments, even one as trivial as this, stay in our hearts forever.

Makes 4 servings

2 lbs chicken liver
1 cup flour
1 large onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water
1 tsp garlic powder
vegetable oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepperWash chicken livers.

Pat to dry.
Heat vegetable oil in skillet.
In a bowl, season flour with garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Coat livers with the flour mixture.
Fry chickenlivers in hot oil until both sides are golden brown and “crunchy”. Place in serving platter.
Remove and set aside.
Reduce oil from pan. Saute garlic and onions until translucent. Remove from heat and set aside.
In the pan, add lemon juice, soy sauce and water. Simmer until slightly reduced.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Drizzle sauce over chicken livers. Top with sauteed onions and garlic mixture.

1) Oil should be very hot to prevent livers from falling apart during frying.