Giblets

[adrober]

I realize there are many recipes for using the giblets that come in the little package inside a whole chicken, but I'm curious if anyone cooks giblets on a regular basis? How do you use them? Or do most of you just throw them away?

[jackal10]

Sure.

Liver->chopped liver. That is what it is there for.

Fat-> schmalz (for the chopped liver), gribeens, etc

Neck-> stuffed

rest -> stock, or chopped into a stew, or into the stuffing

[Jaymes]

I never throw them away. I reserve the livers in a small bag in the freezer until I have enough to fry for dinner (fried chicken livers with gravy are very popular in my part of the country) or use to make chopped liver for a spread.

The remainder are good stewed in broth when making stock. Often, though, after making the stock and straining it, I remove the giblets and give them to the neighbor's dog. Who loves them. I swear he can tell when I'm simmering stock because he always appears at our back door.

Edited January 9, 2006 by Jaymes (log)

[wattacetti]

If you're talking about just the amount that you get inside when buying a whole chicken, not much because there's not material. Neck goes to stock, fat pads get rendered and the gizzard, liver and heart become a quick snack.

I do however buy gizzards in bulk and make confit with them.

[Jensen]

Neck >> eaten by Streaka

Gizzard >> eaten by Tighe

Liver >> eaten by Dayton

Heart >> eaten by Rogie

[I_call_the_duck]

If I'm making a soup or stew, the neck, gizzards and heart are thrown into the pot and given to the cook as a treat. If I'm roasting the bird, I simmer them in a bit of water and use it as a base for gravy. The livers are frozen until there are enough to make a batch of chopped liver.

ETA: If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

Edited January 9, 2006 by I_call_the_duck (log)

[annecros]

I too buy the whole chicken nearly all the time and cut it up myself. I save the scraps in the freezer and use for chicken soup when I have three or so bundles.

After straining the stock, I get the liver and gizzard, the dog gets the rest, along with the skin.

I HAVE made a dinner out of fried livers and gizzards. Yum.

[mizducky]

If I'm making a soup or stew, the neck, gizzards and heart are thrown into the pot and given to the cook as a treat.  If I'm roasting the bird, I simmer them in a bit of water and use it as a base for gravy.  The livers are frozen until there are enough to make a batch of chopped liver.

ETA:  If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

←

I do exactly what my fellow duck-named eGulleteer does. I especially love the gizzards! When I was a kid, my mother would simmer the gizzards right along with the couple of chickens they came from, and then we kids would fight over who got them. With long gentle simmering they become pretty tender, though they still have a bit of chewiness, which I happen to like. In Yiddish the gizzard is often called a "pupik," which word I believe more accurately translates as "belly button"!

I also note that simmered gizzards, sliced and served cold, are one of the many Sichuan-style cold appetizers served at what is fast becoming my favorite Chinese restaurant here in San Diego, Ba Ren. They're only mildly spicy compared to some of their much more firey offerings, but with that same tender/chewy texture that I so enjoy.

[I_call_the_duck]

If I'm making a soup or stew, the neck, gizzards and heart are thrown into the pot and given to the cook as a treat.  If I'm roasting the bird, I simmer them in a bit of water and use it as a base for gravy.  The livers are frozen until there are enough to make a batch of chopped liver.

ETA:  If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

←

I do exactly what my fellow duck-named eGulleteer does. I especially love the gizzards! When I was a kid, my mother would simmer the gizzards right along with the couple of chickens they came from, and then we kids would fight over who got them. With long gentle simmering they become pretty tender, though they still have a bit of chewiness, which I happen to like. In Yiddish the gizzard is often called a "pupik," which word I believe more accurately translates as "belly button"!

I also note that simmered gizzards, sliced and served cold, are one of the many Sichuan-style cold appetizers served at what is fast becoming my favorite Chinese restaurant here in San Diego, Ba Ren. They're only mildly spicy compared to some of their much more firey offerings, but with that same tender/chewy texture that I so enjoy.

←

Mizducky,

After posting this, I was wondering if I was the only one here that ate food that normally goes to the dogs. Mom is the only one in my family besides myself that really loves the gizzards. She used to braise it in a soy-anise mixture. One recipe I was reading said to discard the back, neck, and gizzards. "The recipe's telling me to throw out the best parts!" I fumed to my husband. He just looked at me like I'm crazy.

Must be a duck thing.

[slkinsey]

If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

AFAIK, gizzards aren't all that bad for you. A gizzard isn't really an organ or gland like a liver, heart or kidney. A gizzard is simply a specialized, very muscular "pre-stomach" that is found in birds and other animals that lack teeth. The idea is that the chicken swallows bits of gravel which stay in the gizzard (aka "craw") and act in place of teeth to grind food into small pieces before they are passed to the main stomach.

So, fundamentally, a gizzard is just a piece of tough muscle. I don't think they're particularly high in fat or anything like that.

[mizducky]

If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

AFAIK, gizzards aren't all that bad for you. A gizzard isn't really an organ or gland like a liver, heart or kidney. A gizzard is simply a specialized, very muscular "pre-stomach" that is found in birds and other animals that lack teeth. The idea is that the chicken swallows bits of gravel which stay in the gizzard (aka "craw") and act in place of teeth to grind food into small pieces before they are passed to the main stomach.

So, fundamentally, a gizzard is just a piece of tough muscle. I don't think they're particularly high in fat or anything like that.

←

Alas, gizzards and other organ meats do happen to be hazardous for those of us who suffer from gout. All animal protein has a goodly amount of the amino acid purine, which can kick off an acute gout attack, but organ meats are especially high in the stuff. I eat the darn things anyway, because I love 'em so, but I try to space out my indulgences to avoid the nasty side effects, which even meds and copious amounts of cherry juice can only do so much to stave off.

(Aside: yes, cherries and cherry juice really do help with gout. Even the head pharmacist at the Kaiser Permanente branch I go to made a point of recommending it to me a couple different times. I try to always keep a bottle of the stuff around in case I start feeling that tell-tale tingle in the big toe...)

Edited January 9, 2006 by mizducky (log)

[I_call_the_duck]

If they weren't so bad for me, I'd cook up a whole batch of gizzards and have it for dinner.

AFAIK, gizzards aren't all that bad for you. A gizzard isn't really an organ or gland like a liver, heart or kidney. A gizzard is simply a specialized, very muscular "pre-stomach" that is found in birds and other animals that lack teeth. The idea is that the chicken swallows bits of gravel which stay in the gizzard (aka "craw") and act in place of teeth to grind food into small pieces before they are passed to the main stomach.

So, fundamentally, a gizzard is just a piece of tough muscle. I don't think they're particularly high in fat or anything like that.

←

Thanks for clearing that up, slkinsey. I was under the impression that they were organ meat, therefore bad for people with high cholesterol. (That of course, wouldn't necessarily stop me from eating stuff high in cholesterol, but I must do so in moderation.)

[ChefCrash]

I HAVE made a dinner out of fried livers and gizzards. Yum.

We mince gizzards real fine and saute them with oil and butter, they braise in their own liquid til tender. When all the liquid evaporates, add more butter and season with salt and pepper and let them brown a few minutes.

We serve them with Hummos or Baba Ghanooj and Pita bread. Yum.

[annecros]

I HAVE made a dinner out of fried livers and gizzards. Yum.

We mince gizzards real fine and saute them with oil and butter, they braise in their own liquid til tender. When all the liquid evaporates, add more butter and season with salt and pepper and let them brown a few minutes.

We serve them with Hummos or Baba Ghanooj and Pita bread. Yum.

←

That sounds good. I can see myself loading up that pita with lovely, oily gizzards!

Yum again.

[MarkinHouston]

If you're talking about just the amount that you get inside when buying a whole chicken, not much because there's not material. Neck goes to stock, fat pads get rendered and the gizzard, liver and heart become a quick snack.

I do however buy gizzards in bulk and make confit with them.

←

I had some duck gizzard confit in some salads while in France, and they were great. Would you have a recipe you care to share ? Thank you very much.

[Smithy]

*mega-bump*

 

I have 2 pints of chicken giblets, collected by a friend who saves them but whose wife won't touch them. I've finally gotten round to thawing one of the containers, and now I'm wondering what to do with them. I love fried chicken hearts...but am not likely to fry anything, any time soon.  Up here @ChefCrash mentions chopping the gizzards finely, sauteeing with oil and butter, then braising in their own liquid until they're tender. That has some promise. Another idea is to stir-fry some or all of the giblets, along with some red bell pepper, onion  and broccoli. But with what sort of sauce?

 

What should I do with this stuff, now that I've committed to cooking it? I'm reasonably sure that a sheet pan roast in the oven is the wrong way to go. I'm also reasonably sure that I won't go to the trouble right now of wrapping the firmer giblets (hearts and gizzards) in bacon and then grilling them. Maybe next time around, with the second pint.

 

Ideas, please.

[rotuts]

@Smithy

 

if you don't like eating them    ' as is  '

 

I generally don't

 

saute to brown , then iPot w stock ,  HP 1 hr  , any release you like 

 

blitz w stick blender , cool , and freeze for future use as an addition to gravy  

 

season at the final stage only.   2 -3 Tbs of this , plus fresh pan drippings makes a very fine gravy

 

for a roast chicken.

 

Edited yesterday at 06:35 PM by rotuts (log)

[Ddanno]

I'd devil the offally bits and use the rest for stock

 

Half a shallot, finely diced

Thinly sliced mushrooms

1 chopped clove of garlic

Tsp of white wine vinegar

Pinch of cayenne (to taste)

Pinch of paprika, smoked or sweet whichever you prefer

S & P

Knob of butter

About 30ml double cream

Handful of chopped parsley

Two thick slices of good bread

 

Season and fry off the goodies for a couple of minutes, add vinegar towards the end to deglaze a bit, remove to a bowl

 

Fry the shallot for a minute or two, add the mushrooms and garlic and cook until soft, add your spices and your chicken bits and warm gently while you toast your bread. Add the butter and cream, and further spices such as chilli flakes to taste 

 

Once hot, slap on toast, top with parsley and gorge thyself

 

 

 

Edited 22 hours ago by Ddanno (log)

[weinoo]

They make a great sauce for pasta…

 

https://www.pastagrammar.com/post/fettuccine-with-chicken-giblets-authentic-italian-pasta-recipe

 

 

 

[DesertTinker]

Mr. Max ((see avatar) even at 12 and with his dental challenges) loves a minced chicken heart, but I doubt that would make much of a dent in your giblet supply.

[AlaMoi]

I'll support the 'gravy / sauce' use idea.

fine chop/dice the giblets, very fast/hot pan sear

add to any pan sauce/gravy for poultry.

 

or like . . . 'biscuits&gravy' - usually has sausage in the gravy . . . . replace with giblet nuggets....

 

in the past I've had cats that thoroughly enjoy scarfing down the heart/liver/gizzard bits . . .

but that's times past.

 

any place you are creating/using a thickish white sauce, the giblets chunkettes will do themselves proud.

[Smithy]

Some good ideas here! I opted for a more-or-less yakatori style this time, loosely based on this NYTimes recipe. I say "loosely" because my marinade was simpler; I didn't have all the ingredients they listed. Soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar, lemon, ginger, garlic. I had nothing resembling sake or even sherry. Note: do not try substituting brandy! That batch of marinade went down the drain.

 

Marinating while I did other things:

 

Skewered (with the sacrificial blood -- those gizzards are tough, and my skewers skewered me once too)

 

 

Finished, after just a little grilling:

 

 

I won't show you plated, because it's boring: meat and peppers. It needs rice, and I couldn't be bothered. A salad would have been good, but I had that earlier. 

 

Oddly enough, I like the gizzards better than the hearts. When my mother fried chicken bits, hearts were my favorite. Have my tastes changed, or is this not a good treatment for the hearts? I'll have to experiment with it.

 

Speaking of experimentation, I appreciate all the other ideas and am glad I have another container of these things to play with for some of the other recipes. I'll make sure my friend knows to keep saving these for me. Thanks, folks! Keep the ideas coming!

[Smithy]

Followup: actually, these hearts and gizzards (no liver in this batch) have an odd aftertaste that's gotten more unpleasant as I've eaten. I don't know whether it's something in the marinade or something essential to the organs themselves. I can see a case for the fine chopping and soaking suggested in some of the other recipes. A good rinse, even, to get rid of a grittiness in the gizzards. Thoughts, anyone?

[Ddanno]

That looks great Smithy.

 

I split gizzards and give the inside a bit of a scrape. They're generally clean but I don't like the texture otherwise.

[liuzhou]

The only way to get a bird, chicken, duck, or goose, with the giblets is to buy a live one and slaughter it yourself. Many people do.

 

Otherwise, both supermarkets and market vendors remove the precious giblets and sell them separately. This can be in mixed giblet packs like these

 

 

and include parts I suspect most don’t come with the birds in the west. Intestines?

 

Or, you can buy each type of giblet separately. Hearts, livers, gizzards, intestines, necks, etc.

 

I always have chicken or duck livers and hearts in the freezer but until very recently was unable to find goose liver or hearts that hadn’t been pre-cooked or, in the case of livers, turned into foie gras. I can now buy both online but have to buy a minimum of 2½ kg / 5 pounds at a time. I’m guessing they are mostly sold to the restaurant or foie gras trade.

 

Goose intestines are especially prized.