PLEASE NOTE: The information in this blog is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Consult your healthcare provider if you’re seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment.
Modern supermarkets are generally loaded with muscle meats like turkey, chicken breast, and lean pork. While these can be useful, it’s easy to miss out on some of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet—organ meats.
For thousands of years, organ meats (also called offal) have been the treasured cuts of meat.
The liver, in particular, is a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals (1). Unlike many plant foods, these nutrients are highly bioavailable (2, 3). So, instead of having to eat a mountain of broccoli to get the iron your body needs, you’re able to eat just a few ounces of liver (4).
In this article, we’ll take a look at chicken liver benefits, how it compares to beef liver, nutrition facts, and why it’s still a fixture in cuisines around the globe.
8 Chicken Liver Benefits: Why It’s So Valuable
Organ meats have largely fallen out of favor in our modern diets and are often discarded, but chicken liver is still widely popular due to its abundant health benefits (5).
1. High in Vitamins
Chicken liver is a valuable source of vitamins A, B3, B9, B12, and numerous others (6).
The folate (vitamin B9) content of chicken liver far exceeds plant foods such as chickpeas, cauliflower, and broccoli (7).
The fact that chicken liver contains vitamin C also tends to get overlooked (8). Vitamin C is key for iron absorption and immune function, and humans need to obtain this crucial vitamin through their diets (9, 10).
2. High in Minerals
In addition to being rich in vitamins, chicken liver is a great source of important minerals like selenium, iron, zinc, phosphorous, magnesium, and calcium (11, 12).
One of the standout minerals in chicken liver is selenium, which is crucial for thyroid hormone production and the immune system (13, 14).
3. Protein Rich
Chicken liver is a rich source of protein, with over 20 grams of protein in a 3-ounce portion (15).
Due to its high protein content and minuscule amount of carbs, chicken liver can be a great addition to a carnivore or ketogenic diet.
4. Low in Calories
A 3-ounce serving of chicken liver only contains about 140 calories (16). If you’re looking to lose weight, a food like chicken liver can be a useful option as it limits calories while offering impactful nutrients.
5. Cost Effective
Despite being packed with beneficial nutrients, one of the many chicken liver benefits is its price point. A supply that can last weeks at a time may only cost $10-15 per pound. Here are some examples:
Shirttail Creek Farm ($9.99)
White Oak Pastures ($14.99)
US Wellness Meats ($14.95)
Seven Sons ($12.25)
Buying in bulk or shopping locally may help you find additional savings without having to sacrifice quality.
6. Accessibility
Chicken liver is mainly found at local farmers markets, but popular grocery chains such as Whole Foods and Sprouts may also carry it in the frozen section.
7. Recipe Flexibility
Chicken liver is incredibly versatile and simple to incorporate into different cuisines.
While many modern diets focus heavily on muscle meats, traditional cuisines across the globe continue to incorporate chicken liver into various dishes such as (17):
Liver Pate
Fried Liver
Chicken Liver Curry
Sauteed Chicken Livers w/ Onions
Chicken Liver Stir Fry
Chopped Liver
Chicken Liver Salad w/ Avocado
8. Better Taste
While beef heart is generally viewed as the tastiest organ meat, chicken liver is frequently a close second.
If you’re new to organ meats, cooked chicken liver can be a perfect starting point. With its soft texture, small size, and milder taste, it’s a great choice.
Chicken liver benefits are wide-ranging, yet it still can be overlooked by one particular organ meat: beef liver.
Beef Liver vs Chicken Liver Benefits: How Do They Stack Up?
Due to the important vitamins and minerals, both beef liver and chicken liver can be valuable additions to the diet.
According to Cronometer, the macronutrient breakdown for chicken and beef liver is very similar.
Compared to beef liver, chicken liver can offer greater amounts of vitamins B1, B2, B6, B9, and C, along with more selenium and calcium.
While nutrient content may differ based on dozens of factors, in general, beef liver is higher in vitamins A, B3, B12, D2, D3, and E (18). For minerals, beef liver tends to be higher in zinc, copper, and iron (19, 20).
Depending on your specific needs, you may opt to choose one option over the other or rotate through each. Consider conducting vitamin and mineral testing with a medical professional. For example, if you need more vitamin A, beef liver may be preferable. If you’re lacking B vitamins, chicken liver may be the best choice.
Eating liver may not sound as appealing as chicken breast, but the preformed vitamin A and b vitamins are a tough selling point to ignore. These vitamins can positively affect skin health, growth and development, immune function, and vision (21, 22).
Tips for Finding Healthy Chicken Livers
It’s always tempting to reach for the cheapest product to save some money. However, this may not be ideal with chicken liver. Like most other foods, chicken liver has a few potential issues to be aware of.
Pathogens
Chicken liver can be a source of pathogens such as salmonella or campylobacter (23, 24). It’s crucial to understand the environment that the chickens were raised in, what they ate, and information about the health of the animals.
One of the best ways to learn about these key details is from a local farmer. Adequately cooking chicken liver can also help prevent illness (25).
Antibiotics
The global demand for chicken meat is massive. To help meet this demand, chickens are commonly given antibiotics to protect against disease and promote rapid growth (26).
However, these antibiotics can accumulate in the animals and contribute to human health challenges like antibiotic resistance, allergic reactions, or gut microbiome disruption (27, 28).
It can be helpful to chat with your local farmer about the quantity and types of antibiotics used when raising the animals.
Pesticides
Pesticides are used to remove weeds, fungi, insects, and rodents (29). Humans can have almost constant exposure to pesticides as they’re now found in food, air, water, and soil.
Long-term exposure to pesticides can contribute to various cancers, diabetes, infertility, asthma, and a host of other serious challenges (30, 31).
To minimize the chance of exposure in chicken liver, do your best to understand if the chickens were exposed to pesticides in their feed or living environment. Looking for organic chicken liver is another way to potentially cut down on exposure to contaminants.
Chicken Liver: Powerful, Yet Underrated
Chicken liver is a perfect addition to an animal-based, carnivore, or ketogenic diet. With a similar nutrient profile and mild taste, it can be an ideal starting point for including organ meats in your diet.
Often overlooked, chicken liver is an accessible and affordable food with massive health benefits. A small portion of chicken liver can supply you with bioavailable nutrients needed for immune function, iron absorption, and so much more.
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