These tender, juicy beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms will help you develop a love for organ meats which are nutritional powerhouses in their own right.
Beef Liver for fertility
Beef liver is a fertility superfood. If you are trying to conceive or care about your fertility at all (which you should) then make sure you include beef liver in your diet. It is especially beneficial during your menstrual phase when iron levels are low.
How to cook liver and make it taste good
Say hello to beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms. Beef liver and onions is a pretty classic recipe. I have gone a step further and added bacon and mushrooms which really takes this dish over the top. Dry white wine and beef bone broth are used to make the most delicious gravy that you might even say makes this dish. As I was chatting with my mom about how I was going to prepare this dish she mentioned that my grandmother would always dredge the liver slices in flour before frying. Any starchy flour will work but I have chosen arrowroot flour which is gluten free.
How long do you cook beef liver?
If you over cook beef liver the meat will literally have the texture of leather. This you do not want I’m sure. Fry the beef liver slices for about 1 minute on each side for medium, half that time for rare. Bloody meat freaks my daughter out so I chose to cook mine for one minute on each side.
How does beef liver taste?
I grew up eating liver, not regularly, but I did have liver from time to time as a child so I know what to expect. Beef liver tastes unlike any other meat you’ll ever have. I’ll be honest and say that you’re not guaranteed to love beef liver on first bite but hopefully this beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms will convince you.
Why do you soak liver in milk before cooking?
Liver has a very strong flavour and can sometimes taste a bit bitter. If you soak the meat in cows milk for a couple hours before cooking it makes the flavour more mellow and palatable.
Beef liver nutrition
Beef liver is the highest source of protein and iron out of all animal meats. It’s a fertility superfood, rich in folate, choline, and B vitamins vitamin B12, pantothenic acid, riboflavin, niacin and vitamin A.
So what do you say, will you give this juicy beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms recipe a try?
Beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 lb beef liver, sliced
- 2 ½ cups mushrooms, sliced
- 1⁄2 cup beef bone broth
- 1⁄4 cup dry white wine or substitute additional stock
- 1⁄4 cup arrowroot starch
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- 5 slices smoked bacon
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
- ½ teaspoon pink himalayan salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2-3 tablespoons butter or coconut oil for frying
Instructions
- If your beef liver doesn’t come sliced, slice the liver into ½ inch strips.
- Place liver slices in a shallow bowl or plate and cover with cows milk. Place covered in the fridge for a couple hours - optional but will make the flavour less ‘intense’
- When ready to cook...
- Fry bacon slices in cast iron skillet until crispy.
- While bacon is frying...
- Combine arrowroot starch, salt and pepper on a plate.
- Remove beef liver soaking in milk from the fridge.
- Dry the liver slices off with paper towels.
- Lightly dredge the liver slices in arrowroot starch mixture.
- Remove bacon from skillet, set aside, leave the bacon fat in the skillet because you’re going to fry the liver slices in it.
- Add liver slices to the skillet and sear for 1 minute maximum on each side.
- As liver slices are cooked, place them on a plate.
- Once you’re done cooking liver slices it’s time to make the onions and mushrooms.
- Add a knob of butter or coconut oil to the skillet and saute the onions until tender.
- Throw in the mushrooms with the onions. Add the fresh thyme.
- Remove everything from the skillet to the plate with cooked liver.
- Add the stock and wine to deglaze the skillet. Cook on medium heat until the liquid is reduced to a thick sauce.
- Return EVERYTHING to the skillet, beef slices, onions, bacon and mushrooms, warm through and serve.
- Enjoy!! My family enjoyed this with broccolini and fresh green salad.
So many wonderful flavors going on in here!
Thank you Kimberly! This beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms packs a real flavour punch 🙂
I actually quite like eating liver, thought I specifically like the one my mom makes. I have no idea how she makes it, but it’s delicious!
I can’t do dairy. Can I soak in coconut milk or does it specifically have to be cows milk?
You can certainly try it Randi.
I’ve been experimenting with liver and onions for a few months now. With this recipe, I made the BEST version I’ve made so far! Liver was the juiciest I’ve ever made it. I was reluctant to add bacon bc I’m lazy and didn’t want to cook it, but it was so worth it. I was also glad I bothered to get fresh thyme. Thank you for sharing this one, I’ll be making it again and again !!!!
Yesssss!!! I converted my family with this recipe too. So happy you enjoyed it!
I finally got to make these beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms this past weekend and it was such a hit!
So happy to hear that you’ve enjoyed this beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms recipe Bella!!!
This beef liver and onions with bacon and mushrooms recipe looks so amazing and yummy at the same time. Found your post so easy to follow along when preparing them yesterday. So mesmerized by this. Thanks for sharing!
Jill it makes me so happy to hear that you enjoyed this meal as much as we do! Thank you for your thoughtful comment 🙂
I haven’t tried this yet, but I am already giving it 5 stars 🙂 My family is from Puerto Rico, and I grew up eating chicken liver dredged in flour, fried and of course not super healthy with al the extra corn oil they would use, but I LOVED it! I tried a beef liver recipe once and it didn’t turn out good, at all. I am going to give this one a try with the chicken liver I already have on hand and then with beef again. I am cycle syncing, working on getting my period back on track, and it has been hard but your recipes have all been so good and so helpful. Thank you for all you do!
Thank you Arlene! Please come back and report how you liked it! Liver is such a superfood particularly for women’s cycles. Good luck with cycle syncing, it’s been a real game changer for me. And if you need more cycle sync recipes check out my brand new cookbook – Dishing Up Balance – https://dishingupbalance.com/dishing-up-balance/
I love this idea, i’ll must try
Okay…I don’t think I have ever left a comment on any of the thousand recipes I have made in my life…but everyone, this IS DELICIOUS for what it is of course (: I soaked my liver in buttermilk, used about 2 extra slices of bacon, and then 1/4-1/2 tsp ground thyme instead of fresh. I did use too much flour and my cast iron got too brown and burnt so I switched to a nonstick pan. I cooked the slices pretty quick because at the end it would all go back in the pan and finish cooking. Thank you!
So happy you enjoyed it Karina! I try telling people how good it is but liver has such a bad rep they tend to not believe me … lol You just need to cook it right and voila!