LE FOIE

LIVER

BEEF LIVER: ready to cook (prepared by the butcher)

CALF’S LIVER: ready to cook (prepared by the butcher)

PORK LIVER: ready to cook (prepared by the butcher. May need to be ordered ahead)

LAMB’S LIVER: ready to cook (prepared by the butcher. May need to be ordered ahead)

CHICKEN (OR OTHER POULTRY) LIVER: remove the gall bladder (small green pouch) if still attached

ORGAN LOCATED IN THE ABDOMEN,
THAT SECRETES BILE AND WORKS TO METABOLISE CARBOHYDRATES, FATS AND PROTEINS

The liver is a powerhouse of nutrients. High in protein and low in fat, it is the ally of every diet: Are you fat? ‘Eat some liver!’ Are you skinny? ‘Eat some liver!’ It is also, however, a catalyst of heavy metals and purines, so keep an eye on your big toe; gout lies in wait for the high livers who overindulge...

In the collective memory, the liver has the peculiar characteristic of being associated with a sort of fertiliser that will help the littlest among us to shoot up like flowers in springtime. ‘Don’t fret, mon petit, eat your liver and you’ll grow in no time,’ my grandmother would say to me with the benevolence of a loving mamie. It’s true that at sixteen years old, 162 centimetres tall and 0.096 tonnes, there was reason to fear that a few psychological complexes lay ahead. But I did not fret, I controlled my bile, my liver took care of it. The growth spurt happened: 25 extra centimetres at the withers for 0.100 tonnes at the weigh-in. Granny’s faith in the liver was confirmed, a legend that was to live on.

Since that day, the life of the liver has continued unperturbed, and so much the better. ‘Eat your liver, mes petits, and you’ll grow in no time,’ a certain Stéphane was saying the other day, with the benevolence of a loving papa!