Chicken livers
By Mr. Henry
Mr. Henry forgot the livers.
It could happen to anyone. It could even happen to you if you had endured three solid weeks of liquid skies.
In New York it’s been raining forever. Strange never-before-seen varieties of mushrooms are sprouting from tree roots and branches. The baby hawks have frizzy feathers. Liberal-minded New Yorkers have acquired new empathy for Bangladeshi villagers in monsoon season.
Friday afternoon a soggy Mr. Henry’s lumbered into Citarella. Center cut pork chops, sweet potato purée, asparagus under the broiler, and cucumber salad constituted his quick and easy dinner menu. The humidity, however, had sapped his strength. He needed fortification.
For strength nothing beats chicken livers, especially chicken livers Moroccan style.
To rinsed and trimmed livers add salt, black pepper, chopped garlic, a teaspoon or more of cumin, a half teaspoon each of curry powder and hot paprika (cayenne works very well, too), and a couple tablespoons of olive oil.
After the livers have marinated for a good long while, sauté them in their marinade and serve them on toast with lots of chopped cilantro (or parsley). Finish with cold clementines.
Normally Mr. Henry marinates for a few hours, perhaps a day….marinates his livers, that is, not himself. But this time he plainly forgot. Since no one else in the family enjoys this hearty delicacy, no one missed them at table.
On Monday he remembered. What would a weekend bathing in strong spices do to a chicken liver?
It worked miracles – an intensity of flavor never before experienced. Considering the gravity of the moment, he felt it appropriate to open a bottle of Burgundy at lunchtime.
June 23rd, 2009 at 1:16 am
Since chicken livers are one of my most favoritest things, I’ll have to try this. I usually just sautee them in vermouth with some snap peas.
June 23rd, 2009 at 3:31 am
Yum.
Mr. Henry has cooked them in red wine as well as in white, both of which came out splendidly, but indeed the woodiness of vermouth does sound tempting.
June 26th, 2009 at 4:25 am
ewwww.
hope it was a white burgundy
June 26th, 2009 at 7:02 am
Point taken, pixie.
Had there been a Riesling on ice it would have been the choice. If the hour had been later a cold glass of dry sherry might have tasted even better. As it happened, however, half a glass of light pinot noir was entirely satisfying.