.Have you ever heard of offal? Doesn’t sound good does it?
In the past, these nutritious meats were a normal part of the regular menu for many families. Today the consumption of offal is not as common as it once was. Offal are the edible internal organs of animals, usually cows, pigs, lambs, goats, chickens, and ducks. These include:
- Liver
- Heart
- Brains
- Intestines
- Kidneys
- Sweetbreads (thymus gland and pancreas)
- Tongue and
- .Tripe (stomach lining, usually from cattle
Nutrients In Organ Meats
If you’ve never considered them as part of your diet, you might be surprised to learn that organ meats are packed with nutrients. Vitamins, such as A, D, E, K, B12 and folate (also known as folic acid, one of eight B vitamins used to treat certain types of anemia and often given to pregnant women). They also contain minerals. We all need these for optimal health, like iron, magnesium, selenium, and zinc. They also provide an excellent source of iron and protein. Many fine dining establishments are seeing an increased interest in organ meats, due to their distinct, unique flavors. Although our ancestors ate the muscle meat of the animals, organ meats were a major part of their diet, and highly prized. Most organ meats contain a greater amount of nutrients than muscle meat. They are also a good source of protein, which is essential to maintain health, build and retain muscle mass, and maintain proper body composition. As such, they can make a healthy addition to any diet.
Bonus!
As an added bonus, they are budget-friendly! Organ meats are not as popular as muscle meats so you can often purchase organ meats at a lower price. A diet higher in nutrient-dense protein tends to reduce appetite as well, so the addition of organ meats to your diet could mean even greater savings at the grocery store. Keeping in mind that it can be difficult to obtain the vitamins and minerals that organ meats supply in abundance, adding some of these nutritious, inexpensive, environmentally friendly meats to your diet makes good sense.
Ideas For Use
One way that our family has used liver is to slice it, dehydrate the strips and then powder it in a strong blender to add into chili or capsules.
We also have a great recipe for tongue should you be interested.
We are proud of all the products our healthy animals produce, including organ meats.
Hope you will give them a try!