Posted on 05/18/2026 8:42:42 AM PDT by Red Badger
Organ meats sit on the butcher’s shelf at a fraction of the price of premium steaks, yet most Americans walk right past them. Liver, heart, and kidneys deliver more vitamins and minerals per dollar than almost anything else in the grocery store, but cultural squeamishness and decades of convenience marketing have rendered them nearly invisible on American tables.
Even as the Make America Healthy Again movement highlights these nutrient powerhouses, the rejection persists — a telling symptom of how far we have drifted from sensible, stewardship-minded eating.
Beef liver, often called nature’s multivitamin, provides extraordinary levels of vitamin B12, vitamin A, iron, copper, and folate in a single serving. A three-ounce portion contains dramatically more B12 than a comparable cut of sirloin.
The price difference is equally stark: liver frequently sells for under four dollars a pound while popular muscle cuts command ten to fifteen dollars or more. This is not boutique health food. It is old-fashioned, economical nourishment that sustained generations before the rise of ultra-processed alternatives.
The irony is thick. In an era of skyrocketing chronic disease and complaints about grocery bills, the very foods that could address both problems are dismissed as unpalatable or old-fashioned. RFK Jr., leading the MAHA charge at HHS, has rightly called liver a “very, very affordable” option. Yet the broader culture — shaped by decades of industrialization and advertising — continues to favor packaged convenience over these time-tested choices.
Before World War II, organ meats formed a regular part of the American plate. Wartime rationing reinforced their use, directing prime cuts to soldiers while families made the most of every part of the animal. Victory brought prosperity, and with it a cultural pivot. Muscle meats became status symbols.
Offal, once ordinary, acquired associations with hardship. Large-scale packing plants prioritized efficiency and consumer preference for familiar steaks and chops. Much of the nutrient-rich variety meat left American shores, generating over a billion dollars in export revenue in recent years while domestic demand remained low.
This shift coincided with the explosion of ultra-processed foods — cheap, engineered products that crowd out real nourishment. The result is a nation spending more on healthcare to treat conditions that wiser eating might have helped prevent. Registered dietitians note that organ meats can carry higher cholesterol and saturated fat, but when consumed as part of a balanced, whole-food approach, their micronutrient benefits stand out sharply against the empty calories dominating many modern diets.
The MAHA emphasis on real food, including these affordable options, challenges the status quo. It asks Americans to reconsider nose-to-tail eating not as novelty but as prudent stewardship. Yet habits die hard. Many consumers simply lack experience with preparation. Strong flavors and textures require technique — mixing finely chopped liver with ground beef in meatloaf, for instance, or seasoning generously with herbs. The learning curve exists, but so does the payoff in both wallet and wellness.
Critics of MAHA often portray the movement as extreme or unrealistic, yet the data on nutrient density and cost tell a simpler story. Americans already accept exotic imports like foie gras when presented as luxury. The same nutritional logic applies to humble domestic offal. Rejecting it while lamenting food costs and declining health reveals a contradiction worth examining.
Our forebears understood that good stewardship includes making the most of what God has provided. In an age of abundance marred by poor choices, rediscovering these humble foods aligns with both fiscal responsibility and physical vitality. The question is whether a comfort-seeking culture will embrace that wisdom or continue subsidizing its own decline through expensive ignorance.
As the Apostle Paul reminded the church in Corinth, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Eating with discernment — choosing nutrient-dense, economical foods that honor the body as the temple of the Holy Ghost — is no small matter. It is daily obedience with generational consequences.
The MAHA push for organ meats is no fleeting trend. It is a call to remember what sustained our ancestors and what can strengthen our families today. The ingredients are already on the shelf, waiting for a people willing to turn from convenience and reclaim the full provision before us.
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I like BEEF liver, but cant stand Pork liver unless it’s in sausage or a liverwurst.........
The Cannibal Thread
“Clarice, a census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.”
These organs filter impurities. Liver is mushy.
You will never see a cannibal eat a rib eye, strip or Porterhouse steak.
Organs, that’s what they eat.
Organs.
We only had liver a couple of times a year...and I would put the chewed pieces in the kitchen table silverware drawer, since I did the dishes afterwards and could get rid of the evidence. My siblings even passed me theirs.
That said, as an adult, enjoyed liver, onions and bacon...so long as the liver wasn't overcooked. Of course, you could couple it with a nice Chianti and Fava Beans. LOL!
From their milk made feta cheese
And put the spare goats into the freezer
Ate the heart liver and the washed out all the stomach tubes which were rolled on a spit and roasted.
Mrs Spokeshave was from the Greek island of Ikaria...a Blue Zone where people forget to die (because village people are Too stupid it die)
I had the skins tanned and sold as seat covers $100 each.
More info...photos..recipes etc from:
IKARIA Lessons on Food, Life and Longevity from the Greek island of Ikaria where people forget to die
By Diane Kochilias ISBN 978-1-62336-295-9
Widower Spokeshave who has terminal cancer and will travel to Ikaria to rest in peace next to his spouse of 62 years.
Oh yeah. When you don’t know when you’re gonna get food again eat every little bit. But we know when we’re gonna get food again. Don’t need those nasty bits.
I had a very mild ‘country’ pate once made with chicken livers. It was pretty good, but other than that one time, I haven’t been able to stomach any of this stuff.
Prayers for you and may you rest in peace with your beloved .....................
Red Badger wrote: “If cooked properly, it should taste great. ... It should be soft but firm, and add mushroom gravy and sautéed onions!...........”
IOW, you have to disguise the taste of liver with mushroom gravy and sauteed onions to make it taste like something else but liver.
The taste of the liver is still there!...............
As for B-12 deficiency = I have it also. But in my case taking pills/capsules do no good either. Because the bottom line is my system does not absorb it. Could be similar problem for others too?
Orcas will tear out the liver and leave the rest.
The supplement works for me. In fact, I was able to reduce from daily to every other day and finally to every third day.
And it tastes horrible.
Chicken liver I can take, beef liver is nasty.
It is like cantaloupe or bell peppers.
They may be full of vitamins. But I ain't eating them.
You want to? Good for you.
Enjoy.
Don't even try to guilt me into doing the same.
I spent weekends with my grandparents and the menu was more middle America.
But my first generation German-American grandmother routinely served heart, tongue, brains, and head cheese when I was not staying over.
Pigs knuckles also but I not sure that was really what they were.
I don't notice much effect...feel tired and can only do one task a day..driving is OK...and can park in disabled area :-) ...
Therapy is walking and gym where my weights are all lower than I used to have...but not to shabby for 84 years...and my hair hasn't fallen out so far.
I was raised eating those things so it’s no biggie to me. Many people were not, especially city folks.
I was raised to eat whatever was put in front of you, thank God for it and don’t waste a bite.
Food was practically held as a holy sacrament and if you wasted any you would get all hell cast down upon you...............
I have my mothers leather bound “Gourmet” cookbook and there is an entire section devoted to organ meats. Liver was a staple (I hated and still hate it) on the dinner table at least twice a month. We had no dog, which meant multiple bathroom trips for me. Later in college when I took a French cooking class I did learn one essential about cooking liver, never over cook it. My mom also made chopped chicken livers which I did like but I outgrew my taste for them.
“It’s good for you, it has lots of iron.”
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