Introducing a recipe for Chinese chicken liver with onion and pepper that yields extra tender liver, crunchy peppers, and a super flavorful sauce. It is a cheap way to cook up an inexpensive, delicious, and nutritious dinner that is loaded with healthy protein and plenty of veggies. {Gluten-Free adaptable}
Since I started this blog, one topic that I haven’t talked about enough is the use of different parts of the animal to create delicious, comforting meals. For example, I shared a recipe for braised pig feet, one of my favorite dishes that my mom often makes. Animal parts such as liver, heart, gizzard, and lungs are very commonly used in restaurant and home cooking in China. Sometimes, the purpose is to make a filling meal at an economic price. At other times, the goal is to create a delicacy such as the wonderful poached duck liver we enjoy at Peking duck restaurants.
Stir fried liver has always been a favorite of mine, but I didn’t eat it for quite some time after moving to the US. One time we ate at a typical North American diner, I was delighted to find liver and onions on the menu, and my husband Thomas explained that it’s a classic diner dish.
Eating the diner version of chicken liver and onions brought back sweet childhood memories, though the liver was a bit chewy and the sauce was not super rich.
These days, with grocery prices getting higher and higher, I think it’s a great time to share the Chinese-version of liver and onions. When done right, the chicken liver will be super tender and not taste gamey at all. With a super rich brown sauce to bring everything together, it’s just as comforting and delicious as your regular chicken dinner.
Ingredients & equipment
How to prep chicken liver
Slicing – The key to making a great chicken liver and onion stir fry is to slice the chicken liver thin, but not too thin. If you use liver without slicing it, it takes too long to cook through and the texture will firm up. If you slice it too thin, it cooks too quickly and becomes tough. The 1/4” (1/2 cm) thickness is quite important.
Marinating – Like with many other Chinese stir fries, you should use Shaoxing wine and cornstarch to marinate the liver. The wine eliminates the gamey flavor and the cornstarch protects the liver from overcooking and keeps it tender.
But if you do not wish to use alcohol in your cooking, what you can do is soak the chicken liver in cold water for 30 minutes to 1 hour before cooking. Change out the water a few times in between. It helps release the blood from the liver to eliminate the gamey taste.
Mise en place
Once you’ve done prep, your table should have: the marinated liver, ginger and garlic, onion, pepper, mixed sauce, and sesame oil.
A non-stick pan works better for chicken liver
You can use a nonstick, cast iron, or carbon steel skillet. However, I recommend using a nonstick skillet to make the chicken liver with onion stir fry. Since chicken liver is very delicate and the starch is sticky, a nonstick pan can easily cook the liver without breaking it apart.
If you use a carbon steel or cast iron skillet, you should use quite a bit more oil to prevent sticking.
If you’re using a round bottom wok, you can even briefly fry the liver (过油), to yield the best texture.
Cooking process
- Pan fry the chicken liver by spreading it out and not touching while cooking
- Cook both sides until just cooked through, then transfer to a plate
- Saute the ginger and onion to release the fragrance
- Briefly fry the onion
- Add the chicken liver, pepper, and sauce
- Stir to mix well
Cooking chicken liver with onion and pepper is quite similar to cooking other cuts of chicken meat. The only thing you want to really make sure is not to undercook the liver, but also not overcook it. After you add the liver to the pan, spread it out and do not touch it until the bottom is browned. When you flip it over and cook the other side, observe the color. You may see blood seeping out from some pieces. When most of the pieces do not show any pink and no blood is seeping out, it’s done cooking.
I love to serve chicken liver with onion over steamed rice, to make it a one-bowl chicken dinner.
Afterthought
I feel like chicken liver is a great cut that is often overlooked in spite of its high nutritional value. Chicken liver is a lean protein that’s packed with iron, folate, and a variety of vitamins and minerals. It contains vitamin B12 and is great for blood health. It is good for your vision and strengthens your immune system. Plus, it is extremely delicious when you prepare it right!
If you make this dish, leave a comment below and let me know what you think. For me, sometimes I prefer the liver over the meat 🙂
Other delicious chicken dinner recipes
- Easy Salt Baked Chicken (简易盐焗鸡)
- Chinese Curry Chicken
- Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup
- Crispy Baked Chicken Leg
- One-Pan Chinese Chicken and Rice
Chicken Liver with Onion and Pepper (爆炒鸡肝)
Ingredients
Marinating
- 12 oz (340 g) chicken liver , sliced to 1/4” (1/2 cm) pieces (*Footnote 1)
- 2 teaspoons Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch (*Footnote 2)
Sauce
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorns (or ground black pepper)
Stir fry
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1/2 onion , sliced to bite-size pieces
- 1 bell pepper (or sweet pepper, or both) , sliced to bite-size pieces
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Instructions
Marinate the liver
- Add the chicken liver to a medium-sized bowl. Drain off any excess liquid. Add the Shaoxing wine and salt. Gently mix well with your hand (*Footnote 3). Sprinkle with the cornstarch. Mix again to coat the liver evenly.
Mix the sauce
- Combine all the sauce ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Stir to mix well.
To make the stir fry
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Spread the sliced chicken liver without overlapping. Cook for 1 minute without touching, until the bottom turns golden brown. Flip to cook the other side, 1 minute or so, until just cooked through. Let it cook a bit longer if you still see blood seeping out. Transfer the cooked liver to a plate and set aside.
- Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the garlic and ginger. Stir a few times to release the fragrance.
- Add the onion. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
- Return the cooked liver to the pan and add the pepper. Stir the sauce again until the cornstarch is dissolved completely. Pour it into the pan. Stir and cook until the sauce thickens and coats the ingredients evenly.
- Turn off the heat and swirl in the sesame oil. Give it a final stir and immediately transfer everything to a serving plate.
- Serve hot over steamed rice as a main dish.
Notes
- When you slice the livers, you might see clotted blood vessels. You can remove them for a cleaner flavor.
- Once you mix in the cornstarch, it should form a sticky slurry that coats the liver, but it shouldn’t have a pile of liquid on the bottom of the bowl. The chicken liver might release liquid while marinating. So check it again right before you start cooking. Mix in a bit more cornstarch or drain off the extra liquid to prevent splatter.
- Chicken liver is fragile when it’s uncooked. The best way to mix in the cornstarch is by using your fingers, so you do not break apart the liver and so you can make sure the cornstarch coats evenly.
I love chicken livers, but I’ve never done a Chinese version before. This I’ve got to try.
Hi Maggie! I love this recipe… I find offal a real delicacy. I can never find interesting recipes for it. Your braised feet one gets cooked in batches. Thank you for a really authentic dite.
So happy to hear you made this recipe 🙂 I like the braised feet one a lot too! Thanks for leaving a positive review!
I’m so glad to see this! I love poultry livers, but even the few restaurants that offer them overcook them. Am eager to try this. Love your recipes!
Yes! I order them in the restaurants too and the liver is often too tough to my taste. Happy cooking and let me know how yours turn out 🙂
I adore chicken liver and I adore Chinese recipes.
I was thrilled to find this one that combines my two loves!
So happy to hear you like this recipe 🙂
I’ve always been intimidated by cooking liver because I’m afraid I will overcook it or have it turn out bitter but this recipe took the mystery out of it for me! It’s WAY easier than I expected and the end result looked like it came from a restaurant! My only issue is that it’s quite salty, I may tweak the marinade to put a little less salt or reduce the soy sauce. Otherwise, I now don’t feel scared to cook liver when I want it and feel pretty proud of myself for not messing this up!
Hi Claudia, thanks so much for leaving a positive review and I’m glad you enjoyed the dish!
If you’re using a salted Shaoxing wine (most Shaoxing wine in US grocery stores are salted), it will make the dish saltier. We usually serve the dish over rice, so it’s on the saltier side.
To reduce the saltiness, what you can try is to reduce the salt in the marinade (use 1/4 or even 1/8 teaspoon). That should cut the saltiness by quite a bit.
You can always add salt at the end of the cooking to adjust the seasoning if needed later.
Hi Maggie, I love this recipe and I cook it weekly. I have an autistic son who used to only eat deli meat. The day I cooked this for the first time I gave him a bite and he loved it. Now it’s become one of the favorites of ours. Thank you.
I’m so happy to hear that you and your son both like the dish! This just made my day 🙂 And thanks for leaving a positive review.
Great liver deliverer!
I’m always looking for chicken liver recipes can’t wait to try this looks yummy 😋
This is delicious and quite unusual. Loved it and will certainly make it again. Thank you for sharing this fabulous recipe! It’s so worthwhile looking into cheaper cuts and offal.
I made this for dinner last night; it was super tasty and nourishing!! I thought the sauce might be too intense as I added some fish sauce but as it coated and cooked together with everything it really mellowed out and tasted better than a restaurant! I added finely sliced broccoli, mushrooms, and spiralized zucchini to get more veggies in. I’m looking forward to leftovers for lunch 🙂 Thank you for the great recipe. My first time cooking chicken livers and it won’t be the last! Can’t wait to try more recipes from this site. Thank you.
So happy to hear you like this one and all the veggies make this sound so tasty! Thank you for leaving a positive review 🙂
I’m super interested!! But how long should the chicken liver marinate for? Should I marinate overnight? TIA!
Nope, just 10 to 15 minutes would be fine. I usually start that at the beginning of the cooking so it’s marinating while I prepare the other ingredients. If you marinate for a longer time, you should place it in the fridge. Happy cooking!
First time trying liver and this was a fantastic recipe! I didn’t have sherry so I used marsala and it worked well. Will definitely be trying liver again!!!
Hi Maggie,
Many years ago I did several projects in China, and fell in love with REAL Chinese food.
We love liver, I make it in many different styles, but was trying to recreate the dishes I so often had in China.
So happy to have found your blog!
Made this exactly as written, except I never salt the liver before cooking. I find it toughens it.
This recipe is an absolute keeper!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. Now I’m waiting for a chicken hearts recipe….
谢谢你
I tried this and absolutely loved it! I had never eaten chicken livers this way and it was a game changer for me. Thank you!
After making this great recipe several times, I’m finally leaving a comment (which I should have done after the first time…)
Easy, very clear directions, excellent taste. This has become a regular in my house.
Thank you!
I have only 2 words for this: absolutely delicious! Thank you very much!
This recipe is so tasty! I love chicken livers and cooking Chinese food so it really appealed to me and it didn’t disappoint. Looking forward to trying some more of your recipes. Thanks for the recipe!
This was a fantastic recipe! Made as written, it really was delicious. It was so flavorful, the livers and marinade add a very rich consistency it almost tasted like beef. The shaoxing wine is a must to get that amazing flavor. We will definitely make this again, we love chicken livers but didnt feel like making a pate’ again!
Made this recipe the other night, genuinely the best chicken liver recipe we’ve ever tried! Thanks so much for sharing!
Added some oyster sauce to the sauce because it needed something extra. I did this with a non stick pan but you’ll have to bring the pan up to a high heat to sear the liver and then finish the cooking with the sauce (leave out the starch and put it in as the very last step).
great recipe with very helpful detail. It’s a keeper. I added some more veg and omitted the rice!