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Duck Liver Delivery or Pickup
The Instacart guide to duck liver
About duck liver
Duck liver is rich, delicious dish prized by the French. With Instacart, you can find high-quality duck livers at your local retailers. Use the Instacart app to order duck livers, and our shoppers will handle the rest. With Instacart, you can enjoy contact-free pickup or delivery in as little as 2 hours!
Duck liver is a much-loved part of French cuisine. Rich and fatty, duck livers are known for their smooth texture and buttery flavor. Duck livers are sold raw, frozen, or partially cooked. Supermarket duck livers may be sold whole or cleaned and sectioned. Duck livers are available in three grades:
- Grade A: These are the finest quality and largest duck livers, best for use in foie gras.
- Grade B: These livers are softer, smaller, and usually have some visible veins. These livers are excellent for searing.
- Grade C: These livers are the smallest, with more noticeable bruising. Grade C livers should be used in mousses.
Duck liver tends to be high in fat, although most of that fat is monounsaturated. Duck livers are a good source of vitamin B12, copper, vitamin A, and iron.
Duck liver cooking tips
If you purchased a whole duck liver, trim it of any visible connective tissue and veins with a paring knife. Many cooks soak duck livers in milk for 30 minutes to an hour before cooking. A milk soak is believed to remove residual blood and impurities while tenderizing the meat.
Pan-frying is the easiest way to enjoy duck livers. To pan-fry livers, heat a heavy skillet or cast iron pan until it is very hot. It is important to sear the outside of the livers to create a crispy exterior while maintaining a medium-rare center. Olive oil or duck fat can be added to the hot pan to add more flavor to the livers. Cook liver until its internal temperature is 130 degrees Fahrenheit on an instant-read thermometer.
Duck livers are very rich. Avoid serving them with heavy, cream-based sauces and sides. Pan-fried duck livers are delicious when added to a green salad dressed with a vinaigrette. Tangy sauces made from berries and figs are another delicious complement to duck livers.
Pate de foie gras is a French specialty that you can make at home with duck livers. Bake duck livers in the oven with white wine, and as the duck liver cooks, pour off the fat and save it. Place your baked liver in the refrigerator, pressed between two heavy pans. After 24 hours, move the soft duck liver to a glass jar and cover it with the reserved duck fat. Enjoy with a crusty French baguette or crackers after allowing it to sit for 48 hours.
The right spirit enhances the rich flavor of duck livers. Here are a few drink options that go well with duck livers:
- Pinot Noir: Pinot Noir is a light red wine that balances out the heavy richness of duck livers.
- White wine: A dry Reisling, Gewurztraminer, or Pinot Gris are light and refreshing, perfect for a duck liver dinner. Buttery Chardonnay also pairs well with duck liver. Avoid sweet white wines.
- Sparkling wine: Acidic sparkling wines and champagne are a traditional match with pate de foie gras.
Duck Liver Near Me
Buy your favorite Duck Liver online with Instacart. Order Duck Liver from local and national retailers near you and enjoy on-demand, contactless delivery or pickup within 2 hours.
FAQs about duck liver
Fresh duck livers should be bright red or deep pink, never pale or yellow. Duck livers should smell fresh and feel firm to the touch. Avoid livers that have dark spots, smell stale, or feel mushy.
Duck livers that have been enlarged through a feeding process known as "gavage" are referred to as "foie gras." The ancient Egyptians first used this process and took advantage of ducks' natural ability to store extra fat in their livers before migration. Most of the foie gras sold in supermarkets is produced by feeding ducks a special corn-based diet that causes fat to accumulate on the liver, enlarging it up to ten times its normal size. This process also makes a duck liver smoother, fattier, and tastier.
Pate de foie gras is a smooth spread made from white wine and foie gras. It can be eaten hold or cold or used to make a variety of traditional sauces and mouses.
Duck livers are quite perishable. Store your fresh duck livers in the coldest part of your refrigerator as soon as you return home from the store. Stored properly, duck livers will remain fresh for one to two days. You can also freeze duck livers in an airtight freezer-safe plastic bag for two to four months.
Cooked duck livers and pate should be stored in your refrigerator and used within a few days.