Liver Mousse Print Recipe Back to Website

Recipe by Gracie Schatz

This is a very basic and easy recipe for liver mousse. I use almost twice as many onions by weight as liver to cut through the iron-like flavor of the liver, but if you’re a fan of liver, feel free to use fewer onions. This liver mousse makes an incredible snack or appetizer for a dinner party: Spread generously over grilled bread and top with fresh seasonal fruit and pickled shallots or mustard. Any type of liver may be used for this recipe.

Ingredients
  • 1 lb liver trimmed of white fat and cut into 1” cubes 
  • 3 shallots, thinly sliced
  • 4 large onions, diced
  • 6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
  • ¼ cup Sauternes, Madeira, or Port wine
  • 1 bunch of thyme, picked off of the stem 
  • 2 sticks (½ lb) butter, melted and warm
  • ¼ cup sherry vinegar 
  •  2 teaspoons freshly cracked pepper
  • Salt
Instructions
  1. In a large non-stick skillet or cast iron pan, warm 2 tablespoons of fat (ideally lard, but canola oil or butter with a bit of oil in it will work as well). 
  2. Add the onions and shallots, and raise the heat to high. Sauté your onions and shallots until they are golden brown in color, stirring constantly to prevent burning.
  3. Add the garlic and thyme, and lower the heat to medium.
  4. Continue to cook until the onions start to stick to the bottom of the pan.
  5. Move the sauté to a food processor.
  6. To deglaze the skillet, use a splash of Sauternes (Madeira or Port will also work). Pour the wine into the skillet and use a spatula to scrape all the crispy bits off of the bottom of the pan. Add these tasty morsels to the food processor with the onions.
  7. Toss the liver with a bit of oil and cook it on high heat in the skillet. Ideally you want to sear all sides of the liver, so give it plenty of room in the pan; it is fine to do multiple batches. Cook the liver until it is golden to dark brown on all sides and place it in the food processor.
  8. Blend all of the onions and liver together in the food processor, and slowly stream in the warm melted butter, sherry vinegar, pepper and salt to taste. It is important that the butter is warm when you are streaming it in.
  9. Taste the mousse. Adjust seasonings to your liking.
  10. This is delicious to eat warm and has an incredible texture. It will store well in your fridge for a week and in your freezer indefinitely.