- Joined
- Jun 13, 2016
The only reason offal and organ meat isn’t more popular now is because most people didn’t eat it as kids to acquire a taste for it. Organ meats weren’t normalized it in their diet.
My grandfather absolutely loved livers, it was a treat when he was kid. He grew up wringing chicken necks and if you plucked the chicken you got to eat the liver. The liver was a bonus treat. The man was thrilled KFC offered a whole plate of chicken livers to eat. He was in heaven.
I remember seeing cow tongue at the deli as a kid (b/c it grossed me out) and older adults assuring me it was perfectly good meat if you knew how to prepare it. Apparently you bought tongue when money was tight but still wanted protein on the dinner table for a big family. I haven’t seen cow tongue or hearts sold in most stores for many years. Now ppl use it to make dog food.
People who survived WW2 / the depression loved liver, and other organ meats, because they were such a good source of iron and nutrients their bodies badly needed. They actually craved it like someone might a ribeye steak today. Looking at the elfin shoe sizes common for adults 1880-1940 you get the idea they were ravenous for many nutrients which organ meat deliver in spades.
Organ meats and offal are far better food choices than whatever half-chemical/half food product, ultra-processed, nightmares many people regularly eat today. The diet of the average American 1935-1980 was far more nutritious than the diet of Americans 1980-2025.
