Chicken gizzards are a very flavorful dark chicken meat, but many people don't know how to prepare them. They are not an uncommon part of our traditional cooking repertoire, and here I teach more about this remarkable, tasty chicken meat and our favorite way to cook it.
By - Reviewed: . Original: Aug 12, 2016
Why we ❤️ it
I am a huge fan of gizzards and grab a pack whenever I find them in the supermarket. This is not even the only chicken gizzard recipe in our collection.
Chicken gizzards are an exceptional chicken cut; it's dark meat with a gamey taste, red meat-like texture, and enough fat to increase the flavor of whatever it's cooked with. Let me show you why you may learn to love it too.
What are chicken gizzards?
The gizzard is a part of the chicken digestive system - a stomach of sorts - a unique organ that does not have an equivalent in mammals. Gizzard has a gamey taste, long muscle strands similar to beef, and - once properly cooked - can be very tender.
"[...] a muscular, thick-walled part of a bird's stomach for grinding food, typically with grit.
OED
Molleja de pollo is chicken gizzards in Spanish.
Chicken gizzard (molleja guisada) with rice and maduros.
Serving suggestions
Mollejas guisadas (Dominican chicken gizzards) go great with some Tostones (what doesn't?!). But it can also be served in lieu of Pollo guisado in our traditional Lunch meal of rice, Dominican beans, and Dominican salad. Simplify your life by just serving these tender gizzards with a bowl of Arroz blanco and a few slices of Fritos maduros (fried ripe plantains) or Platanos al caldero (caramelized plantains) is just perfection!
Moro rice - especially the black beans and rice one - is also a great side dish with these stewed chicken gizzards.
I sometimes love mine a bit spicy, so serve it alongside Agrio de naranja, or whatever hot sauce you have, if you feel like it.
Top tips
- How to cook gizzard: Chicken gizzards cannot be cooked like the typical chicken cut. Gizzards are very tough, and we typically first boil it either in a pressure cooker, or - for a much longer time - a regular pot. We add seasonings and spices to the water to flavor the gizzards while they boil. Once boiled, they can be prepared in a variety of ways.
- Cooking time: Chicken gizzards are a tough cut, boiling it beforehand can take 1 to 1.5 hours in a regular pot and 30 to 40 minutes in an express pot or pressure cooker.
- Cleaning gizzards: In my experience, chicken gizzard bought from supermarkets already comes clean and ready to cook. If you purchase it from your local butcher or small store, you may need to peel a yellow skin stuck to the inside of the gizzard and rinse it to get rid of grit.
- Finding chicken gizzards: How easy it will be to find gizzards will depend on their popularity in your local cuisine. You can find them at supermarkets if they are part of your local cuisine. Otherwise, your local butcher or specialty shops are your best bet.
About this recipe
Gizzards, giblets, hearts, and chicken livers are some of the chicken organs traditionally eaten in the Dominican Republic, where buying a whole chicken and using everything edible is a long tradition.
Other "lesser" chicken cuts like chicken feet and necks (patas y pescuezos) - combined called pico y pala - are also popular. But they are not an everyday dish.
If you have another way to serve or make mollejas guisadas, I'd love to hear about it, so please share it in the comments.
Video
Recipe
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Stewed Chicken Gizzard [Video+Recipe] Molleja de Pollo Guisada
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken gizzards, [0.9 kg] (cleaned, see tips above the recipe)
- 1½ tablespoons salt, (or to taste, divided)
- 1½ teaspoon pepper, freshly-cracked (or to taste, divided)
- 1½ teaspoon oregano, dry, ground, plus a pinch for later
- 1 bay leaf, optional
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 bell peppers, or cubanela (cubanelle) peppers
- 1 small red onion, cut into slices
- ½ teaspoon mashed garlic
- 4 plum tomato, cut into quarters
- ¼ cup pitted green olives, (optional)
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 4 sprigs parsley, or cilantro, minced
Instructions
1. Boiling the gizzards
Add the gizzards to a large pot and 1 quart [1 liter] of water. Add a tablespoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of black pepper, 1 teaspoon of oregano, and the bay leaf, Boil until the gizzards become very tender, which can be 60 90 minutes, add water if it becomes necessary to prevent it from drying out. A pressure cooker or Instant pot speeds up this step to about 20 - 30 minutes.
2. Drain water
- Separate the gizzards from the water (set both aside). Discard the bay leaf.
3. Sautée the vegetables.
- In a large skillet or Dutch oven (caldero), heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken gizzards and cook and stir until any liquid left has evaporated and there's only meat and oil left in the pan.Stir in bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Cook stirring until the onion becomes translucent. Stir in tomatoes, olives, and half a teaspoon of oregano. Add the tomato sauce and a cup of the liquid from boiling the gizzards.
4. Simmering
- Cover with the lid, and simmer until the liquid has reduced to half (about 7 minutes).The vegetables will be tender, and the sauce should be a bit thick.
5. Serving
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add fresh cilantro, and remove from the stove.See suggestions to serve above the recipe.
Cook's Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
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Chicken gizzard recipes
My favorite chicken gizzard recipe is chicken gizzards and rice (Locrio de molleja), a tasty combination of rice, vegetables, and gizzards in a one-pot dish. My second favorite is this Molleja guisada recipe. You can see more of our Dominican chicken recipes.
In the Southern US, fried chicken gizzards are a part of their cooking heritage and are popularly cooked in a deep-fryer and served with a dipping sauce as an appetizer. In Brazil, it is grilled; and made into tender chicken gizzards Adobo, a stir fry in the Philippines.
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