do you do anything to prep the liver before cooking? i’ve been using a lemon-based water, but wonder if there’s a better approach i could take

yes, but not often enough to really know if i’m doing it right. youtube will probably give better advice than i can.

If pre sliced good to go, otherwise slice thin about 1/4”, a little salt on each side, heat some butter or ghee, fry each side about 1 or 2 min, or until the blood stops, whichever comes first. Biggest mistake is to overcook, it makes it tougher. Rare to medium rare it should be as tender as filet mignon.

It’s an acquired taste if you didn’t grow up eating it. Heart is much milder if you need training wheels, and has good stuff like Coq10. Kidney is next level as far as strong flavor, and spleen is definitely not for the faint of heart!

liver dumplings are delicious, though preparing them... well, if you can do it outside, do.

1/2 ground liver (this will stink horribly), 1/2 sausage meat (open up a ground sausage and put it in; ground beef will do as well). (not half a liver; hlaf the mass liver, half the mass sausage meat)

in butter, fry parsley, onions, and garlic, with a little salt and pepper, mix that with the meat, add an egg. Make dumplings, then boil the dumplings in broth.

goes well with mashed potatoes.