are gizzards chicken balls

Chicken gizzards are cut from the digestive tract of a chicken. Similar to a stomach, the gizzard is used to grind up the foods the bird eats.

Chicken gizzards are a popular food throughout the world. You can find them sold as street food in Haiti and Southeast Asia and in soup in Mexico. In Africa, theyre served fried, boiled, or grilled, and in Europe, theyre featured in salads and pâtés.

What Are Chicken Gizzards?

A gizzard is a muscle found in the digestive tract of a chicken. If youve ever seen chickens pecking away at the ground, they are in fact swallowing tiny bits of grit and gravel, which travels through the chickens digestive tract and eventually lodges in the gizzard. Then when actual food arrives, this powerful little muscle contracts, like a tiny fist squeezing a handful of gravel. The gravel grinds up the food, and the food continues on into the stomach.

Gizzards are very small, with a distinctive taste that resembles dark chicken meat, but with a chewier and tougher texture. Cook them the way you would cook barbecue brisket, pork ribs or oven-braised pot roast—low and slow. The average cost of a pound of chicken gizzards is about $1.50 (or less).

Chicken Gizzard Recipes

Gizzards can be added to anything: Tacos, enchiladas, bolognese sauce, and lasagna, not to mention soups, chili, and fried rice. Theyre also terrific served slightly warm with a plate of greens. Chop them up and add them to your homemade stuffing. Or wrap them with bacon and deep fry until crispy and serve as fancy hors doeuvres. Its best to chill the gizzards before slicing because theyll be firmer and youll get a cleaner slice.

MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME HOW TO MAKE THESE CHICKEN BALLS.