Fatty Liver – Can I Eat Chicken?

Some people suggest that, once you’ve been diagnosed with a fatty liver, you have to stop eating meat, including chicken and others think differently and argue that all meat is ok. What is the truth? In this article we will process the truth about Fatty Liver and Chicken. The rest of the meats will be covered later [#link].

Can we or can we not eat chicken when diagnosed with Fatty Liver / NAFLD?

Is Chicken Good For Us When We Are Diagnosed With Fatty Liver?

To really answer the question we must discuss in detail the following:

• Which Chicken Part: Which part of chicken is best for fatty liver
• Cooking Method: How to cook chicken for fatty liver
• Frequency: How often can you eat chicken?
• Knowledge is power: What else to avoid in terms of chicken and fatty liver

Consequently, if you disregard any of the above four pillars of chicken-eating, you will be eating something that is not good for you if you are suffering from Fatty Liver disease.

The chicken you consume: Choose the right part, cook the right way and avoid the bad things!

And to understand this even more, we must remember the following rules of the NAFLD diet:

• Reduce carbs, especially empty carbs
• Avoid processed food
• Minimize “bad” fat consumption
• Eliminate sugars

In other articles, we have discussed more meat[#link], eggs & cereals, but today, let’s focus on Chicken!

Which Chicken Part Is Best For NAFLD?

Did you know that chicken has red meat?

In general, for the NAFLD diet, red meat is not recommended because it is high in saturated fat content. Chicken thighs & drumsticks are some of the most popular parts of the chicken and unfortunately, they also have higher red meat content than the breasts and are hence not recommended for a Fatty Liver diet.

Similarly, parts like chicken skin are extremely high in fat content and should be avoided as much as possible. Hence, unfortunately, chicken wings are a no-go. While you may find (or do it yourself) skinless chicken wings, the fat content is still substantially high and hence it is harder to recommend even skinless chicken wings to be eaten with a Fatty Liver diet. However, look for them in cheat day recommendations for a NAFLD diet [#link].

What does this mean? Two parts of chicken come out as winners:

• Chicken breast
• Chicken liver (with caution)

To demonstrate the difference, I have provided a comparison table below to clarify how nutritional facts stack up when it comes to 100 grams of skinless chicken breasts vs skinless chicken thighs vs chicken liver vs skinless chicken wings for NAFLD:

	Chicken breast	Chicken Thighs	Chicken Liver	Chicken wings
Calories	165	214	167	200
Fat	3.6 g	14 g	6.5 g	8 g
Saturated	1 g	4.1 g	2.1 g	2 g
Protein	31 g	23 g	24 g	30 g
Carbs	0	0	0.9 g	0
Cholesterol	85 mg	128 mg	563 mg	85 mg

Note: Numbers are for skinless parts. Skin adds a substantial amount of fat content to either part so chicken skin falls under – DO NOT EAT bucket even though its packs a flavorful crunch to a lot of recipes

As you can clearly see, chicken breasts are a much better choice than almost any other part of the chicken.

Chicken Breasts

As I mentioned above, nutritionally chicken breasts are the best choice for a fatty liver diet. Their high protein content along with low fat and cholesterol makes them an ideal meal for anyone suffering from fatty liver disease. However, please note that the devil is indeed in the details and how you cook the chicken thighs makes a huge difference! In short, don’t just throw them in a frying pan yet 😉 please read on!

How you cook your meat has a lot to do with what you can consume with a fatty liver diet. While chicken breasts are good for fatty liver on paper, they are only as good as the method used to cook them.

When cooked healthily, you can eat as much as one chicken breast almost daily – however, don’t do that at the cost of eating vegetables.

Chicken Liver

When I did my research, chicken liver came up as surprisingly good. Its dark red color does lend itself to a lot of skepticism in dietary discussions. However, I found that Chicken liver has low-fat content, lots of protein, and tons of vitamins and minerals.

Vitamin A, Vitamin B-Complex, Vitamin E, Iron, Selenium, Choline, and Folate – all have high nutritional value and some minerals like choline are known to be good for the liver.

I have come to the conclusion that chicken liver is actually a great food for NALFD if cooked healthy and provided that you have the taste for it.

One caution though: Chicken liver is extremely high in cholesterol. If you have a cholesterol problem, please check with your doctor about consuming chicken liver or keeping it for your cheat day meal.

However, if you do not have a cholesterol problem, eating chicken liver in moderation (no more than 1-2 times a week) and in small amounts (portions of 40-50 grams) should be good.

Cook the chicken liver the right way before consume and if you have high cholesterol, check with your doctor!

Chicken Thighs & Wings

I will be short here: If you have NAFLD, keep them for cheat days. If you can find a skinless variety of chicken wings, you can consume them a little more, however, I would not recommend regular consumption of chicken thighs or wings. Even when you eat these on cheat days, make sure they are cooked in a Fatty liver-friendly way.

Whether you are eating chicken on a regular or a cheat day, make sure it is cooked in a Fatty Liver friendly way!

How To Cook Chicken For Fatty Liver

As we discussed already, chicken breasts are good for fatty liver, however, this doesn’t mean that you can bread them up, deep fry them and eat them at will.

What To Avoid While Cooking Chicken For Fatty Liver Diet

Let’s start with a quick discussion about what to avoid:

• Batters: any kind of battering would add additional calories to fatty liver, avoid them at all costs.
• Frying: Frying any type of food adds a lot of fat (bad variety) and cholesterol to the food.
• Sauces, marinations, coatings, glazing, and flavors: These items that add flavor to the chicken – whether homemade or store-bought – can add hefty amounts of sugar and fats to the mix. Store-bought sauces also fall under the category of processed foods which add chemicals that put pressure on the liver. However – do not give up hope! I discuss some best practices further in the article so keep on reading!
• Sides: So you got a baked chicken breast ready to eat and to spice it up a little, on the side – you have a small bowl of cheesy fries to complete your meal – what’s the harm in that? Unfortunately, if you suffer from fatty liver, a poor choice of side dish could result in a lot of harm. Avoid fries – potato or sweet potato, chips, and basically anything fatty, sugary, or buttery 😜. Read on for some healthy options.

You may think that this takes a lot of yum! from your diet, but that is not so. You can still add a lot of flavor to your chicken without hurting your Fatty Liver.

When it comes to cooking chicken, you have plenty of options still and fortunately, they all result in flavorful tasty chicken when made with the right ingredients. Here’s what I recommend regarding eating chicken with your NAFLD:

Best Ways To Cook Chicken For Fatty Liver Diet

• Grilled: Grilling can be easy and relaxing but also messy and time-consuming. However, with the right kind of coating/marination, it can be amazingly flavorful. Just keep away from butters and oils while grilling. Think about Olive oil (the best oil for fatty liver) and brush some olive oil on your chicken before cooking.
• Baked: Marinate your chicken for a few hours (or a couple of days) and bake it on baking paper. With the right kind of marinade/coating, it can come out tasting phenomenal.
• Roasted: Since I have a convection microwave oven, this is my go-to method for cooking chicken as I do not need to be dependent on the weather to cook.
• Boiled or in Soup form: Boil the chicken and then bake it to get some crispiness on the outside. Absolutely! Boil the chicken and some herbs, spices, and seeds to make it flavorful. Bring it on! However, do not forget the chicken soup! Add a lot of vegetables, spices, and herbs to make it as yummy as you can – avoiding oils, butter, creams, and other fatty ingredients. Chicken soup is my other go-to form of consuming chicken.
• Sauces, marinations, coatings, glazing, and flavors: We already talked about what to avoid. However, to give your chicken additional flavor punch you can use a yogurt (fat-free), lemon/lime, herbs, spices, and seeds in your marinade, coatings, and sauces. Another “oily” option is using a little bit of olive oil in any of the above. I like my food spicy and I have in the last couple of years come up with so many different sauces, and marinades that I do not crave the unhealthy variety of flavor anymore.
• Sides: Love your sides? Salads, grilled, boiled, or roasted vegetables make for great sides. Avoid anything fatty – fried, buttery or creamy.

Conclusion

Note on soup: As I started to reverse my fatty liver, soup became one of my biggest source of meals in the initial stages of my Fatty Liver. It didn’t matter whether it was winter or summer. Initially I may have found soup to be not filling, but eventually a big bowl of soup was enough to keep me contended for a long duration.

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Yes, you can eat chicken with a fatty liver. However, you should only eat lean portions of chicken breasts and cook them in a liver-friendly way. This means avoiding deep frying and coating with sauces and toppings full of sugar and fat.

Verdict: Eat chicken cooked the right way (not fried or breaded). Chicken breast is preferable to any other chicken part.

Nonetheless, cooking the chicken in a liver-friendly way will be an adjustment that you would need to be willing to make for the sake of your liver. Rest assured your liver will thank you for it.

Remember that chicken thighs, wings, and liver are cheat day eligible. However, even on your cheat days cook them the healthier way. Avoid screwing up all the hard work you have been doing for the whole week.

Comment below with some of the best “fatty liver-friendly” chicken recipes you have tried.

Bon Appétit