Homemade cat food
Chicken Gizzard & Heart Taurine Mince
Two of the best natural sources of taurine — chicken heart and gizzard — simmered tender and finely chopped into a nutrient-dense organ-meat treat.
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Time
- 40 min
- Makes
- 5 small servings
🧺 Ingredients
- 60 g chicken hearts, trimmed of any large vessels
- 60 g chicken gizzards, cleaned
- A little plain water for simmering
👩🍳 Method
- Rinse the hearts and gizzards well and trim away any tough silver skin or large vessels.
- Simmer them gently in plain water for around 30 minutes until fully cooked and tender — gizzards are chewy and need the longer time.
- Drain, reserving a spoon of the cooking water, and let everything cool to lukewarm.
- Chop the cooked hearts and gizzards very finely, or pulse briefly in a processor, into small cat-sized pieces.
- Moisten with a little of the reserved cooking water and serve a small amount.
- Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed tub and use within two days, or freeze in portions.
Nutrition: Chicken heart and gizzard are naturally high in taurine, protein, iron and B vitamins — heart in particular is one of the most taurine-dense foods a cat can eat.
📝 Notes
Heart and gizzard are among the richest natural sources of taurine, the amino acid cats must get from their diet for healthy eyes and heart. This makes a superb topper or training treat, but organ meat is rich, so keep portions small and treat it as a supplement to — not a substitute for — a complete, balanced diet. Serve fully cooked and plain, with no seasoning.
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⚕️ Before you cook for your cat
- Homemade food must be balanced. Cats need taurine, and deficiency causes heart and eye disease.
- Treat recipes are supplements to a complete diet, not a replacement for it.
- Check any new ingredient against the toxic-foods list, and ask your vet before switching diets.