Know2eat

Chicken heart

Gallus gallus domesticus

What chicken heart has been studied for

2 associations assessed — 1 with at least some human evidence behind it. Strongest first.

  • 1 Limited
  • 1 Insufficient
3 things to know first — allergies, interactions and intake limits

About chicken heart

The small cardiac muscle of the chicken, sold as giblets and eaten grilled on skewers in Brazil and Japan and stewed elsewhere. Cardiac muscle is dense, dark and firm rather than tender.

Also known as Chicken hearts, Coracao de frango, Hatsu

Women's HealthMuscle & Physical Performance

The evidence in depth

Best supported: Limited

What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Iron status

Women's Health
Limited evidence

Has been studied as a source of heme iron. Cardiac muscle is more iron-dense than breast meat, but the evidence concerns heme iron as a nutrient rather than this food.

Limited evidence. Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.

4 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Exercise performance

Muscle & Physical Performance
Insufficient evidence

Evidence is limited for chicken heart affecting exercise performance. Interest comes from its taurine and creatine content, but the trials in this area use isolated creatine monohydrate at doses far above what any realistic portion of meat supplies.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

2 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Ask about Chicken heart

Ask about Chicken heart

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

AI explanations are not switched on for this site, so there is nothing to ask here. Everything above is read straight from the database and does not need them.

Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories153 kcal8%
Protein15.6 g31%
Total fat9.33 g12%
Carbohydrate0.71 g0%
Fibre0 g0%
Water73.6 g—
Fats
Saturated fat2.66 g13%
Monounsaturated fat2.37 g—
Polyunsaturated fat2.71 g—
Cholesterol136 mg45%
EPA (omega-3)0 g—
DHA (omega-3)0 g—
DPA (omega-3)0 g—
Linoleic acid (omega-6)1.91 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A9 µg1%
Vitamin C3.2 mg4%
Thiamin (B1)0.152 mg13%
Riboflavin (B2)0.728 mg56%
Niacin (B3)4.88 mg31%
Pantothenic acid (B5)2.56 mg51%
Vitamin B60.36 mg21%
Folate72 µg18%
Vitamin B127.29 µg304%
Minerals
Calcium12 mg1%
Iron5.96 mg33%
Magnesium15 mg4%
Phosphorus177 mg14%
Potassium176 mg4%
Sodium74 mg3%
Zinc6.59 mg60%
Copper0.346 mg38%
Manganese0.089 mg4%
Selenium4.3 µg8%
Other measured compounds
Ash0.85 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Chicken, heart, all classes, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 171458).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

  • friedIncreases heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

    Grilling small pieces of meat directly over coals to a charred surface produces heterocyclic amines in the crust and deposits polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from the smoke of dripping fat. Lower heat, greater distance from the flame and removing charred parts all measurably reduce the amounts formed.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Too much

    Purines and gout

    Heart belongs to the organ meat group that gout guidance advises limiting, and organ meats show the strongest and most consistent association with flares in cohort data.

  • Worth knowing

    Raw poultry pathogens and grilling

    Giblets carry the usual poultry pathogens, and skewered hearts grilled quickly over high heat can stay underdone at the centre while looking charred outside.

  • Too much

    Cholesterol

    Higher in dietary cholesterol than skeletal muscle, as most offal is.