Lavash
Paper-thin unleavened flatbread, blistered and scored in the tradition of the hearth.
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TJVJIK
Տժվժիկ
Liver and onions fried fast and hard, named for the sound it makes in the pan.
30 min
Total time
Serves 4
Yield
4
Steps
Step by step
HOW IT IS MADE
- 01
Prepare the liver
Trim membranes and cut into thin slices. Pat completely dry — wet liver steams instead of searing.
- 02
Sweeten the onions
Fry the onions in hot fat until golden and soft, then push them to the side of the pan.
- 03
Sear briefly
Raise the heat and fry the liver two minutes a side, no longer. It should still be faintly pink inside.
- 04
Season last
Salt and pepper only now, toss with the onions and herbs and scatter pomegranate seeds over the top.
At a glance
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Energy
- ≈ 330 kcal per serving
- Preparation
- 15 min
- Cooking
- 15 min
- Season
- All year
- Occasion
- Quick suppers, tavern food, drinking tables
Cook's notes
GET IT RIGHT
- Dry the liver thoroughly before it meets the pan.
- Salt at the end only — early salt toughens it.
- High heat, short time: two minutes a side is plenty.
- Do not crowd the pan; fry in two batches if needed.
Variations
With pepper paste
A spoon of Armenian pepper paste stirred in at the end.
Heart and lung
The full traditional mix of offal, cooked the same way.
Questions
ASKED IN THE KITCHEN
How do I remove bitterness?
Soak the liver in milk or salted water for thirty minutes first.
Chicken liver?
Works well and cooks even faster — ninety seconds a side.
History & Culture
WHY THIS DISH
Tjvjik is onomatopoeic — the word imitates the hissing spit of fat in a hot pan, and the dish is judged by speed rather than technique.
Traditionally it followed a slaughter, when offal had to be eaten first, and it survives today as tavern food and as the quick supper of cooks who know that liver forgives nothing but rewards nerve.
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