Fried Chicken Liver; my comfort food

Fried chicken liver is a delicacy.  Back home there used to be a little store down the street from where we lived that only sold fresh chickens and every part imaginable of those poor little chickens.  There were days were I would go and buy a few chicken heads for this one soup that my grandmother made for me.  Reading this you might think wow, how foreign!  But honestly, there is something special about authentic chicken head soup that your grandmother makes.  Not only is it made with love, which makes it taste even better, but it is authentic, original, and always delicious. 

Every few weeks, I would go to the same place and buy around two pounds of chicken liver.  This time I would take them to my uncle’s wife, as she made the best chicken liver.  We all lived in the same building, grandparents on the top floor, while each one of my uncles and my father had a floor to themselves below them.   It is customary in that part of the world to live very close to your parents, even after marriage.  Wives, fathers, sons, daughters and grandparents all live within a walking distance from each other.  It is beautiful, but oh the drama! Living most of my life in the US has taught me that distance is good, even from your most loved ones. 

So back to chicken liver, my grandmother always boiled them first then sautéed them with onions, which I did not like at all.  The recipe I learned was from my uncle’s wife, who fried them with a generous amount of spice then added a glaze of pomegranate molasses.  You would be able to smell them from a mile away! Fried chicken liver is comfort food in my opinion.  Give this dish a shot, you will not regret it!

-2 Lbs. chicken liver

-4 tbls of pomegranate molasses

-3 lemons

-5 cloves of garlic

-1 tbls of cinnamon

-1 tbls black pepper

-1 tsp salt

-1 tsp cayenne pepper

-3 bay leaves

Wash the chicken liver with cold water and then let them sit in a strainer for about 30 minutes.  While in the strainer, after they are dried, add all the spices and salt and let sit for another 30 minutes.  Heat about half a cup of vegetable oil in a large flat pan.  Add the bay leaves to the oil then the chicken liver.  Add a little bit more of the spices if you wish, then close the pan and let them cook for 30 minutes but make sure you stir them every 5 minutes.  Remove the cover and allow cooking until water dries and they become a little crispy.  This is when you add the pomegranate molasses glaze.  A few minutes after that they will be ready to serve.  For the sauce on the side, squeeze the lemons and mince the garlic, mix together and dip your chicken liver in it before each bite! I eat mine with pita bread.  Yum!