Chopped Liver
Submitted by Lyssa Kligman Harvey
Chopped Liver.JPG
It’s hard to believe that I now am the designated preparer of Chopped Liver in my family. Then again…no one else really wants to make it. It is a difficult and time consuming recipe. Cooking the liver and hard boiled eggs will certainly give the house a distinct aroma, so I always make sure and prepare it at least 24 hours before serving it. Chopped Liver is akin to liver pate that is usually served as an appetizer or as a side dish…hence the popular saying, “What am I…chopped liver.” It isn’t the centerpiece in a meal, even though it is a heavy meat dish high in protein and cholesterol. Chopped Liver is a dish of Eastern European / Ashkenazi origin that was commonly served in delicatessens. The first time I tasted chopped liver was in a sandwich with my parents in a New York delicatessen called the Carnegie Deli. It was huge. My father, Melton Kligman, happened to love liver. As a child, we would go out to eat at Morrison’s Cafeteria on Thursday nights just so he could order Liver and Onions. On Rosh Hashanah my mother, Helene Firetag Kligman, would make chopped liver and Dad would always make sure that there would be leftovers, so he could make a challah and chopped liver sandwich.
1 lb. chicken liver
1 large sweet onion
¼ cup of sugar
2 eggs
Gribenes frozen chicken fat (shmaltz)
Mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste
Boil eggs until hard boiled. Peel shells and set aside to cool.
Wash off liver and set aside.
Chop up frozen chicken fat (schmaltz).
Chop up onion into small pieces
In a large deep skillet, brown chicken fat (schmaltz) until very crispy, put on a paper towel to drain. The fried chicken fat (schmaltz) is now called Gribenes.
Brown the chopped onions using the remaining fat in the skillet.
Add the liver and ¼ cup of sugar and stir until the liver begins to turn brown.
Drain off the liquid from time to time and cook on medium heat until all liver is brown.
Let the liver cool.
Put the liver and eggs in a large bowl and hand chop until chunky or smooth, depending on taste.
Add mayonnaise and salt and pepper to taste.
Serve on a platter with crackers, raw celery and carrots.
After it is made, it will last in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. I like to make it a couple of days before as the flavor seems better.