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Tavë dheu

The name means 'earthenware dish', and in Tirana's traditional restaurants tavë dheu arrives bubbling in its clay pot: tender pieces of liver cooked with peppers, tomato and garlic, then baked under a creamy blanket of gjizë, the Albanian salted curd cheese, until it browns. It is rich and tangy, a classic hot meze and lunch dish in Albania, eaten with plenty of bread. A common mistake is frying the liver too long before baking, which makes it tough and grainy. Chef's tip: soak the liver in milk in the fridge for 30 minutes before cooking; it softens any bitterness.

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