The stovetop twin of mezhaje: the same cornmeal dough, shaped into flat cakes and browned on both sides in a covered pan instead of baked.
Chirzhin (Griddled Cornbread)
Ingredients
Method
- Sift the maize flour into a bowl; pour over boiling salted water and stir to a dough.
- Spread to cool, then work in the wheat flour for flavour.
- Rest about 2 hours (do not let it sour).
- With wet hands so the dough will not stick, shape into round or oval flat cakes.
- Place in a hot, greased pan and cover.
- Cook over gentle heat, browning both sides.
- Serve hot or cold with salted cheese, sour cream, soured milk or Kalmyk tea.
This is the recipe from the Recipes section of the Circassian app, where you can also scale it and save it to your favourites.
Kitchen words in Circassian
The words for what is in this dish, in Kabardian (East Circassian) and Adyghe (West Circassian), with audio from the Circassian app’s lessons and audio course.
| English | Kabardian | Adyghe |
|---|---|---|
| water | псыpsy | псыpsə |
| salt | шыгъуshyghu | щыгъуshchəghu |
| food | шхынshkhyn | шхыныshkhənə |
| delicious | IэфI'ef' | IэшIу'eshIu |
| This is delicious! | Мыр IэфIщ!Myr 'ef'shch! | Мыр IэшIу!Myr 'esh'u! |
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Chirzhin: questions
How long does it take to make Chirzhin?
About 50 minutes, according to the recipe in the Circassian app.
How many people does this Chirzhin recipe serve?
It serves 6. The servings control above the ingredients recalculates every quantity for 1 to 40 people.
What is Chirzhin made of?
The ingredients are: 1 kg maize (corn) flour; 100–150 g wheat flour; boiling water; salt; fat, to grease the pan.
Is Chirzhin an everyday or a festive dish?
The Circassian app files it as an everyday dish (Breads & Grains).
Where does this Chirzhin recipe come from?
From the Recipes section of the Circassian app. The app’s recipes draw on Amjad Jaimoukha’s book Circassian Cuisine and were cross-checked against Russian and Adyghe food sources.
Sources
- Circassian app, Recipes section, recipe “Chirzhin (Griddled Cornbread)” (recipe data last changed July 2026). The app’s recipes draw on Amjad Jaimoukha’s book Circassian Cuisine and were cross-checked against Russian and Adyghe food sources.
- Circassian app: audio course, Kabardian and Adyghe (the kitchen words: cheese, meat, milk, bread, tea, water, food, delicious), and the lessons’ vocabulary (chicken, salt, butter, honey).
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Circassian chicken, Adyghe cheese, haliva and 50 more, in English, Russian and Turkish, with servings you can scale. Plus short lessons in Kabardian or Adyghe.
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