Learn Hardcore Croatian: U tavi pržim luk i češnjak za večeru. - In the frying pan I am frying onion and garlic for dinner.

The base form (dictionary form) is tava – a pan.
After the preposition u (in) with a static location (where something is happening), Croatian uses the locative case.
The locative singular of tava is tavi.

So:

tava = pan (nominative)
u tavi = in the pan (locative, after u meaning “in”)

Why is there no word for "I" in "pržim"? Where is the subject?

Croatian usually drops the subject pronoun (like ja = I) because the verb ending already shows the person.

pržim is 1st person singular: I fry / I am frying.
You could say Ja pržim luk i češnjak, but it sounds unnecessary unless you want to emphasize I.

So the subject "I" is implied by the verb ending -im.

What is the difference between "pržiti" and "peći"? Both seem to translate as "to fry" or "to bake".

Both verbs refer to cooking with dry heat, but they’re used differently:

pržiti
- Typically: to fry in a pan with oil/fat.
- Example: pržiti krumpiriće – to fry French fries.
peći
- Broader: to bake, roast, grill (in the oven, on a grill, etc.).
- Example: peći kruh – to bake bread; peći meso – to roast meat.

In your sentence, pržim luk i češnjak is specifically “I’m frying onions and garlic (in a pan)”.

Is "pržim" present tense, and does it mean "I am frying" or "I fry"?

Pržim is present tense, from pržiti.

In Croatian, one present tense form often covers both English meanings:

I am frying (right now)
I fry (as a habit)

Context decides which one fits. Here it can mean:

I am frying onions and garlic for dinner (right now). or
I (usually) fry onions and garlic for dinner.

Is "pržiti" perfective or imperfective? What would the perfective version be?

Pržiti is imperfective – it describes an ongoing or repeated action.

The common perfective partner is ispržiti, which focuses on the completed action:

Pržim luk i češnjak. – I am frying onions and garlic. (focus on the process)
Ispržit ću luk i češnjak. – I will fry (and finish frying) the onions and garlic.

So:

pržiti = to be frying / to fry (ongoing, habitual)
ispržiti = to fry up, to finish frying (completed result)

Does "luk" mean only “onion”, or can it also mean “garlic”?

Luk in this context means “onion”.

However, in Croatian:

luk can mean “onion” specifically,
but also “allium” more generally (the family that includes onion, garlic, leek, etc.), depending on context.

For garlic, the usual specific word is:

češnjak (standard Croatian),
or bijeli luk (“white onion”) in some other variants (especially Serbian/Bosnian/colloquial speech).

What exactly does "češnjak" mean, and how do you pronounce it?

Češnjak means garlic.

Pronunciation (approximate English guidance):

č = like ch in "chocolate"
š = like sh in "shop"
nj = like ny in "canyon"

So češnjak sounds roughly like: “CHESH-nyak”.

Why is it "za večeru" and not something like "na večeru"?

Za večeru literally means “for dinner” (purpose: for the dinner meal).

za
- accusative (večeru) often expresses purpose or goal:
  - Kupujem kruh za večeru. – I’m buying bread for dinner.

Na večeru can also exist, but it means something different:

na večeru = to/at a dinner (event)
Example: Idem na večeru kod prijatelja. – I’m going to (a) dinner at a friend’s place.

In your sentence, you’re cooking for the meal, so za večeru is correct.

What case is "večeru", and what is the base form?

The base form is večera – dinner, supper (nominative).

In za večeru, večeru is in the accusative singular:

Preposition za (for) usually takes the accusative when expressing purpose.

So:

večera – dinner (subject form)
za večeru – for dinner (accusative after za)

Can I change the word order? For example, is "Pržim luk i češnjak u tavi za večeru" also correct?

Yes, the word order in Croatian is quite flexible, and your version is grammatically correct:

U tavi pržim luk i češnjak za večeru.
Pržim luk i češnjak u tavi za večeru.

Both mean essentially the same. Differences are mainly emphasis and style:

Starting with U tavi emphasizes the location: In the pan, I’m frying…
Starting with Pržim emphasizes the action: I’m frying onions and garlic (in the pan) for dinner.

All of these can be acceptable depending on what you emphasize.

Why are there no articles like “a” or “the” in this sentence?

Croatian does not have articles (no equivalent of English a/an/the).

luk can mean “onion”, “an onion”, or “the onion”, depending on context.
Similarly, češnjak can be “garlic”, “some garlic”, etc.

So Pržim luk i češnjak could be translated as:

I’m frying onion and garlic.
I’m frying the onion and the garlic.
I’m frying some onion and garlic.

English has to choose an article; Croatian doesn’t mark that grammatically.

How do I pronounce "pržim", especially the letter ž?

Pržim is pronounced approximately like “PR-zhim”.

Sound details:

r – trilled or tapped, like in Spanish or Italian.
ž – like s in “measure” or “vision” (the zh sound).
i – like ee in “see”.
m – as in English.

So: p + r (rolled) + ž (“zh”) + im (“eem”).

Is "luk i češnjak" grammatically singular or plural? The verb is "pržim", not "pržimO".

The verb ending -im shows 1st person singular (I), not number of objects.

Pržim = I fry / I am frying.
luk i češnjak is a compound object (two things), but Croatian doesn’t mark this in the verb form.

So:

Ja pržim luk i češnjak. – I (singular subject) fry onions and garlic (two objects).
If the subject were plural, the verb would change:
- Mi pržimo luk i češnjak. – We are frying onions and garlic.