Albanian Food – The 15 Best typical Albanian dishes

Albania › Albanian Food – The 15 Best typical Albanian dishes

Albanian cuisine combines various culinary influences to create an exclusive experience. Mediterranean, Balkan and, to some extent, Ottoman/Muslim elements come together here. The produce is rich and colourful, while the meat is tender. The cuisine is characterised by the rural areas, the mountain regions and the coast, and there are so many exciting flavours to be tasted in Albania.

Discover the colourful cuisine of Albania with us! And ‘colourful’ is truly no exaggeration, as there are vegetarian delicacies as well as delicious meat and fish dishes to suit every taste. At the same time, you will often find true colourfulness on your plate due to the different vegetables, sauces and side dishes.

Very large portions and plenty of helpings are just as typical as the hospitality that surrounds you in the restaurants. No one who decides to travel through the country, which still has more of an insider tip status in Europe, need go hungry. Enjoy the mix of traditional meals and Mediterranean influences, which is sure to make your mouth water immediately.

Table Of Contents

Get ready for divine tastes and textures as we explore 15 traditional Albanian dishes and find out what makes them so delicious.

Overview:

1 – Tavë Kosi – Baked lamb or chicken in yoghurt

2 – Ferges – summer stew

3 – Tarator – Cold yoghurt appetiser

4 – Byrek – Albanian pastry

5 – Flija – Albanian baked crepes

6 – Jani me Fasule – White bean soup

7 – Ashure – Dessert porridge made from grains, fruits and nuts

8 – Kackavall ne Furre me Domate – Baked cheese with tomatoes

9 – Speca te Mbushur me Oriz – Rice stuffed peppers

10 – Petulla – Baked dough

11 – Peshk dhe Perime ne Tave – Fish and vegetables

12 – Qofte – Albanian Meatballs

13 – Tave Mishi – Mixed meat platter

14 – Speca te Mbushur me Salce Kosi – Peppers stuffed with sour cream

15 – Sarme – Cabbage rolls filled with meat and rice

Albanian food – The 15 most popular traditional Albanian dishes:

Tavë Kosi – Baked lamb or chicken in yoghurt

In Albania, chicken baked in yoghurt is a popular traditional dish that is often served at lunchtime.

It is known throughout the Balkans as Elbasan tava, named after the Albanian city where the dish originated. Tave Kosi is usually prepared with lamb, but some Albanians also use chicken as an alternative.

The yoghurt is mixed with rice and eggs and baked together with the meat. This dish has a very special taste. The baked yoghurt has a soft consistency and tastes a little sour, while the meat balances this well and gives the dish its juicy meaty flavour.

Ferges – Albanian Summer stew

Ferges is undoubtedly one of the most traditional dishes in Albania. The dish consists mainly of tomato sauce, cottage cheese, green peppers and garlic.

The main reason why this dish is called summer stew is that many Albanians like to eat it after it has gone cold. It is best to eat this dish when it has been allowed to cool for about 2-3 hours. This gives it a thicker consistency and allows the ingredients to come into their own.

Ferges is usually eaten with bread only. I usually put toasted bread in the dish and eat it that way. It is not a typical menu in Albanian restaurants, but you can try it in restaurants in the countryside that serve traditional food.

Tarator – Cold yoghurt starter (vegetarian)

This starter is a great dish that Albanians usually eat before a main meat-based meal.

It is usually served in summer because it is a cold specialty. The dish is prepared with Greek yoghurt, cold water, grated cucumber and salt. The starter has the consistency of a soup, which is why it is usually served in a bowl.

It tastes very similar to the traditional Albanian drink dhalle. That is why many foreigners are surprised when they are served tarator in a bowl. This starter is particularly popular with the older generation, while younger people prefer dhalle because it is more practical to consume.

Byrek – Albanian pastry (vegetarian or with meat)

Albanian pies are one of the most popular traditional dishes. People love them because they can eat them quickly or take them with them as a snack when they are on the go.

This typical speciality, considered a national dish in Albanian cuisine, is more of a snack than an appetiser. It consists of a baked, savoury dough that is wrapped into a spiral shape and placed in a round mould. Common fillings include spinach, cottage cheese, tomatoes and onions or minced meat. Locals enjoy byrek for breakfast or any other time of the day. You will usually have Greek yoghurt on the side with your meal.

Byrek is usually served with Greek yoghurt or dhalle. The older generation usually eat byrek after the main course. Others most often eat it as a quick snack or as a dessert. It is still common for Albanians to prepare byrek at home, although you can also find them in local restaurants and shops that sell these pastries specifically.

Flija – Baked crepes (vegetarian)

This dish is common in the northern region of Albania and Kosovo. It is a simple recipe that is usually prepared in Albanian households or served in local traditional restaurants.

Flija is a simple crepe-like dish that is crispy on top and softer on the bottom. The added butter gives Flija its delicious taste. The dish is usually served with fresh dairy products such as cheese or yoghurt.

Fasule – White Bean Soup

White bean soup is still a popular dish in Albanian cuisine.

During the Albanian famine, it was one of the most frequently prepared dishes because it was the cheapest to cook and also the most filling. Even after the famine, white bean soup has lost none of its popularity.

The soup is prepared with tomato sauce, onions and white beans and often served with pickled vegetables or Greek yoghurt. Most Albanians eat this soup with kulac, a homemade bread.

Ashure – Porridge-like dessert made from grains, fruits and nuts

It has a gelatinous consistency that melts in your mouth, allowing you to taste the nuts or dried fruit with which it is prepared. Ashure is best described as a sweet porridge served cold.

It is a popular Albanian dessert that is traditionally eaten during the first month of the Islamic calendar. However, you can find this delicious dessert all year round in every pastry shop in Albania. It is a good and healthy choice when you fancy something sweet.

Kackavall ne Furre me Domate – Baked Cheese with Tomatoes

Kackavall is a traditional Albanian cheese that comes from cows or sheep. Depending on the animal it comes from, the consistency of the Kackavall cheese changes.

Albanians like to eat this cheese with various traditional dishes. They usually bake Kackavall with chopped tomatoes and additional herbs. Baked cheese with tomatoes is served as a side dish because the melted cheese complements the flavour of various meats. It is often found in Albanian grill restaurants.

Speca te Mbushur me Oriz – Stuffed peppers

Stuffed peppers are a very popular local dish. They are served in all regions of Albania and can be found in rural restaurants serving traditional dishes.

The dish consists of green peppers filled with rice. The exact recipe varies depending on how it was passed down. Some Albanians add minced lamb or tomatoes instead of just rice. The stuffed peppers are then baked and served hot.

This dish is served with Greek yoghurt, feta cheese or dhalle. The addition of chillies or black pepper is also very popular with Albanians, as the spicy kick complements the mild flavour of the dish.

Peshk dhe Perime ne Tave – Fish & Vegetables

Since most of Albania is located near the Mediterranean Sea, you can probably guess that there is at least one traditional dish there that consists of fish.

In almost every restaurant in Albania, there is one dish that is worth trying at least once, and that is the dish with baked fish and vegetables.

Usually, the fish is cleaned only on the outside and put in the oven together with chopped vegetables, all with olive oil and salt.

Wine or sometimes even raki is usually served with this dish. It is a typical dish that most foreigners who try it love.

Qofte – Meatballs

If you visit Albania, you will find many grill houses serving simple meatballs. In fact, traditional Albanian meatballs are different from what you might think when you order spaghetti and meatballs in Western kitchens.

Qofte is made only from lamb, which is diced and mixed with herbs. The meatballs are usually served with various vegetables and sour cream. Meatballs prepared in Albanian households are a bit different from what you might find in a typical Albanian restaurant.

Homemade meatballs are mixed with breadcrumbs and shaped into a flat, round form. In most cases, Albanians eat these meatballs with tomato soup. Many restaurants in rural Albania also prepare the meatballs in the homemade way.

Tave Mishi – Mixed meat platter

One of the most traditional dishes in Albania is a mixed meat platter. This platter is usually served at large family gatherings or special occasions.

It is worth trying the mixed meat platter because it offers you different flavours of juicy grilled meat on one plate. It is recommended to add fresh lemon juice to enhance the flavour. If the meat platter is too much food for you, paidhaqe is a good alternative.

Paidhaqe is lamb that is grilled and served with lemon. It is usually served with raki or dhalle.

Speca te Mbushur me Salce Kosi – Peppers filled with sour cream

A very popular traditional side dish in Albanian cuisine is pickled green peppers filled with sour cream.

They are a great accompaniment to heavy foods such as potatoes, meat and rice. Stuffed peppers are a popular menu item offered at grill restaurants and also at traditional restaurants in the countryside.

You can also find peppers filled with sour cream in markets selling dairy products. They have an interesting flavour, as the spicy, pickled taste of the peppers doesn’t let the sour cream overpower.

Sarme – cabbage rolls filled with meat and rice

Sarme is a traditional dish served in many Eastern European and Balkan countries. However, each country has its own way of preparing this dish. In Albania, sarme is mainly prepared in the northern region around Shkoder. They are cabbage rolls filled with rice and chopped meat.

These cabbage rolls are either cooked alone or made into a stew. In most cases, sarme is served with yoghurt or dhalle. It is mostly cooked by the older generation and is a traditional dish that is slowly dying out. However, it can still be found in some traditional restaurants in northern Albania.

Vegetarian and vegan in Albania

Avoiding meat is generally not a problem in your chosen travel destination. The starters in particular are often vegetarian and a mixed plate will provide you with plenty of food. For example, choose between cheese and vegetable dishes, as well as filled flatbreads and a variety of desserts.

While avoiding meat and fish is quite common, it becomes more difficult when it comes to the general exclusion of animal products. Tofu or other substitute products are hardly ever found in restaurants; an exception are large cities like Tirana, where one or the other vegan restaurant has now found its way into the country. However, if you are travelling across the country and are mainly in rural areas, you should bring a few basics from home and/or try to find accommodation with your own kitchen.

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Albanian Cuisine: Within the country, there are major regional differences in the preparation of the same dishes, as cooking is rarely done according to recipes, but rather by eye. However, some Italian and Greek influences can also be found in the food culture. After the fall of the communist regime, many Albanians emigrated to Italy or Greece and brought the food culture of those countries back with them. The main meal of the day is lunch. A salad is an essential part of this meal. Meze is very common, with a variety of small dishes served throughout the meal, passed around like finger food.

What is typical Albanian food?

Typical Albanian dishes include the following: Byrek, Kaçkavall (yellow cheese), Tave Mishi (mixed meat platter), stuffed aubergines or peppers, Tarator (cold yoghurt soup) and Qifqi (rice balls).

What do Kosovo Albanians like to eat?

Traditional Kosovar dishes such as flija, pies, stuffed peppers, kebabs, bureks and sarma are typical of all regions, although there are slight differences from region to region.

Is Albanian food like Greek food?

Albanian cuisine shares many similarities with Greek cuisine, as well as the Mediterranean cuisine in general. Greek salad (“salate greke”) is very popular in Albania. Olives (including olive oil) and feta cheese are common ingredients or side dishes.

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