Grilled Steak

Ingredients:

• 1kg. meat, sliced
• 400g. cream
• salt and pepper
• oil

Cut the meat into 2-3cm thick slices and add salt and black pepper on each slice. Baste each slice with oil, arrange in a dish and keep in the refrigerator. The steak is the most tasty when the meat gets dark solour.

When the grill is ready, drain the oil from the meat and grill quickly on a high heat so that the inside part remains raw. Serve with cream

Grilled Steak

River Fish with Wine

Ingredients:

• 1kg. small river fish
• 2dl. white wine
• 1tbsp. flour
• 1 tbsp. oil
• lemon juice
• salt and pepper
• chopper bunch of parsley

Arrange the cleaned and rinsed fish in an oiled roasting tin. Season with salt and black pepper. Add the parsley and wine and roast in a preheated oven for 20 minutes. Arrange the roasted fish in a serving plate. Put the flour in the roasting tin, brown with the remained juice and cook a little. Pour this sauce over the fish and sprinkle with lemon juice.

River Fish with Wine

Main dish of mixed vegetables

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs various vegetables (peppers, eggplant, okra, zucchini, potatoes, etc)
• 1/2 cup oil, divided
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup peeled chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley
• salt and pepper

After cutting off inedible tips of vegetables, wash and slice them into 1-inch squares. Sauté vegetables in half of the oil and remove them from the frying pan. Sauté onion and tomatoes in the remaining oil, and season with parsley, salt, and pepper.

Put everything in a stock pot with a cup of water, cover tightly, and simmer until almost all moisture has cooked away. Serve hot, accompanied by steak, meatballs, or any other main dish. Serves for 4 people

Published in: The Best of Albanian Cooking by Klementina and R. John Hysa

Main dish of mixed vegetables

Karadjordje steak

Ingredients:

• 500g. of pork steaks
• 150g. of kajmak
• 2 eggs
• flour
• bread crumbs
• salt
• toothpicks

Beat the steaks with hammer until they are thin and soft. Cover one side of steaks with "kajmak". Rool the meat like a pancake and fasten it with toothpick. First, dip the steaks into flour, then dip them into mixed eggs and, finally, roll them into bread crumbs.

Fry the steaks in the heated oil until they get brown-yellow colour. You can add some fried potatoes and tartar sauce ass add-on. Serve with red wine.

Source: balkanrecipes.awardspace.com

Karadjordje steak

Leeks Pie

Ingredients:

• 1kg. soft flour, type 400
• 1/2l. warm water
• a pinch of salt
• 1-2 tablespoons oil
• 1 margarine at room temperature

Put 700 gr of flour in a bowl and mix with the salt, oil and enough warm water to make a dough. transfer to a floured surface and kned, adding water or flour, until it's smooth and soft.

For the dough into a ball, flour its surface, cover with a tea towell and leave for 20 minutes.

Cut the ball in 4 and roll each part with a rolling pin to 1-2 mm thick and spread with 50 g of margarine. With a knife, cut the crust in spiral shape, so you have a long band, 4 cm wide. Take the outer end and coil it into a ball. Flour the surface of the ball, put it on a plate, then in a plastic bag, and in the freezer. Do the same with the other 3 parts.

Warm a little oil and a little margarine and sprinkle the baking sheet. Roll the balls once again, one by one, in rectangular shape, 1-2 mm thick. The first one should be a little bigger than the baking sheet. Put the crust in the baking sheet and sprinkle with the oil and margarine. Roll the second ball and put it over the first, then put the filling. Roll the third crust a litlle bigger than the baking sheet and put it over the filling, creasing it a little. Sprinkle with oil and margarine. Roll the fourt crust, put it over the third, creased, and sprinkle with oil and margarine. Roll the ends of the first crust and sprinkle with oil.

Bake in a preheated oven at 250°C, around 20 minutes, then 5 more minutes at 200°C.

For the leeks filling, fry 8 finelly chopped leeks in oil on low heat, adding a little water and a little milk every few minutes, until the leeks are softened. Add salt and remove from heat. When cooled, add 3 eggs. The filling can be made a day ahead, then mix with the eggs before pouring in the pie.

Source: Sitnoseckano.blogspot.com

Leeks Pie

Serbian rice with meat

Ingredients:

• 500g. veal meat
• 10g. ham
• 1 big onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 250g. green paprika (peppers)
• 250g. carrots
• 375g. tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons oil
• salt
• 375ml. bouillon
• hot red pepper
• pepper
• 175g. parboiled rice
• 1 bunch of parsley

Cut the meat in cubes. Chop the peeled onions and peeled garlic (very fine). Slice paprika, carrots and tomatoes. Roast meat and chopped ham with oil in a pan and season with salt. Roast onions, garlic and paprika. Cook the carrots in the bouillon for 10 minutes, add tomatoes, meat, ham, rice and the other vegetables, season with salt, red pepper and pepper. Put the food in a heat-resistant form and gratinate in the preheated oven at 200°C for 50 minutes. Before serving decorate with fine chopped parsley.

Source: Chris_fra.tripod.com

Serbian rice with meat

Moussaka with rice

Ingredients:

• 200g. rice
• 1-1.5dl. oil
• 200g. fresh mushrooms
• 200g. chicken livers
• 1/2 bunch of parsley
• 2 eggs
• 2dl. sour cream

Pick over rice, wash and cook in slightly salted water. When tender, rince well and drain. Peel onion and chop finely. Heat oil, add onion, cook slowly to soften a little, then add trimmed mushrooms cut into thin slices, cook together about 10-15 minutes, then take out mushrooms with onion from oil.

Wash parsley, wipe and chop finely. Wash chicken livers, cut into strips, drain and fry a little in the same oil, add salt and pepper. Put a layer of rice into a greased fireproof dish, sprinkle with chopped parsley. Repeat until all is used. Cover with chicken livers and poir the rest of oil over. Heat oven to 200°C and bake about 20 minutes.

Towards the end pour eggs beaten with sour cream over the moussaka, put back into oven to brown. With moussaka serve lettuce, cabage salad, mixed salad...

Related recipes:

• Romanian mussaka
• Mussaka with ham from Bachka

Moussaka with rice

Macedonian pacha

Ingredients:

• 1-1.5kg. pork legs, ears and head
• black peppercorns
• parsnip, sliced
• carrots, sliced
• 1 onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 garlic bulb

Put the meat in a large, deep pot with cold water and cook it. When there is no foam add the bay leaf, black peppercorns, parsnip, carrot, onion and lemon juice. Cook for 4-5 hours. Much of the water evaporates. Take it out from the heat and leave it to cook. Remove the fat from the surface, strain the soup with a strainer, remove the bones from the meat and arrange the meat in a separate dish.

Cut the carrots and parsnip in slices and put them in the same dish. You may place slices of hard boiled eggs in the dish. Add also the crushed garlic with salt. Finally pour the soup over the meat and the vegetables and leave in a cool place until it turns to a jelly.

Macedonian pacha

Spinach puree with feta cheese

Ingredients:

• 1kg. spinach
• 5 tbsp. plain flour
• 100g. butter
• 200g. feta cheese
• 2 eggs
• salt
• 1-2 medium onions, finely chopped

Wash the spinach, cut into fine strips, cook for about 15 minutes in salty water, drain, leave to cool, then puree.

In a pan melt the butter, add the flour, then the onions and fry for about 5 minutes. Add 150 ml water (or milk) and the pureed spinach, bring to the boil, stirring frequently. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the eggs (beaten) and the crumbled cheese. Cook for further 5 minutes and take off the hob.

Source: Passionateaboutfood.net

Spinach puree with feta cheese

Romanian Mussaka

Ingredients:

• 1,5kg. potatoes, sliced
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 medium onions, sliced
• 800g. tinned tomatoes, chopped
• 450g. minced pork
• 250ml. beef stock
• salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Romanian Mussaka is a traditional Romanian recipe for a classic dish of layered potatoes, meat and tomatoes covered in beef stock and oven baked:

Heat the oil in a large pan or wok and use to fry the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until just softened. Add the onions and fry for a further 10 minutes.

Transfer the mixture to an oven-proof casserole dish then top with the meat and tomatoes. Season with salt and black pepper then stir to combine. Pour the beef stock over the top then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 170°C and bake for about 60 minutes. Serve hot.

Source: Celtnet.org.uk

Related recipes:

• Mussaka with ham from Bachka

Romanian Mussaka

Lamb roast

Ingredients:

• 1 back leg lamb
• 200g. smoked lard (bacon)
• 200g. garlic
• salt
• pepper
• 1 tbs. basil
• 1 tbs. marjoram
• 2 glasses red wine

Cut the smoked lard in little pieces about 1-2 cm long and 1/3 qcm in section. Do the same with the garlic.

Dry the meal with a towel and place it on a wooden platter. Start to cut little pockets in the meal, not very large but as deep as you can and fill each of them with one piece of smoked lard and one piece of garlic. The more pockets you fill the more tasty your roast will be. Push the pieces deeply in pockets because the lamb decreases a lot by cooking.

Sprinkle half of glass of wine over. Spread over the salt, pepper, basil and marjoram.

Place it on the grill of your hot oven. Under the grill place a tray deep enough to keep 1-2 liters of water. Pour in the water another half glass of wine and let it bake for 70-90 minutes (depending on how large is your lamb). At every half an hour complete the water under the lamb and add a half glass of wine.

Serve it with spinach puree and garlic sauce.

Source: Exploringromania.com

Lamb roast

Kjebapchinja, Macedonian style

Ingredients:

• 800g. ground young beef
• 200g. ground mutton
• 100g. onion
• 20g. oil
• 5 cloves of garlic
• salt and pepper
• oil for brushing

Mix meat, kneed thoroughly and leave in a cool place to sit for several hours. Chop onion finely, heat oil, add onion and cook slowly until it is soft and beginning to color. Peel garlic and chop finely. Add onion and garlic to meat, season with salt and pepper. Work all into a meat mixture, leave for a short while in a cool place, then shape into smaller kjebapcinja.

Grill at first on very hot grill. Brush with oil while grilling.Serve with spring onions, tomatoes and small hot peppers.




Related recipes:

• Bosnian Cevapcici
• Osmanli Kebabs

Kjebapchinja, Macedonian style

Gypsy chicken

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• salt and pepper
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 ½ medium onions chopped
• 1 green pepper (thinly sliced)
• 1 sweet red bell pepper (thinly sliced)
• 1 yellow bell pepper (thinly sliced)
• a handful of mushrooms sliced
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 can chicken broth
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 2 tbsp lemon juice, fresh or bottled

Gypsy chicken is a traditional Serbian recipe for a classic dish of pan-fried breaded chicken breasts served with a mushrooms and sauce. Here is the full recipe:

Pound meat until very thin. Salt and pepper. Dip chicken breasts into egg, then in bread crumbs. Heat oil and butter together over medium heat. Sauté until golden (about 15 minutes). Remove to another pan and keep warm.

Add onions to the skillet. Sauté until limp but not brown. Add peppers and cook till limp. Add mushrooms cook just till warmed.

Add flour and stir it around. Add the broth and stir till the sauce thickens and is smooth. Add the cream and lemon juice. Pour the sauce over the chicken breasts that have been placed on the individual plates.

Source: Gourmed.gr

Gypsy chicken

Bosnian red pilaf

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. lamb or beef, cut into 1/2" cubes
• 8 cups water
• 1 cup carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 cup parsnips, cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup celery root, cut into chunks
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. peppercorns
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 4 cups tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 5 cups rice
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. pepper

In a large pot, cover the meat with 8 cups of water and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam that rises to the top, then add the carrots, parsnips, celery root, salt and peppercorns. Return to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 1-1/2-2 hours, until the meat is tender. Strain the stock, set aside the meat and discard the vegetables.

Clean out the pot and melt the butter. Saute� the tomatoes for 10-15 minutes, until they begin to disintegrate. Pour in the rice and continue to saut� for another ten minutes, until the rice becomes translucent. Add 2 tablespoons salt and 1 tablespoon pepper and stir well; then add the meat and stock. Bring to a boil, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low and cook for 20-30 minutes, until the rice is tender and ready to serve.

Source: Superluminal.com

Bosnian red pilaf

Stuffed peppers

Ingredients:

• 10-15 bigger paprikas/peppers
• 1-1.5dl. oil
• 2 onions
• 150g. rice
• 700g. mixed ground meat
• salt and pepper
• ground hot paprika
• tomato
  
• lukewarm water

Stuffed peppers, Punjena paprika (Serbia, Bosnia and Montenegro), Polneti piperki (Macedonia), Pulnena paprika/Pulneni chushki (Bulgaria) or Ardei umpluti (Romania) is a famous Balkan dish consisting of paprikas/peppers filled with mixture of meat and rice. There are many variations of stuffed peppers across Balkan countries but here we present you the basic recipe that can you modify by taste:

Slice the tops off the peppers. Pull out the seeds and the cores. Dip them in warm water and leave to get soft.

Heat oil, add finely chopped onion, cook it slowly until sloghtly brown. Pick over rice, wash and cook in salted water, rise, drain and add to soft onion, then stirr in meat. Cook slowly together, add salt, pepper and ground paprika. Cool a little.

Place the pepper shells in a baking dish that will hold them snugly together. Spoon the filling into the peppers. Replace the tops with peace of tomato. Pour 3 tablespoons of water around the peppers and bake for about 30 minutes in the oven preheated to 175°C until filling is puffed and the peppers are soft. Serve warm or cold.

Stuffed peppers

Risotto with kidneys

Ingredients:

• 1 beef or 2 veal or pork kidneys
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cups meat broth or water
• 3 tbsp lard
• 3 onions
• 2 tbsp tomato sauce
• ½ tspn paprika
• salt and pepper, to taste
• a little sugar
• grated parmesan, to taste
• chopped parsley, for garnish

To prepare this recipe, first remove the outer membranes from the kidneys, split in half lengthwise, remove the interior fatty tissues and slice thinly. Set to boil starting with cold water. After it comes to a boil, drain and wash the kidneys with tepid water.
Finely chop the onion, fry in 2 tablespoons of lard until softened, add tomato sauce, paprika, one cup meat broth or water, salt, pepper, sugar and the kidneys. Simmer until the kidneys are done.

In the meantime, fry the rice in one tablespoon of lard, add a cup meat broth. Place the rice in a greased Bundt pan, cover and set into the oven to bake.
When the rice is done, turn onto a plate, spread some grated parmesan on top and place the kidneys and sauce in the middle hole.

Garnish with chopped parsley on top and serve hot.
This recipe (with modifications) is popular not only in Romania but also in many other Balkan countries.

Source: Freerecipes.8m.com

Risotto with kidneys

Stewed green beans and potatoes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups of Seitan, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 cups of Green Beans, trimmed and cut in half
• 1 small red potato, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 medium onion, sliced thinly
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 1 medium tomato
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• pinch of chili flakes (optional)
• 2 cups vegetable broth or water
• 3 tablespoons + 1 tablespoons of Olive Oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons – 2 teaspoons of liquid smoke

Today recipe is named "Albanian style stewed green beans and potatoes with smokey seitan" and is presented and published by 16-years old boy Jay at his blog about vegan foodie. Here is the recipe:

Heat a medium pot over medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When hot enough, add the seitan and saute until golden on all sides about 4-5 minutes. Towards the end at the liquid smoke and Smoked Salt. Remove from pot and set aside.

Now add about 2-3 tablespoons of Olive Oil to the pot. Add the onions and saute for a good 8 minutes until they are translucent and tender. If your pot has burned pieces from the seitan, deglaze it with a bit of vegetable broth. Add the garlic and saute for a minute until fragrant. Now it’s time to add the green beans and potatoes. Saute the green beans and potatoes for about 5 minutes.

Now add the tomato, paprika, oregano, chili flakes and season with salt and pepper. Saute for another two minutes. Add the vegetable broth or water and bring to a boil and then to a simmer. After a couple of minutes add the seitan that you have set aside. Simmer the stew for about 45-50 minutes until the green beans and potatoes are tender. If the stew starts to get dry simply add some more broth. Re-season with salt and pepper to taste if necessary. Remember to not go heavy on the salt because the Smokey Seitan is salt already from the smoked salt. Let the stew sit for 15 minutes or you can eat it has soon has it finished cooking.
Serve these stewed green beans with some rice, bread, and a side salad or vegetable.

Source: Theveganfoodie.wordpress.com

Stewed green beans and potatoes

Turkish Gozleme

Ingredients:

• 480g. plain flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/3 cup olive oil/milk
• 360ml. lukewarm water
• extra olive oil for cooking

Filling:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped finely
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• pinch cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
• 2 bunches English spinach, shredded
• 200g. feta cheese, crumbled
• 50g. tasty cheese, grated

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl and make a well. Pour oil and water and mix until combined. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Divide dough into four balls. Cover and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat oil in frying pan; cook onions and garlic until softened but not browned. Allow to cool. Combine onion mixture and remaining filling ingredients in a bowl; season and mix to combine. Preheat flat grill plate on high. Roll dough to a 3mm thickness; place one quarter of the filling over one half of the dough. Fold over dough and press lightly to seal. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.

Brush oil over grill plate well. Place one gozleme onto flat plate. Cook for 3-4 minutes, drizzle top with more oil then turn over. Tip: If dough is browning too quickly reduce heat to medium. Cook until golden brown and crisp. Repeat with remaining gozleme. Cut into pieces and serve with wedges of lemons.

Source: Sunbeam.com.au

Turkish Gozleme

Bamijas-Ulcinj style

Ingredients:

• 1kg. veal thigh or shoulder
• 1 large onion, chopped
• salt, to taste
• 1/2 tsp. chilli powder
• 150g. tomatoes, chopped
• 4 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

For the Bamijas (okra):

• 300g. baby okra, trimmed
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano, crumbled
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Ulcinj style Bamijas is a traditional Montenegro recipe for a classic dish of veal stewedwith chilli powder and tomatoes that's mixed with a combination of banijas (okra) and onion before being oven baked.
Bone and cube the meat then add to a pan along with the onion. Season to taste with salt, add the chilli and cover with water. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer and cook for about 50 minutes, or until the meat is tender. Add the chopped tomatoes and parsley and cook for a further 30 minutes.
Whilst the meat is cooking, prepare your bamijas. Add the okra to a pan of lightly-salted water and boil until tender (about 15 minutes). In the meantime, fry the onion in a little until tender (about 8 minutes). Season to taste with salt, black pepper, the herbs and spices. Drain the okra and add to the onion mix.
Transfer the meat mixture to a roasting pan, stir-in the okra mixture then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 200°C and bake for 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Source: Celtnet.org.uk

Bamijas-Ulcinj style

Mussaka with ham from Bachka

Ingredients:

• 1kg. potatoes
• 200-250g. minced or ground ham
• 1dl. oil or 50g. lard
• 150g. kachkaval cut into thin slices
• salt and pepper

B'echame sauce:

• 40g. butter or margarine
• 20g. flour
• 2-2.5dl. milk
• 1/2dl. sour cream
• 1 egg yolk

Peel potatoes and cook in mildly salted water. When tender, drain and cut into rounds. Grease a fireproof dish with some oil or lard. Put in layers of potatoes, ham and cheese in turn. Sprinkle each layer of potatoes with salt and pepper and with some oil or melted lard. Repeat until all is used, finish with potatoes.
Pour b'echamel sauce over mussaka: heat butter, add flour, fry a little but do not let it brown, slowly pour in cold, than warm milk. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Beat well sour cream and egg, add to cooled b'echamel, stirring all the time. Bake in oven preheated to 200°C about 30 minutes, until brown.

Serve with lettuce, betroth salad or the like.

Mussaka with ham from Bachka