Albania at the table: what and where to eat typical cuisine

Food is a formidable vehicle of peace and brotherhood, at every latitude. Proof of this is Albanian cuisine, which, unlike the historical issues that saw Albania first as a land of Turkish conquest and then of Italian colonisation and, still today, of territorial disputes with Greece, offers dishes capable of fusing different food and wine cultures.

Some examples

Would you like some examples? In Albania, you can taste makarona, as well as rhizoto, with Italian influence in mind; it is very easy to see saganaki, tzatziki and other typical Greek dishes being served.

Home cooking

Apart from culinary contaminations, however, Albania is characterised by a home cooking rich in
seasonal ingredients and families experience the meal as a moment of sociability and meeting, and the courses, normally divided between starters and main course, are all arranged at the table together, as if to facilitate meeting and exchange between diners, and naturally accompanied by wine or beer.

The Permet Glyko

A fruit or vegetable preparation typical of the area from which it takes its name, along the Vjosa river in the hinterland of southern Albania, The Permet Glyko is a dish so old that it has been included among the Slow Food presidia.

The tavë dheu

Served in earthenware, tavë dheu is another traditional Albanian dish, among the best known and most popular in Albania. Brought to the table piping hot, it is typical of Tirana and has a smoky flavour in its mixture of liver or other meat, cottage cheese, tomatoes and spices.

The lamb of Karaburun

On the Karaburun peninsula, a wilderness that can only be travelled on foot following the paths trodden by shepherds, just below Vlora, a special breed of lamb is reared, which is very renowned and prized: it can be tasted in seasonal restaurants, also on the peninsula's beaches.

Koran trout

On the border with Macedonia, Lake Ohrid is located and the Koran trout, a highly prized variety of this typical freshwater fish, swims there. In neighbouring areas, therefore, such as the town of Pogradec or the villages of Lin and Tushemisht, it is possible to enjoy tave korani me arra, Koran trout in earthenware with walnuts, or a simpler grilled dish of this fish.

Carp and eels

Remaining on the freshwater theme, in northern Albania, at Lake Shkodra, carp is fished and eaten, prepared either scutarine style, stewed with tomato, or grilled. If in doubt, head to Shiroke, the most popular place to eat this local carp and where you can also enjoy trout and eel.

Qofte

For meat lovers, all over Albania it is easy to find Qofte, veal meatballs served with fried potatoes and raw onion, a popular poor man's dish. A variation on the theme are the kernacka, typical of Korça, shaped like a cylinder and without bread in the dough.

Lakror ne sac

The lakror, on the other hand, is an Albanian version of the byrek, a rustic cake popular throughout the Balkans: its special feature is that it is baked in the traditional oven called a sac, while the filling includes wild herbs, fresh cheese and seasonal vegetables.

Kukurec

For the more daring palates, Albania also offers a very ancient and poor dish, kukurec: lamb entrails are arranged on a long spit, flavoured with various spices and herbs.

Everything and more

Thanks to growing tourism, especially from Italy, Albania really does offer everything and more, for a truly rich cuisine. There are numerous restaurants where one can choose from the many specialities, such as those in Shëngjin, Lezha, Patok, Durres, Vlora, Orikum, Dhermi, Himara, Porto Palermo, Lukova, Saranda, Velipoje and Ksamil, places where the catch of the day is served, including gilthead bream, shellfish, urchins, dates, fried fish, grills, stewed octopus or pasta with seafood.