Albanian recipe
How to make Byrek (filo pie)
byrek
All of Albania
A pie of thin layers of pastry filled with spinach, cheese, meat, onion or tomato. There is the large home-made byrek baked in a round tray, and the triangle byrek sold as street food, often eaten with a glass of yogurt.
Ingredients
- 500 g filo pastry
- 500 g fresh spinach, washed and chopped
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 250 g gjizë or feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 eggs and 150 ml plain yogurt
- 120 ml olive oil or melted butter, salt and pepper
Method
- Heat the oven to 190°C. Cook the onion in 2 tablespoons of the oil until soft, add the spinach and stir until it wilts. Let it cool, then squeeze out the extra water.
- Mix the spinach with the cheese, eggs and yogurt, and season with pepper and a little salt.
- Brush a round or square baking tray with oil. Lay in half the filo sheets one by one, brushing each with oil.
- Spread the filling evenly, then cover with the rest of the filo, brushing each sheet. Score the top into portions with a sharp knife.
- Bake for about 40 minutes, until deep golden and crisp. Leave to rest for 10 minutes, cut and serve warm or cold.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
Byrek belongs to a family of pastries found from Turkey across the Balkans, known in many countries as börek or burek.
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