Macedonian recipe
How to make Tavče gravče
тавче гравче
All of North Macedonia, with a well-known Tetovo-style version
White beans cooked with onion and dried red pepper, then baked in a shallow earthenware dish until thick and slightly crusty on top. Sausage or smoked meat is often added.
Ingredients
- 500 g large dried white beans, such as butter beans
- 2 onions, one whole and one finely chopped
- 1 or 2 dried red peppers
- 1 tablespoon plain flour and 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
- 4 tablespoons sunflower oil
- Salt, black pepper and a handful of chopped parsley
- Optional: 2 smoked sausages, sliced
Method
- Soak the beans in cold water overnight. Drain, cover with fresh water, bring to the boil, then drain again.
- Cover the beans with fresh water, add the whole onion and the dried peppers, and simmer gently for about 1 hour, until soft but not falling apart. Remove the onion.
- Heat the oil in a small pan and fry the chopped onion until soft. Stir in the flour and paprika for 30 seconds, then stir this into the beans with salt, pepper and parsley.
- Heat the oven to 220°C. Pour the beans with enough cooking liquid to cover them into an earthenware or other ovenproof dish, and add the sausage if you use it.
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, checking now and then and adding a splash of hot water if it looks dry, until thick and browned on top. Serve hot with bread.
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Tavče gravče is considered the national dish of North Macedonia. The name means roughly "beans in a tava", the clay dish it is baked in.
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