Tavë Kosi
An Albanian lamb casserole with rice and a baked yogurt-and-egg topping. Serves 6.
Tavë Kosi combines lamb cooked with garlic and oregano, a layer of rice, and a mixture of yogurt, egg, butter, and flour that sets in the oven. The dish is associated with Elbasan and is made in several versions.
Method
- 01
Brown and cook the lamb
Heat the olive oil and some of the butter in a skillet. Add the lamb, garlic, oregano, black pepper, and some of the salt. Brown the meat and add the water; cook until the lamb is tender. Reserve the cooking liquid.
- 02
Prepare the rice
Cook the rice in some of the reserved liquid until it is partly cooked but still slightly firm. Drain it if any liquid remains.
- 03
Make the yogurt mixture
Melt the remaining butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour until smooth. Gradually add the reserved cooking liquid. Remove from the heat and mix in the yogurt, beaten eggs, and remaining salt.
- 04
Assemble the casserole
Preheat the oven to 175 °C. Place the lamb in an ovenproof dish and spread the partly cooked rice over it. Pour the yogurt mixture evenly over the layers.
- 05
Bake and rest
Bake the casserole for 45–60 minutes, until the topping is set and the surface is golden. Let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
60 min
Ingredients
Sources and review
Content researched, cross-checked and automatically validated. Sources consulted:
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State: Published after documentary validation; no “Tested” label is shown.