North Macedonia

Ajvar is a thick, slow-cooked Balkan relish made primarily from charred and peeled red peppers, sometimes combined with roasted eggplant, traditionally prepared in autumn and preserved in jars for winter use.

A rich, multi-layered filo pastry filled with finely chopped nuts, bound and soaked in a sweetened syrup of honey, sugar, or both, yielding a dense, sticky, fragrant confection served in small diamond or square portions.

A coiled hand-pulled filo pastry filled with seasoned minced beef and onion, baked in a round metal pan until the outer layers crackle and char and the inner layers absorb the filling's steam, served immediately as a breakfast or street-food staple across the Balkans.

A North Macedonian dish of white beans stewed and then baked with onion, butter or oil and red paprika until thickened.

A strong Balkan anise-flavoured spirit scented with mastic resin, drunk as an aperitif and clouding white when water is added.

Pillowy deep-fried puffs of leavened (often yogurt-enriched) dough, served hot with white brine cheese, jam, honey or powdered sugar.

A Balkan baked casserole of layered ground pork and sliced potato finished with an egg (or egg-and-yogurt) custard topping.

A North Macedonian specialty of endemic freshwater trout from Lake Ohrid, simply grilled or pan-fried to showcase the prized fish.

A North Macedonian oval bread-dough flatbread topped with diced cured/salted meat and baked in a wood-fired oven, often finished with a cracked egg.

Whole sweet peppers hollowed and stuffed with a mixture of spiced ground meat and rice, then baked or simmered in a tomato-based sauce.

A Macedonian 'village-style' dish of mixed pork and veal slow-cooked with mushrooms, peppers and onions, traditionally baked in an individual clay pot.

A refreshing raw vegetable salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, and roasted bell peppers topped with a generous blanket of grated white sirene cheese and dressed with sunflower oil.

Tender grape leaves rolled tightly around a savory filling of minced meat and rice, then simmered in a light, tangy broth.

Tarator is a chilled yogurt‑and‑cucumber soup seasoned with garlic, walnuts, and dill, popular throughout the Balkans.

The national dish of North Macedonia: dried large white beans soaked, par-cooked, then slow-baked in an earthenware tavče with sautéed onion, dried red peppers, paprika, and oil until a golden-brown skin sets over a dense, creamy interior.

A North Macedonian one-dish bake of assorted meats and summer vegetables layered together in a deep earthenware pan and slow-baked until everything melds into a rich, tender stew-roast.

A Balkan filo pie filled with wild greens, leek or nettles and white brined cheese, layered or coiled in thin pastry and baked until crisp.