Meat with eggs (Kimë me Vezë) is a staple Albanian breakfast stew that is served warm over a bowl of pasta or rice. Think of this as Shakshouka with minced meat but runnier stew.
This recipe is part of my Globe Cooking Mad project and I am sharing an Albanian breakfast recipe.
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Albanian Cuisine
Albania is a south-eastern European country that is officially called the Republic of Albania. Most of the Albanian food is kin to North African and Levant countries and so falls under the Mediterranean diet. To understand their cuisine, you need to read about their history.
Albania has been occupied by Greece, Serbia, Italy and the Ottoman Turks in different eras and each group have left its mark on Albanian cuisine. So, it is not surprising to know they too have Baklavas, Revani, spinach pies, rice pudding, etc. Most of their desserts are influenced by neighbouring regions.
The national dish Tavë kosi is a casserole made with lamb rice and yoghurt. Being the meat-loving family, I wanted to try this. I couldn't get the ingredients so settled for Kime me veze. Happens a lot of times... right? You choose one thing but you keep looking hoping to see something better than just getting back to what you chose first!
What is kime me veze (meat with eggs)?
Kimë me Vezë roughly translates to meat with eggs. The dish is made of ground or minced meat cooked in olive oil with onions, garlic, and tomatoes, and mildly spiced with paprika and pepper. Eggs are then dropped in the stew and cooked covered until done.
This can be served with any kind of bread or pasta or even rice. I went with shell-shaped pasta and served it separately for breakfast – simple, tasty and very filling.
Ingredients
- olive oil
- veggies: onions, garlic cloves, tomatoe, carrot, hot red pepper
- ground beef
- ground spices: paprika (or Kashmiri red chilli powder), black pepper powder
- eggs
See the recipe card for details.
How to make it?
Albanian meat with eggs is made in one pot. Use a thick-bottomed deep saucepot. You start with some good quality olive oil in which you saute the finely chopped onion until translucent. Next, add some minced garlic and sauté for another minute or until they start to brown.
Once the garlic and onions give out good aroma, add the ground beef and brown the meat on high heat. Do not add water at this stage.
Once the ground meat is browned and dry, add in the chopped tomato, carrots, salt, pepper, paprika and a cup of hot water. Water should be enough to barely cover the contents of the pan. Halfway through add in the chopped red pepper and give it a mix and cover again.
When the sauce has reached the desired consistency, add the eggs one by one into the stew (you may want to break the egg into a bowl first to avoid any shell falling into the stew or even to ensure the egg is not spoilt). Cover and let it simmer until the eggs are done. Serve with boiled pasta, bread or rice.
Substitutions
You can swap ground beef with ground lamb or chicken.
If you cannot source red hot pepper, then skip it or use green chillies. You may add half of a bell pepper or more paprika.
Albania on world map
More recipes using ground beef
📖 Recipe
Kimë me Vezë | Meat with Egg | Albanian Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium-sized red onions diced finely
- 3 garlic cloves grated
- 250 grams ground beef
- 1 large tomato chopped
- 1 carrot choppe into roundels
- 1 red hot pepper chopped into thin roundels
- 1 teaspoon paprika powder or Kashmiri red chilli powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
- water as required (just an inch above the mixture)
- 2 eggs
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a thick-bottomed saucepot. Add the finely chopped onion and sauté until translucent.
- Next, add minced garlic and sauté until they turn golden.
- Now, add the ground beef and turn the heat to high. Stir to break all clustered meat and brown the meat. Do not add water at this stage.
- Once the meat is dry, add in the chopped tomato, carrots, salt, pepper, paprika and a cup of hot water to barely cover the contents.
- Bring to a boil and adjust the salt as needed. Halfway through the cooking add in the chopped red pepper and give it a mix and cover again.
- When the sauce has reached your desired consistency, add the eggs one by one to the stew. Cover again and let it simmer until the eggs are done.
- Serve with boiled pasta, bread, or rice.
Recipe adapted from Albanian Cuisine. The next country on my list is Algeria!
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