Tavče Gravče (Macedonian Baked Beans in a Clay Pot) 🫘

Name: Tavče Gravče (Macedonian Baked Beans in a Clay Pot)
Prep time: 80 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 200 min
Yield: 2-4 servings
Cuisine: Macedonian
Ingredients: 400 g dry white beans (tetovski, cannellini or navy), soaked overnight; 2 large onions, sliced half-moons; 1 heaping tbsp sweet paprika; 1-2 tsp hot paprika or ljutenica/kajgana paste (to taste); 4 tbsp sunflower oil (traditional) plus more if needed; 1.2 L hot water or vegetable stock; 2 tsp salt, black pepper; optional: 2 bay leaves, 4 smashed garlic cloves

North Macedonia's national dish hides in plain sight: white 'tetovski' beans baked slowly in a flat clay pot (the 'tavče') with onions, red paprika — both sweet and the flakey ljutenica kind — oil and water, until the liquid reduces to a smoky sauce and the top forms a burnished skin. Vegetarian by accident, addictive by design, eaten with crusty bread and a glass of Skopje's rubin wine. Kakanj claims it, Bulgarians whisper about it, but the tavče itself is the point: bake the whole thing in the pot it's named for and serve it still bubbling.

Skopje Macedonian ⏱ 200 min Facile

Méthode

1

Drain soaked beans, cover with fresh water, simmer 20 min until just softened but not creamy; drain, keep the cooking water.
2

Heat the oil in a wide ovenproof clay pot or heavy shallow casserole. Sweat onions 8-10 min without browning to color.
3

Stir in sweet and hot paprika off the direct heat for 30 s so the paprika blooms but doesn't burn (burnt paprika turns bitter — this is the whole dish's trap).
4

Return beans to the pot, add salt, bay/garlic if using, pour hot liquid until beans are covered by about 2 cm.
5

Bake uncovered at 180°C/350°F for 80-100 min: after 50 min stir gently once; add hot water only if it looks bone-dry. Done when sauce is thick and a burnt-gold skin sits on top.
6

Rest 10 min. Serve straight from the tavče with bread; traditionally topped with kajgana (scrambled eggs with paprika) or a slice of cheese, and chopped raw onion on the side.

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