If rakia is the national drink, then shkembe is probably the national food. They kind of go together anyway as shkembe is popularly regarded as a hangover cure. It’s tripe soup - ‘peasant food’ as all tripe dishes seem to be. I remember my grandpa eating tripe, a flaccid, waffle-like slab slathered in vinegar. The tripe in shkembe is easy enough to deal with – it sinks to the bottom so it’s easily avoided – but the liquid is unbelievably rich and is eaten with so many spoonfuls of crushed garlic that it makes you wonder if anyone really likes the taste.
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