Explorations of Žganci Koroška Way AKA Flour Crumble

Žganci is a traditional Slovenian, and likely not only Slovenian, side dish, which is essentially flour boiled in salted water, crumbled, and then covered with zabela - pork cracklings sometimes mixed with cream. There is also a koroška way of making them. One ever so slowly heats flour in a pan, adds water gingerly in small quantities, and stirs the flour until the flour is cooked and forms small crumbles. Then one adds zabela. The flours used traditionally are wheat, buckwheat, or corn.

Jasna taught me how to make žganci the koroška way. She started to experiment with great success by replacing the water with a broth or even miso broth. We then started to use healthier kinds of fat, and we really liked the taste that olive oil brought to the dish. The next step was to add the oil before žganci were cooked, which contributed to a chewier and very satisfying texture. Finally, we realized that one can depart from the traditional flour selections. Millet flour has been a particular success.

Note that žganci are not most visually appealing on their own. Do not be fooled, the satisfying texture and flavor are likely to win you over. This is an old-style peasant side dish that really has the goal to add calories to one's day. The modern version presented here is much lighter and can add tremendously to a plate, combined with a sauce, hummus, scrambled eggs etc. Žganci make a terrific leftover, another good reason to make them.

I will admit, grudgingly, that I started to make žganci in a non-stick wok. I thought this would allow me to add the liquids much faster, and I can use much less olive oil. One day I mustered the courage and made žganci in a reasonably well seasoned carbon steel wok - no sticking, easy clean-up. Guess how I make them these days...

Ingredients:

• Flour: millet, buckwheat, corn, you can try whatever you want. Freshly milled is of course the best. I usually use about 5 heaping tablespoons for two people and have nice leftovers.
• Broth: vegetable, beef, miso, or salted water. About 1/2 cup - I always eyeball it.
• A pinch of salt, unless your broth is very salty.
• Olive oil, or any other tasty fat that you like.

Procedure:

1. Place a pan or a wok on a burner and set it to a low to medium-low heat.
2. Immediately add the flour. 
3. Mix occasionally until the flour heats up. Be careful not to burn the flour. You may sense a wonderful aroma coming from the flour.
4. Bring the broth to a simmer.
5. Add some oil to the flour and stir well, breaking apart large chunks. 
1. I find this step really enhances the flavor, and makes clean-up easier.
6. Add some broth and mix and stir immediately with a stiff spatula or cooking spoon. The flour will first form a few chunks, but will soon start breaking into pieces as you work through it.
7. If the flour mixture is still dry, keep adding the water/broth until all of the four has received some liquid. Make sure you do not drown the flour - you will then have cook the liquid out, and that will take quite some time, and you will be unlikely to get the crumbly texture.
8. Add a tablespoon or two of olive oil and keep stirring and breaking down the flour into small crumbles.
9. Žganci is done when the crumbles are small, they are cooked through and have a bit of a chewy texture. 
10. Optional: When the žganci is pretty much done (see below), you can add another TBS of oil and toast them a bit more for added texture.

The video below shows how I made žganci in a wok, with the commentary is in Slovenian. I think this was my first attempt at a POV video, with no script and with super amateur editing 🤣