Idrijski žlikrofi

»While one is in your mouth, the other is on the fork in front of your nose and the third already eyed as the next in line!«

Karel Bezeg

Idrijski žlikrofi were the first Slovenian dish to gain protected status by the European Comission in 2010. The exact origin of the dumplings is wrapped in mystery. Some sources say that the žlikrofi were brought to Idrija by one of the German mining families from Transylvania at the start of the 19th century, as the name seems related to the German word `schlichtkrapfen’ or `slippery dumpling’. 

One thing is certain-Idrija has been famous since the mid-19th century for Idrijski žlikrofi, and there are no signs of the excitement over this tiny dumpling subsiding anytime soon.

Recipe

Ingredients:

Dough

• 300 g flour

• 1 egg

• 60 ml water

• 60 ml milk

• 2 tbsp oil

Filling

• 500 g old dense potatoes

• 50 g bacon (bacon be replaced by pork cracklings)

• 50 g onion

• 1 bunch chives

• 1 bunch marjoram

• salt, pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the dough by hand or using a food processor. The dough should be smooth and elastic with no air bubbles and softer than the pasta dough. Cover it with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 30 minutes.

2. Cook the potatoes for about 25 minutes until they are completely done and rice them while still warm.

3. In a pan, fry diced bacon, and union until the bacon is crisp. Finely chop chives and marjoram.

4. Add bacon, onion and the herbs to potatoes and mix. Add salt and pepper to taste.

The ingredients needed to make idrijski žlikrofi.

The rolled out dough on the left and potato balls on the right.

5. Form nut sized balls from the filling. If the potato mixture is sticky, moistening your hands with water helps.
6. Roll out the dough as thinly as you can. You can also use the pasta machine using the lasagna slot for this step.

7. Cut the rolled out dough so you get a straight line and then place the balls along the edge. There should be about one finger of space between them.
8. Roll the dough around them until the potato balls are covered. Cut the line off with a knife.
9. Press down between the balls with your finger so that the mixture does not escape while cooking.
10. Cut along the middle between each pair of balls.
11. Shape the žlikrofi: press the rims together to form the 'ears' of the dumpling, and then use your thumb to form a dimple on the top of it. Keep the dumplings apart from each other on a floured surface.

12. Boil a pot of water and cook the žlikrofi until they float to the surface.
13. Žlikrofi are usually served either with 'bakalca', mutton sauce, pork cracklings or drizzled with lard and sprinkled with chives.