Obaruša — Serbia

Obaruša is a simple, rustic preparation whose name is said to come from the verb meaning to scald: a base of flour or cornmeal is poured over with boiling water or milk and stirred into a soft, porridge-like mixture, then enriched with dairy such as cheese, sour cream or kaymak. The dish is reported from Serbia, where it belongs to a broader category of home-cooked, low-cost preparations built on grain scalded rather than long-simmered, historically associated with rural households and everyday meals rather than festive tables. According to sources, the flour or cornmeal is placed in a bowl or pot and boiling water, milk, or a mixture of the two is poured over it while stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens into a smooth, soft mass; butter, cheese, sour cream or kaymak is then folded through, and the dish is seasoned with a little salt. Within the wider family of Balkan scalded-grain porridges, which also includes preparations built on polenta cooked slowly with cheese, this version is set apart by its quicker method: pouring boiling liquid directly over the grain rather than cooking it on the stove for an extended time. Households vary the choice of flour versus cornmeal, the ratio of water to milk, and the dairy folded in at the end.