Ethiopian cuisine (Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ምግብ "Ye-Ītyōṗṗyā məgəb") characteristically consists of vegetable and often very spicy meat dishes. The history of Ethiopian cuisine is influenced by the agricultural heritage of the nation. Ethiopian food has been influenced by the country’s geography and its rich agricultural resources, such as lentils, beans, coffee, and various spices.
Here we delve into the key components that make Ethiopian food unique and flavorful.
Staple Ingredients
Injera
A typical dish consists of injera accompanied by a spicy stew, which frequently includes beef, lamb, vegetables and various types of legumes (such as lentils), and is traditionally consumed on the mesob basket. The Amharas' cuisine features a wide variety of dishes and beverages, often centered around injera, a sourdough flatbread made from teff flour.
Vegan Ethiopia Episode 1: Injera Bread
The way in which it is prepared differs according to the type of cereal, the altitude, and the temperature. The flour is mixed with water to form a dough and kneaded by hand. A leaven (ersho) is added.
Tef: The grains are small (1000 grains weigh 0.3 - 0.4 g) and the foreign particles are removed by winnowing.
Read also: Ethiopian Cuisine: Philadelphia Guide
Barley: The grains are soaked in hot water for 5 minutes, pounded in wooden mortars and left in the sun to dry. The husks are blown away.
Emmer wheat: The grains are cleaned with the help of a sefied (straw plate) and foreign particles are removed by hand. After drying in the sun, the grains are pounded in wooden mortars and the husks are blown away.
Berbere
Berbere, a combination of powdered chili pepper and other spices (cardamom, fenugreek, coriander, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, cumin and allspice) is an important ingredient used to add flavor to many varied dishes like chicken stews and baked fish dishes. Following this, berbere is added to make a spicy keiy wat or keyyih tsebhi. Turmeric is used instead of berbere for a milder alicha wat or both spices are omitted when making vegetable stews, such as atkilt wat.
Berbere is a blend of spices - the version I made had 14 ingredients in it - that is essential to many Ethiopian recipes. It is like the country’s approach to cooking in miniature: It blends a great many ingredients into a holistic, robust combination that is better than the sum of its parts.
Niter Kibbeh
Once the onions have softened, niter kebbeh (or, in the case of vegan dishes, vegetable oil) is added. I also made Nit’r Qibe, a spiced, clarified butter. Again, this version had 14 ingredients, but they all come together to make something quite unlike anything else I’ve ever had. It’s the flavor of Ethiopia.
Read also: Authentic Ethiopian Cuisine
In their adherence to strict fasting, Ethiopian cooks have developed a rich array of cooking oil sources-besides sesame and safflower-for use as a substitute for animal fats which are forbidden during fasting periods.
Key Dishes and Their Ingredients
Doro Wat
Wat begins with a large amount of chopped red onion, which is simmered or sauteed in a pot. The spice mixture berberre has the nicest taste after being cooked in a mixture containing fat. The wot for a real feast contains an ample supply of chicken and eggs (dorowot).
First, however, I had to make a couple of ingredients that would be used in the wots (stews). Berbere is an integral part of the Doro Wot, and Nit’r Qibe is used in it, too. But mostly, it’s onions. Lots and lots of onions. I used five, and you could make a case for more. They are cooked and cooked and cooked until they are nothing more than caramelized texture.
Garlic and ginger go in the pot, too, along with a healthy dose of Berbere. You cook that down even more before you add an also-healthy dose of Nit’r Qibe. Only then do you add the chicken. And only when the chicken is finally done do you add hard-cooked eggs, which should finally answer the question about which came first.
Mesir Wat
Mesir Wot also makes considerable use of Berbere, but the resulting flavor is completely different.
Vegan Ethiopia Episode 1: Injera Bread
Read also: A Taste of Ethiopia in South Carolina
Kitfo
Another distinctively Ethiopian dish is kitfo (frequently spelled ketfo). It consists of raw (or rare) beef mince marinated in mitmita (Ge'ez: ሚጥሚጣ mīṭmīṭā a very spicy chili powder similar to berbere) and niter kibbeh.
Other Important Ingredients and Dishes
- Ayibe: A local cheese made from the curds of buttermilk that is mild and crumbly, close in texture to crumbled feta.
- Gomen kitfo: Collard greens (ጎመን gōmen) are boiled, dried and then finely chopped and served with butter, chili and spices.
- Fit-fit or fir-fir: It is made from shredded injera or kitcha stir-fried with spices or wat.
- Chechebsa (or kita firfir): Resembles a pancake covered with berbere and niter kibbeh, or other spices, and may be eaten with a spoon.
- Kinche (qinch’e): A porridge, is a very common Ethiopian breakfast or supper.
Ethiopian Beverages
Coffee
Coffee is also a large part of Ethiopian culture and cuisine. The customary Ethiopian coffee ritual entails roasting, brewing, and serving coffee with great importance, as it is thought to have originated in Ethiopia. The coffee ceremony is the traditional serving of coffee, usually after a big meal.
It often involves the use of a jebena (ጀበና), a clay coffee pot in which the coffee is boiled. The preparer roasts the coffee beans in front of guests, then walks around wafting the smoke throughout the room so participants may sample the scent of coffee.
Other Beverages
- Tella: A home-brewed beer served in tella bet ("tella houses") which specialize in serving only tella.
- Kenetto: Also known as keribo, is a non-alcoholic traditional drink.
- Atmet: A barley- and oat-flour based drink that is cooked with water, sugar and kibe (Ethiopian clarified butter).
Fasting Practices and Dietary Restrictions
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church prescribes a number of fasting periods known as tsom (Ge'ez: ጾም ṣōm), including all Wednesdays and Fridays and the whole Lenten season (including fifteen days outside Lent proper). Ethiopian Orthodox Christians avoid pork for cultural reasons as well as religious reasons, while Ethiopian Jews and Ethiopian Muslims avoid eating pork or shellfish for religious reasons; pork is forbidden in Judaism and Islam. Most Ethiopian Protestants or P'ent'ay also abstain from eating food that the Orthodox abstain from.
Regional Variations
The cuisines of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region and the Sidama region also make use of the false banana plant (enset, Ge'ez: እንሰት ïnset), a type of ensete. The Oromos' cuisine consists of various vegetable or meat side dishes and entrées.
A commonly grown crop in Sidama, maize (badela in Sidaamu; also known as "corn" in North America) is often eaten as a snack with coffee.
Nutritional Aspects
Lysine is the first limiting amino acid in tef, as in all cereals. During the fermentation process some lysine is destroyed and a large percentage is dissolved in the yellow top layer, which is often thrown away. The high iron content is mainly due to contamination from the iron-rich soil; the availability of this iron fraction is probably low.
Here's a table summarizing the nutritional aspects of some key ingredients:
| Ingredient | Key Nutrients | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tef | Lysine, Iron | Lysine content decreases during fermentation. Iron content may be from soil contamination. |
| Legumes | Protein | Important source of protein, especially during fasting periods. |
The Ethiopian culture and tradition is built up around this traditional food pattern, enjera and wot, and there are many proverbs about it.
