Ethiopian cuisine

Overview¶

Ethiopian and Eritrean cooking is one of the most distinctive spice traditions in Africa. Its best-known feature is berbere, a complex chilli and spice blend that colours and flavours stews called wat (Amharic) or tsebhi (Tigrinya). These are served on injera, a spongy, slightly sour flatbread made from fermented teff batter, which acts as plate, cutlery and staple at once.

Ethiopia's position on ancient Red Sea trade routes, links with Arabia and India, and a highland climate suited to certain crops all shaped its palette. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church's fasting calendar has also had a large effect: on fasting days, which can add up to well over half the year for the devout, no animal products are eaten, giving Ethiopia one of the richest vegan repertoires anywhere.

The core palette¶

• berbere: dried red chillies with fenugreek, ginger, garlic, korarima, coriander, black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, ajwain (nech azmud) and more, toasted, ground and often sun-dried. Family recipes run to fifteen or more ingredients.
• Mitmita: hotter and simpler, of bird's eye chilli, korarima, cloves and salt, for kitfo and dipping.
• Korarima (Aframomum corrorima): "Ethiopian cardamom", a relative of grains-of-paradise, smoky and resinous — closer in character to black cardamom than to green.
• nigella (tikur azmud), ajwain (nech azmud), fenugreek (abish), long pepper (timiz, a related species is also used) and cumin.
• Herbs: besobela (a sacred basil, Ocimum), koseret (Lippia abyssinica, somewhat like oregano), and rue (tena adam), used in coffee and butter.
• Niter kibbeh: clarified butter slowly infused with onion, garlic, ginger, fenugreek, cumin, korarima, besobela and koseret.

Regional and community differences¶

The Amhara and Tigrayan highland tradition — wats, injera, raw beef — is what most restaurants abroad serve. Eritrean and Tigrayan cooking share dishes with different names, with tsebhi and zigni in place of wat, and some Italian influence in Eritrea (pasta with berbere sauce is common in Asmara). Oromo cooking has its own dishes such as chechebsa (fried flatbread with spiced butter and berbere). The south, around Gurage, is known for kitfo and for kocho, a bread made from fermented false-banana (enset). Harar, a historically Muslim walled city in the east, uses more Arab and Indian spicing and is known for its coffee.

Key techniques¶

• Dry-cooking onions: many wats start by cooking a large quantity of finely chopped red onion in a dry pot, without fat, for 15–30 minutes until soft and jammy, before adding niter kibbeh or oil and then berbere. This is what gives wat its thick, glossy texture.
• Blooming berbere: the blend is fried in the butter or oil, often with a splash of water or wine to stop it scorching, until deep red and fragrant. See blooming-spices-in-oil.
• Spiced butter: niter kibbeh is simmered very gently for 30–60 minutes, then strained. See infusing-oils.
• Fermentation: teff batter is fermented for several days for injera.
• Awaze: berbere mixed with water, oil, honey wine (tej) or lemon to make a hot dipping paste.

Landmark dishes¶

Doro wat (chicken and eggs in berbere sauce), siga wat and key wat (beef), misir wat (red lentils), shiro (spiced chickpea flour stew), gomen (collard greens), atakilt (cabbage, potato and carrot), kitfo (minced raw beef with mitmita and niter kibbeh), tibs (sautéed meat), dulet, chechebsa, and the fasting platter beyaynetu. Coffee ceremonies are a social institution.

Stocking the cupboard¶

1. Good berbere — from an Ethiopian or Eritrean grocer if possible
2. Mitmita
3. Korarima (or black cardamom as a stand-in)
4. fenugreek, nigella and ajwain
5. cumin, coriander seed and cloves
6. Ground ginger and turmeric (for alicha, mild turmeric stews)
7. Unsalted butter for niter kibbeh
8. Teff flour, or ready-made injera