Ethiopian Dinner Update and Recipes

Well, last nights dinner was a success. Since I hadn't done these recipes before, I had no idea how much it would make! Suffice it to say, we had it for dinner again tonight! Plus, I *still* have leftovers!! I did have to make more injera this time, though!

I was asked for the recipes, so I will post them down below.

First though, I thought it would be fun to see the change in how we did, from last nights first encounter!

This time I decided to make tiny little injeras for the little boys. This way they were not overwhelmed with their great big plateful of food! They loved it!

We had a little giggle when I told my 14 year old, "This time I'll give you more forks." Meaning, more injera, so he could eat his dinner. Last night, we all ran out of injera (forks) and had to eat the plates before we should have! *grin*

Little Servings For Little Boys

It took a little while (and the offer of icecream) for the two littlest to get their hands mucky. You teach your little ones not to eat with their fingers, and then you go ahead and insist that they use them when they eat Ethiopian food. It will take a bit of time, but they are getting it!

I Can Do This!

Briton became a pro at it. But by the end of the meal it was "Mummy - yucky!" When his hands got too mucky!

Clean My Hands!

Lentil Dish

1 1/2 cups red lentils, soaked for 30 minutes

1 large onion

3 Tbsp tomato paste

3 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp berbere spice

3 cups water

I fried the onion until it was well done. Then I added the onion, tomato paste, garlic, pepper, berbere spice and water to a pan. I brought it to a boil and then I added the presoaked lentils (after I drained them).

I then brought them back to a boil, and after that I turned them down and let them simmer a long time until they were done and the water was all absorbed.

Vegetable Dish

1 small cabbage, chopped

5 medium sized potatoes, chopped fine

4 large carrots, sliced

1 medium onion, sliced

2 cans chicken stock

1 cup water

1 tsp berbere spice

Fry the onion til golden, then add the chopped vegetables, chicken stock, water, and berbere spice. Then I bring it to a boil and then turn down to simmer, until it is as I like it.

Meat Dish

2 lb chopped stewing meat

1 onion, chopped

butter

3 tsp garlic, minced

red wine, however much you feel

1/2 tsp berbere spice (to taste)

water, lots of it

cardomon

fengreek

bishops weed

Brown the meat in a pan. When it is browned, put it aside and then fry the onions in the pan. Then add the garlic, berbere and other spices, red wine and butter to the onions. Put the meat back in and top over with water. Let simmer for hours. When I did this I kept having to add more water and as I did this I woudl break the meat up as it became tender.

Injera

3 1/2 cups white flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

3 tsp baking powder

1 Tbsp yeast

3 1/2 cups warm water

Okay, so I know this is not the 'real' injera, but since I don't regularly buy Teff flour, this is the variation I have. I put all the ingredients in a large bowl, whisked it very well, covered it with saran wrap and left it for a number of hours.

When it was time to make the injera I put about 4 cups of the (now) stretchy dough into the blender and added about 1/2 cup of water. I blenderized it til it was nice and runny.

I heated a non-stick fryingpan to a nice temperature (just hot enough to cook it quite quickly, but not fast enough to burn). I poured some of the batter into the frying pan, quickly swirling it around to make the 'pancake' very thin. I let it sit on the heat for about a minute. I did not turn it over and it was done when the bubbles all appeared all over the top.

I then put it on a plate. When the next one was done I put a clean cloth between the layers and added another injera to the stack. And on and on until I had made them all. I also made little ones for the little boys.