Ethiopian cuisine

Ethiopian cuisine consists of various vegetable or meat side dishes and entrées, usually a wat, or thick stew, served atop injera, a large sourdough flatbread. Ethiopian food is not only healthy and nutritious, but it's also a great way to expose children to new flavors and foods.

Overview

Ethiopian cuisine characteristically consists of vegetable and often very spicy meat dishes. This is usually in the form of wat, a thick stew, served atop injera, a large sourdough flatbread, which is about 50 centimeters (20 inches) in diameter and made out of fermented teff flour.

Ingredients

Ethiopian cooking can be heavy on meat — but the east African country’s cuisine is also full of delicious and super-satisfying dishes that are perfect for vegetarian, vegan, and gluten and lactose-free eaters. Key ingredients in most dishes are berbere, a spicy red pepper spice mix, and niter kibbeh, a spiced clarified butter.

Dishes

Some popular Ethiopian dishes include Doro Wat, Kitfo, and Firfir. Doro Wat is a spicy chicken stew made with berbere spice and niter kibbeh. Kitfo is a dish made from raw minced beef, similar to steak tartare. Firfir are shredded pieces of injera that are stir-fried with spices or sauce.

Eating Customs

Ethiopians traditionally eat with their hands and use pieces of injera to pick up bites of entrées and side dishes. Utensils are rarely used with this dish.

Beverages

Traditional Ethiopian beverages include Tella, an Ethiopian beer, and Tej, a honey wine. Non-alcoholic beverages include Buna, Ethiopian coffee, and Shai, Ethiopian tea.

See Also

• African cuisine
• List of African cuisines
• List of Ethiopian dishes and foods