Types of Ethiopian Food
Ethiopian cuisine mostly consists of breads, stews (known as wat), grains, and spices. Typically, an Ethiopian meal consists of a combination of injera (flatbread) with different wats, yet each cultural group has their unique variation. A typical snack would be small pieces of baked bread called dabo kollo or local grains called kollo. Pasta is frequently available throughout Ethiopia, including rural areas. Coffee is also a large part of Ethiopian culture/cuisine; after every meal a coffee ceremony is enacted and espresso coffee is drunk.
Berbere, a combination of powdered chili pepper and other spices (somewhat analogous to Southwestern American chili powder), is an important ingredient used in many dishes. Also essential is niter kibbeh, a clarified butter infused with ginger, garlic, and several spices.
Wat stews all begin with a large amount of chopped red onion, which is simmered or sauteed in a pot. Once the onions have softened, niter kebbeh (or, in the case of vegan dishes, vegetable oil) is added. Following this, berbere is added to make a spicy keiy (Amharic: ቀይ ḳey, Tigrinya, Ge'ez: ቀይሕ ḳeyyiḥ; "red") wat, or may be omitted for a milder alicha wat or alecha wat (Amharic: አሊጫ ālič̣ā). In the event that the berbere is particularly spicy, the cook may elect to add it before the kibbeh or oil so the berbere will cook longer and become milder. Meat such as beef (siga, Ge'ez: ሥጋ śigā), chicken (Amharic: ዶሮ dōrō, Tigrinya: ደርሆ derhō), fish (Amharic: asa), goat or lamb (Amharic: beg, Tigrinya በግዕ beggiʻ) is added; legumes such as split peas (Amharic: ክክ kik, Tigrinya: ክኪ kikkī) or lentils (Amharic: ምስር misir, Tigrinya: ብርስን birsin); or vegetables such as potato (dinich, Amharic: ድንች dinič, Tigrinya ድንሽ diniš), carrots and chard (Tigrinya: costa) are also used in wat.
Read more about this topic: Ethiopian Cuisine
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