Cooking Ethiopian

One of the things I will miss most during this diet is Ethiopian food. It does not meet the diet restrictions. At all!

After Ladybug came home I decided I should learn how to cook Ethiopian food. I mean, in my area there are several Ethiopian restaurants where I live so we could always go out but I thought it was important to learn. The first time I took Ladybug out for Ethiopian food I realized how important this was going to be for her. She had been home about 3 months when we out with friends. When they delivered the food to the table she looked at me. She looked at the plate. She looked back at me. Then she reached into the plate and took the tiniest piece of injera possible. She slowly stuck it into her mouth and tasted it. Then she dove head first into the plate. She loves loves loves Ethiopia food. Won't touch Mexican or Chinese food but she would eat Ethiopian every day if I would make it.

I tried making injera. Twice. It was a disaster. Injera is the spongy, pancake like bread that comes with every dish. The food is served on it and you use it to eat the food. Yeah!! Finger food. I love finger food. But I can not make injera. When I started the process of cooking injera I thought it was going to be easy. WRONG! Eventually I gave up trying. I buy it now. I know it will be good and I don't have to do the work.

I have found that the best way to get the authentic flavor for the dishes is to cook them with spiced butter or oil. This means that I must first cook the butter or the oil. Onions, spices, butter or oil. Seems easy. And it is worth it. It adds a ton of flavor to each dish. Technically all vegetarian dishes are made with oil and all meat dishes are made with butter. I like to make all of my dishes with butter because I prefer the rich creamy flavor that the butter adds that oil just doesn't And it is a good thing. Try one at making the oil went well. Try two ... well, not so well.

At the time I lived in a house with a tiny kitchen. Let me explain "tiny" for you. If I stood in the middle of my kitchen and spun in a circle I could touch the stove, sink, and cabinets (I added these because there was none). If I opened the fridge the door hit the stacked washer and dryer. TINY! But it was just Ladybug and I so we made due.

I set out to make my second try at oil on a Sunday. I had laundry going and a big pile of dirty clothes on the floor. I had the TV going in the living room (this is important). I chopped onions. I poured oil and water into a pan to bring to a slow boil (big stew size pan). I measured the spices. As I waited for the oil and water to boil I heard something come on the TV that I wanted to see (and that I no longer have a memory of) so I went into the living room. I had been in the living about 1 minute when I heard a big bang come from the kitchen. Serious BANG! I ran into the kitchen.

I turned the corner to the stove and ... next thing I knew I was on my butt. My foot slid into the stove and I sliced open my toe. I was confused. I had no idea how I got on the floor. I looked up at the stove. The pan was not on the burner I had left it on. It was about this time that I noticed something dripping on me. I looked up at the ceiling. Something was dripping from the ceiling. Yes. Oil! I was sitting in oil. It finally dawned on me that the bang had to been the oil. I now know that the pan exploded and oil went everywhere. Everywhere.

So I tried to get up. Fat lady sitting on a kitchen floor covered in oil. Yeah, it wasn't going to happen. Literally. I couldn't get any traction. I finally slithered my way across the floor and onto the dirty clothes. Finally I had a method to stand up. I looked around. Every inch of my kitchen was covered in oil. Every inch! The floors, the ceilings, the counters, even things in the cabinets.

Luckily my mom came over (this is when she lived next door to me) and helped clean the kitchen. We scrubbed every single spot of the kitchen. I guess the kitchen needed a good cleaning. Every once in a while, for months later, I would notice oil seeping out of the walls and ceiling and give them a good scrubbing again.

As a result, I make everything with the butter. I like the taste. And I hate cleaning.

I was going to post a few pictures of my attempts of Ethiopian cooking but I have no idea where I have saved them. So no pretty pictures. Even with my mishap I love cooking Ethiopian food and I love eating it.

Mean Mama
PS - 3.6 down and 120.6 to go.