Eatdrink #44 November/December 2013

14 www.eatdrink.ca
№ 44 | November/December 2013
A medley of dishes arranged on the traditional injera (left)
offers an enjoyable communal introduction to Ethiopian
cuisine, but a wide variety of other dishes are available.
Ethiopian cuisine is characterized by a
blending of flavours in order to produce a
harmony of ingredients. T.G. is a skillful
chef and her signature dishes from the
repertoire of Ethiopian cookery comprise
permutations of sweet, bitter, sour, salty,
hot and fragrant. These flavour contrasts
are the hallmark of T.G.’s cooking.
In recent times, T.G. had hoped to bring
her youngest sister to Canada to help
her with the demands and challenges
of cooking a labour-intensive ethnic
cuisine that requires specialized training.
Initial approval was given to T.G.’s sister
but because of her limited English there
are still obstacles with the Canadian
consulate in Ethiopia. T.G. hopes this
will be resolved so that she will be able to
spend more time with her young daughter.
At present she would find it difficult and
uncomfortable handing over the reins of
her kitchen to an outsider. T.G. is acutely
aware that there would be consequences to
employing someone who is not culturally
indoctrinated in the nuances of the cuisine.
Customarily made out of fermented tef,
injera is used as both the serving platter and
eating utensil. Decorum decrees tearing
pieces of injera off with your right hand,
pinching up and then wrapping it around
the meat or wat, and then popping it into
your mouth. No other utensils are required.
Various dishes are placed decoratively and
served directly onto the injera, allowing it
to absorb individual flavours and spices.
Dishes are always accompanied by
additional injera to scoop up the food with.
Sharing a medley of delicious dishes that
have been expertly arranged on a common
platter — the traditional way to eat — is
an enjoyable introduction to the cuisine.
During a meal with friends or family, it is
a common practice to feed others in the
group with your right hand by putting the
pinched up injera into another’s mouth.
This is called a gursha, and I have been told
that the larger the gursha, the stronger the
relationship or bond.
Berbere is the brick-red blend of 17
ground spices which is an essential
ingredient in Ethiopian cooking and adds
a fiery heat and stimulating boost to many
of the dishes that
reflect its national
culinary identity.
Meat dishes fall
mostly into two
distinct categories:
red stews (wat),
which include
berbere, and green
stews (alicha wat),
which do not.
Wats are properly
prepared with a
African beers, of course!