Not Shiro again.....

If you’re not sure that you’ve ever had Ethiopian food, your stomach will
certainly remember.



Before our arrival, a major concern was, you guessed it, food. Back in New
York, I had Ethiopian food once, and I was totally clueless about the method
and flavors, so six months of it was a little daunting and nerve-racking, to
say the least.



Here are the basics:

- First there is injera, a sour, sponge-like flat bread,
made of a local grain called ‘teft,’ and is the staple that is served with
every meal.

-Injera lines a large serving platter, that is then topped
with a variety of different ‘weut,’ or stews, made of seriously spiced
vegetables and meat.

-Then, with your hand, usually the right one, you tear
pieces of injera to scoop up the weut, and eat.

-Dessert is not big here.

-Tea, spiced with ginger, cardamom, and cloves, ‘shai,’
after the meal seems pretty standard.



For the first four days, this was all we ate. Then, after discarding the
injera at every meal, it became obvious that we grew very tired of it. Using
our broken Amharic, we tried to convey to Tigiste (the live-in housekeeper,
and culinary expert) that we needed another carb besides injera, along with
more vegetables. So, the next time she came home from the market, she
brought a lifetime supply of pastas, as Italian cuisine is available here.


Because there is a large amount of rain, and the soil is very fertile, most
fruits and vegetables are available and abundant here. Now, our diet mostly
consists of vegetables like: tomatoes, cabbage, green beans, spinach,
carrots, onions, corn, all sauteed in various ways, day to day, accompanied
by either pasta or basmati rice, and fresh fish once a week or so.


Did we cave? Are we a little soft for giving up injera? Maybe, but I’m not
too worried about.

We would also like to wish everyone a Shana Tova U'metukah. May your new
year be filled with good health, happiness and lots of success! Keep
us in mind as you enjoy your honey cake!