Skip to main content

Injera {Ethiopia}

Injera is an Ethiopian flat bread. If you've never had it, think spongy crêpe versus hefty naan. This is an Ethiopian staple and is traditionally made with teff, a very finely milled millet flour. I used what I had which happened to be an mixture of all-purpose flour and rye flour. Ethiopians use this bread to sop up the flavors of spicy stews.


When I first set out to make it, I hadn't read the directions very carefully and didn't realize that the dough needed to ferment for 24 hours before you use the batter. So, that set me back a day. I mixed the dough, left it to ferment, and came back the following evening, ready to make some injera.

Let's just say that this was a torturous project. Only about 25% of my injera were worth eating and the boys declared it - "not your best effort, Mommy. It kinda tastes like wine...or beer." I guess I got the fermentation down. The texture et al needs some work. Oh, well.

1 T active dry yeast
5 C warm water
2 1/2 C all-purpose flour
1/2 C dark rye flour
1/4 t baking soda

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 C of water. Allow to proof and add the remainder of the water and the flour. Stir until smooth and then cover. Allow to stand at room temperature for 24 hours.

Stir the batter well and mix in the baking soda.


Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Pour about 1/3 cup of the batter into the pan in a spiral pattern to cover the bottom of the pan evenly. Tilt the pan to quickly even out the batter. Cover the pan and allow to cook for about 1 minute. It is cooked only on one side. This top should be slightly moist. Remove to a platter and cool. Stack the cooked breads on a plate.

Everything I read declared: "The bread should not brown but rather rise slightly and be very easy to remove."

Mine were flat as a pancake and terribly difficult to remove from the pan. As I said - disastrous. Thankfully there are Ethiopian restaurants we can go to so that the boys will know what injera is supposed to taste like.

Comments

  1. Injera isn't made with wheat or rye flour. It's made with tef flour. That is where the taste not being right is from. It can be ordered on line or if you go to an Ethiopian restaurant they can tell you if it can be sourced locally. I have bought it in shops in Minneapolis and Nashville.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Teri, yes I know that it's made with teff...which I did say in my post. The taste wasn't the issue, it was the texture.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Even when its well made, I think it's an acquired taste. After two weeks in Ethiopia, I had acquired the taste and was looking for every chance to eat traditional foods. At first, though, I could only take it about once a day!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Quick Pickled Red Onions and Radishes

If you've been reading my blog for even a short amount of time, you probably know how much I love to pickle things. I was just telling a friend you can pickle - with vinegar - or you can ferment - with salt - for similar delicious effect. The latter has digestive benefits and I love to do that, but when I need that pop of sour flavor quickly, I whip up quick pickles that are ready in as little as a day or two. I've Pickled Blueberries , Pickled Asparagus , Pickled Cranberries , Pickled Pumpkin , and even Pickled Chard Stems ! This I did last night for an upcoming recipe challenge that requires I include radishes. Ummmm...of course I'm pickling them! Ingredients  makes 1 quart jar radishes, trimmed and sliced organic red onions, peeled and thinly sliced (I used a mandolin slicer) 3/4 C vinegar (I used white distilled vinegar) 3/4 C water 3 T organic granulated sugar 1 T salt (I used some grey sea salt) 6 to 8 grinds of black pepper Proce

Aloo Tiki {Pakistan}

To start off our Pakistani culinary adventure, I started us off with aloo tiki - potato cutlets. I'm always game for tasty street food. I found a couple of different recipes and incorporated those together for this version. Ingredients 6-8 small red potatoes, scrubbed 1 T cumin seeds 1 T fresh chopped parsley 1/2 t ground coriander 1 t minced garlic Procedure Boil the potatoes until they are tender. Drain and let cool. Mash the potatoes. Traditionally they are mashed without their skins. I left the skins on. In a small pan, toast the cumin seeds on high heat until the begin to give off an aroma and begin to darken. Remove from heat and transfer to a plate to keep them from cooking any more. Blend all of the spices into the mashed potatoes, then shape into small patties. If you wet your hands, the potato mixture won't stick to them. Heat a splash of oil in a large, flat-bottom pan. Dip each patty into beaten egg and carefully place in the oil. P

Meyer Lemon Custard-Filled Matcha Turtles #BreadBakers

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our  Pinterest board  right here. Links are also updated after each event on the  Bread Bakers home page .  We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. This month Stacy of Food Lust People Love  is hosting and she wrote: "Your bread can be large, as in one big animal, or small - animal-shaped rolls. Use your imagination! Points for flavor and shape!" If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. Here's the animal-shaped bread basket from the #BreadBakers... Beef and Sweet Onion Dim Sum Pandas from Karen's Kitchen Stories Bird Bread Rolls from Ambrosia Easter Bunny Buns from Cook with Renu Ham and Cheese Elephant Rolls from Food Lust People Love Hedgehog Bread from Making Mir