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Monday, October 23, 2006

Injera

ethiopian-meal-1


Every once in a while, I love to cook a simple Ethiopian meal of Injera and a few sides. Last Friday was one such day where we had injera, cabbage and potato alicha plus mesir wat, y'abesha gomen, selatta and a chutney to boot!

Usually I like to make Injera with Tef flour, but, all-purpose flour serves as a good substitute. Here's a recipe for Injera with all-purpose flour.
A mix of teff and all-purpose flour works better than pure teff flour in my experience.

injera-1

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups lukewarm water
2 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 tsp baking powder
salt to taste
2 Tbsp canola oil


Preparation
  1. add the yeast to the flour and slowly add the water and stir it well to form a thin batter; cover and let it sit in a warm place for 3 days; stir the batter once a day
  2. when ready to make the injera, add the baking powder and salt to taste, stir well
  3. heat a large non-stick pan/griddle, brush it with some canola oil, set heat at medium-high
  4. take about 1/2 cup of batter and pour it on the pan and swoosh it around to spread the batter into a thin layer on the pan (sort of like making crepe)
  5. bubbles/holes will form on the surface as the batter cooks and gets dry; usually, injera is cooked only on one side, so not necessary to flip it; oil the pan as needed to make sure injera comes off the pan without struggle
  6. remove from pan; layer a few injera at the bottom of the serving platter, overlapping each other; then, roll up the rest of the injera as they come out of the pan and arrange them on the serving platter; the quantity here makes about a dozen 8" injeras which seems to be plenty for two
  7. sides are usually served on the bed of injera, but, i enjoy holding a rolled up injera in one hand and taking a piece and dipping it in my plate of sides with the other:-)

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8 Comments:

  • At 1:14 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Hi Sheela,

    I landed in your blog via Nandita's onion rawa dosa. We've had excellent Ethiopian 'thali' in a home-run restaurant near our home. The lady is ever smiling and the food is so close to Indian cuisine. And I'm more than happy to find your clear illustration on Injera. Where did you learn to make them? lucky you... thanks for sharing:)

     
  • At 1:15 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    can you suggest another substitute for teff? We don't find it here and cannot do all-purpose because it is not gluten free.

     
  • At 1:38 PM, Blogger Sheela said…

    HI Anonymous,

    As far as non-tef injeras go, i've tried with other flours like buckwheat and rye+spelt... the latter might not be entirely gluten-free but is well-tolerated, usually...

     
  • At 7:55 AM, Blogger Vibha said…

    Hi Sheela,

    I would really love to try Ehiopian cuisine.

    Just a few questions:

    1) Can I used maida?

    2) What is the substitute of dry yeast - eno salt ?

    Thanks
    Vibha.

     
  • At 9:05 AM, Blogger Sheela said…

    HI Vibha,
    1)Maida might be fine - texture/taste maybe a bit different, as expected; let me know - sometimes it is nice to experiment with small batches of batter :)

    2) Eno salt might help as a raising agent right before cooking, but, sort of like sourdough or Uthappam batter, injera seems to come out fluffy and spongy if I let it ferment for a period of time.

    Please do try your idea and drop me a note - it would be very useful to know!

     
  • At 12:10 PM, Blogger Unknown said…

    You can buy teff from this websit- www.teffco.com

     
  • At 9:05 AM, Anonymous Courtney said…

    I see in the recipe that you recommend all purpose flour. why not teff?

     
  • At 9:28 AM, Blogger Sheela said…

    Courtney, All-purpose is just an alternative for people who can't find Tef easily...

     

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