January | 2019 | YessEthiopia

Ethiopia is one of the countries in the world with oldest civilization and lots of history. It is also one of the biggest and most populated countries in the wold with diverse agro-ecology and culture. There are more than 72 ethnic groups who have their own languages and different food habits. Despite its history, size and diversity , there are lots of less documented indigenous foods, knowledge and lifestyle in Ethiopia.

Like people in other parts of the world, each tribe in Ethiopia has its own beliefs and attitudes relating to foods. Some of these are related to foods and diseases, others to qualities, such as hot and cold or light and heavy foods. Food may be graded as dangerous for certain individuals or in certain situations. If a child develops any kind of upset at the time when a supplementary food is being introduced, it is only natural that the illness should be attributed to that food, especially if it is a gastro-intestinal upset. Some foods are endowed with special prestige.

Fenugreek (abish). Fenugreek is one of the oldest cultivated plants and has been grown in Egypt and India since ancient times. The early Egyptians recognized it as a health-giving plant and used it as a medicine, for food and in religious ceremonies. Harem women of the East ate the seeds to give themselves a pleasing plumpness. In India the young plants are used as a vegetable and the seeds as a spice. In Ethiopia fenugreek seeds are used extensively as a spice, a food and a medicine. The green part of the plant is apparently never used as a vegetable. It would be of great nutritive value, because of the content of calcium, iron, carotene and ascorbic acid in the leaves. The seeds are used with other spices in the wot or they can be used to flavour enjera. In infant-feeding it is common to give the infant the third or fourth decoction of the seeds.

Fenugreek can also be used to prepare a beverage which is frequently consumed during the fasting period. The flour is poured slowly over the surface of cold water and should not be stirred. The flour will be allowed to sink to the bottom of the bowl and remain undisturbed from the evening to the next morning, in order to remove the bitterness of the seeds. In the morning the water is slowly but completely poured away, the dough is beaten for about 5 minutes and sugar or honey and water are added at intervals. This drink is believed to be especially valuable

Spice Mixtures

Berberre consists of a mixture of different spices, the main ingredient being chili (Capsicum frutescens). A number of varieties of chili, both wild and cultivated, are grown in the Ethiopian Highlands. In the local language (amharinja) the term berberre means both the pod (chili) and the spice mixture (see below). The green, unripe chili can be chopped and mixed with shallots, garlic and other condiments. The red chili is most common in use. As far as quality is concerned, the stage of maturity is of great importance. The best quality is the dark, red type. The pods are picked by hand and then dried in the sun on a fibre mat or on the ground, with the result that they are contaminated by the soil. The seeds are often dried separately. The dried chili can be kept for a long time in dry storage and the spice mixture is most often made for the monthly needs. The chili has high contents of carotene (vitamin-A precursor) and ascorbic acid, but the amounts are considerably decreased if the spice is dried and stored under poor conditions.

The pounded chili is mixed with garlic, ginger, fresh sacred basil and rue and is left in the sun to dry and afterwards milled. The spice mixture should be kept in an airtight container in the dark; if it is stored in the light, the carotene will be destroyed and the colour will change. Sometimes the spice mixture is mixed with a small quantity of water to form a paste.

Mitmitta is a spice mixture mainly used for raw meat. Bird’s-eye chili is dried with Ethiopian cardamom, black cummin, and bishop’s weed, and then mixed with salt and ground. This spice mixture should be stored in an airtight container in the dark. Mitmitta is better than the berberre mixture. In the Begemder Province a type of chili between chili and bird’s-eye chili, both in size and spiciness, is used.

Makalesha is a spice mixture made up of imported spices and can be bought in the local spice market or made at home. Black pepper, long pepper, cloves and cinnamon are heated slightly on the metal mitad in order to dry them and are then ground in the mortar.

Makalesha is often used in wot and allicha, when the dark colour of the spice mixture does not interfere with the desired colour of the dish.

Awaze is a spice mixture which is mainly used for spicing raw meat. Most often this spice mixture is prepared before a big feast, and served as a dry spice or mixed with tejj (honey wine) or water.

Seeded pods of chili are pounded together with chopped ginger, garlic and red onion in the mortar. The other spices — Ethiopian cardamom, cloves, bishop’s weed and black cummin are heated on the iron mitad and mixed with the chili mixture and milled.

Ethiopian traditional foods and long list, yet its not well documented. documenting the different foods eaten in Ethiopia is highly needed for research and development in relation to nutrition, health, economy and livelihood of the Ethiopian population…

In this note, I am trying to document list of traditional foods of Ethiopia based on information from scholars, online references and my own experiences

I support from readers of this page by proving names of foods which I didnt include in this list ………… Note that some of the food items are repeated in the following list …