And then there's a time and a place for eating your tablecloth. Letting sauce from a heavily spiced stew drip down your cheeks. Licking your fingers.
That time is now. That place is Ethipoia. Let's get started.
First up is Sweet Artichoke who was first inspired to make Ethiopian food from reading The House of the Calife by Tahir Shah. I love it when one art form can inspire another (and yes. Food is art.) and her Yataklete Kilkil is certainly art.
Andreas over at Delta Kitchen has been trying to expose himself to new tomato dishes, and this raw Ethiopian Style Tomato Salad fits the bill. Spicy and satisfying.
Heather of Girlichef knows the way to my heart. This Ethiopian-Inspired Chickpea and Sweet Potato Soup absolutely speaks to me. And it's saying, "EAT ME!"
Kim of The Ungourmet loved the big flavors in the Chickpea Wat that she made. And so do I. Doesn't it just scream comfort food to you?
Marisa of The Creative Pot defies all conventional wisdom about childcare when she made this spicy and vibrant Mesir Wat. That she then fed to her 8 month old nephew. Who loved it. Take that, Dr. Spock!
Not being able to satisfy her love of exotic food by making only one dish for Regional Recipes, Marisa also made Zilzil Alecha or Beef in Green Pepper Sauce. And honestly, just looking at it is making me rethink my satisfaction. Because I'm pretty sure I need to try this!
Deb of Kahakai Kitchen is also trying to use up tomatoes this week and so she, like Andreas, also made Bittman's Ethiopian-Style Tomato Salad. In doing so, she transforms local ingredients into an exotic dish, the concept of which I love.
Lexi of Big Momma and Me makes her first (and hopefully not her last!) appearance at the Regional Recipes table with Doro Wat and Injera. She served this to her family along with a history lesson about the origins of the cuisine. Her son was riveted and well fed. Double score.
I'm not quite sure what is more decadent, Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook's Mesir Wat and Silver Dollar Injera Pancakes...or her writing. She describes the stew as a "golden bowl of ridges and pockets" that are "tempestuously spiced". And she serves them with a cold beer. What more could a girl want?
Debbi of Debbi Does Dinner...Healthy and Lowfat is always willing to try new things and go to great lengths to really get an international cuisine. It's what I love about her. She searched and searched until she found the meth powder...err methi powder to make these Ethiopian Lentils with Sweet Potatoes. Was it worth it? From the looks of it, I would say so!
Elra of Elra's Cooking never lets me down. Her beef stew with berbere and nitter kibbeh looks like it would make my taste buds very happy.
And finally, we have my Ethiopian Lentil Stew with Ethiopian Green Beans and Potatoes. Which were the only things that could comfort me after my cell phone decided that it would rather live in the New York City sewage system than with me. A tragic revelation, for sure. But at least it resulted in a seriously tasty meal.
This brings us to the end of our trip to Ethiopia. Let's all have a moment of silence, shall we?
Moving on.
Never one to dwell on the past and seeing as how there are many countries still left to visit, I think it's time we hop on a plane to our new country.
So. Next month we are headed to...
PUERTO RICO!
Okay. Maybe it's not exactly a country but it is definitely a region. And we are non-discriminatory equal opportunists here at Regional Recipes aren't we?
Here are some websites to help you out! I can't wait to see what you guys cook. Email me your entries (to jhbruno87@gmail.com) by August 31st!
The ever-trustworthy Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rican_cuisine
Recipes from The Rican Chef: http://www.elboricua.com/recipes.html
Whats4Eats: http://www.whats4eats.com/caribbean/puerto-rico-cuisine
