Walking north here takes you through some of the most incredible wooded, hilly terrain and a rather wide portion of that same stream that I took pictures of in the previous post. On this particularly day, the air was opulent with sound. Trickling rushes of stream, soft breezes through winter ravaged vegetation, joyful claw footed scurrying of black squirrels… the softness of the warm air literally transported me. Even the stars, strangely visible amidst the still vibrant blue of day seemed to twinkle loudly.
After a short hike, I reached my destination: a very interesting and diverse four way intersection just up the hill past clusters of budding trees that line the bike trails. I set about gathering some necessities from each corner: items from the Hispanic dollar store in the NW corner (run by an Asian family), browsing at the Hispanic dollar store on the NE corner (run by an Indian family) and coriander from the Universal Grocery, and then, while waiting at Bejing Palace for my eggroll on the SE corner, (there were a whole bunch of interesting places from Latin-American to Carribean, to Cuban on this corner that I didn't have a chance to check out) I crossed the street and wandered into the Ethiopian Market called Baeshen Grocery (SW).
It is here I discovered Zelalem Injera.
A dark man with a twinkle in his eye shot me a greeting in an unfamiliar language as I slipped through the door. His eyes were luminous and kind. I joked with him about how I SHOULD know his language but sadly I did not. When he inquired about another language, I knew he wasn't talking about english. He was surprised that I didn’t know any other language- I considered a compliment, yet it's my great loss. I felt as if I’d missed a great opportunity for conversation. Oh how glorious it would be to be able to speak any language instantly!
The store was sparsely stocked and most everything was unfamiliar to me. Thick wired metal shelves held neatly displayed bags of herbs, flours, and spices. I recognized some, but they were labeled and written in symbol system that resembled Hebrew and Arabic but was clearly neither.
Behind the counter were a few bottles of Listerine, lots of batteries, an Ethiopian flag and a visa machine. A covered container next to the cash register held a big batch of golden fried dough in random shapes that reminded me of a super sized beignets. I’m going back for those next time (and to learn that greeting).
Did you know there are about 83 different languages and over 200 dialects in Ethiopia alone?
All the way at the back, of the store is where I found the injera- an Ethiopian crepe -like flatbread I’d recognized from Ethiopians restaurants. I couldn’t stop staring at it. I picked it up, marveled at the weight and was fascinated by the texture and color. First ingredient: teff. What was teff. Five dollars was a splurge, but I couldn’t leave without it-into the messenger bag it went...
originated in Ethiopia between 4000 BCand 1000 BC, is the grain used in making injera. It is an annual grass, a species of lovegrass native to the northern Ethiopian Highlands of northeastern Africa. Tinier than a poppy seed, teff is a nutritional powerhouse: low in fat, high in fiber and nutrients, and is completely gluten free. Because of its small seeds (less than 1 mm diameter), one can hold enough to sow an entire field in one hand.
Teff is currently the most expensive grain to purchase in Ethiopia as it requires labor-intensive harvesting and processing techniques, and produces especially low yields. In the recent years individuals in Idaho and Minnesota have introduced teff to the United States and recently a machine has been developed which allows injera to be mass produced. The second generation machine (by ZELFIWU Inc) was put in place in Washington DC in the summer of 2004 and produces 1000 units per hour 24 hours a day!
Back home, I found a little bit meat in the fridge from a recent trip to Whole Foods, and called to mind some spices off a bottle of North African spice (that sells there for 7.49): cumin, coriander, cinnamon, mint. Now, North African cooking is not my specialty by any means, but I was determined to make this meat into something that might go with this amazing bread I’d just bought. And I was starving to death after the big walk—(please forgive the blurry pics) so there would be no researching of recipes.
I quickly, rubbed the meat with the spices, heated up a round of the bread in the oven. The meat and onions were seared quickly, and removed from the All-Clad when medium rare. In went the peas and a little beef broth to deglaze the pan, creating a delicious little bit of gravy: that all went unceremoniously into a bowl and was eaten with great delight at my Moroccan coffee table. My cat didn’t know what to think, you would have thought I’d never seen food before.
The warmed injera had a fabulous texture that comes from that bubbly texture on top, (think cross between crepe and crumpet) and a smooth, crepe- papery underside the color of elephant skin. Glorious! The torn pieces soaked in the pungent spiced meat juices combined with the mild sweetness of the peas perfectly complimented its gently sour taste. I am sure my technique needs some work but honestly, I have never had a better meal, which goes to prove, sometimes, the simplest things are the best!
I urge you to try injera. The website for this company is concise and eminently informative and they ship! You’ll find out about the special machine that was created to make injera, the complicated process it requires, and learn about how central this item is to Ethiopian culture and diet.
Posted by Goddess Findings at 3/15/2008 01:47:00 PM
