Injera for dummies :)

This post is for my friends who are bringing home children from Ethiopia.



I was determined to learn to make injera for Spiderman in case he needed some comfort food during his adjustment to America. It sounded very intimidating when I read recipes for injera and it almost scared me off. Anyway, this is my recipe for Faux injera and to tell you the truth, both Hope & Spiderman claim they prefer it this way. It is wheat instead of teff and it is NOT fermented.

Keep in mind that I am NOT a cook, it is not my hobby or my preference to make things in the kitchen. (some of you know this) I say that so you know this really is easy or I wouldn't have made it more than once. If you want to do this, you really CAN do it. Here we go:

You will need a large skillet (preferably non-stick) and some sort of lid (mine doesn't even fit on my pan). I use a ladle but Ethiopians actually pour the batter from a pitcher.

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
4 cups of water, maybe more

Whisk the batter until smooth and very runny. In fact, it seems like it is too runny but the key is to keep the injera very thin, more like a crepe. See this photo.
















Heat your skillet with medium-high heat and gently coat the pan with cooking spray before each piece of injera. Pour the injera into a spiral, about 1/2 cup. This is where I thought it was tricky at first. I can't pour it spiral enough to keep it thin and joined together SO... I use the back of my ladle to spread the injera as thin as I can. Put the lid on the pan and let it cook for about 45 seconds. You can peek underneath but you don't want the bottom cooked crispy, the top is really just steamed.
















Look at this photo and you can see it isn't all cooked on top. When it is done, it will not look wet like this. Your finished injera will feel spongy and that is just right. Stack them on a plate and cover with a towel if you'll be eating soon. I usually make them early in the day and you can microwave them just fine. Wa la!

Now if you've never eaten injera before, this will give you the right texture and idea for eating but it isn't at all sour like the fermented teff version (Nat & Jen, that means it won't evoke those "memories" for you). It's really pretty good. When Spiderman came home, he liked to eat injera with his scrambled eggs (he loved eggs!). I thought it was a small gesture to show him we wanted him to feel at home.