Injera Recipes

INJERA (ETHIOPIAN TEFF BREAD)

Steps:

• Mix 1/2 cup white teff flour and brown teff flour together in a bowl. Add 1 cup water and whisk well. Pour mixture into a glass container large enough to hold 3 times the original volume. Cover with cheesecloth or other breathable fabric to keep out dust; do not seal with plastic wrap as air circulation is vital. Leave covered container in a draft-free environment; the mixture needs air to be circulated in order to ferment. Stir batter 2 times over 24 hours.
• Check for bubbles and possibly an increase in volume after 24 hours; there may also be a slightly tangy and sour smell. When you notice these things, add 1 tablespoon white teff flour and 1 tablespoon water to the batter and whisk well. Check in a few hours to see if bubbles have again formed, mixture has increased in volume, and the pungent smell is still evident; if so, the batter is ready and you can skip to the cooking process (step 5).
• Leave batter to rest another 12 hours if the mixture has not begun to form or smell sour after the first 24 hours; stir once during this time. Check to see if bubbles have formed, mixture has increased in volume, and a pungent smell is evident; if so, proceed with step 4.
• Mix together 2 tablespoons white teff flour and 2 tablespoons water in a bowl, making sure there are no lumps. Add mixture to the batter, whisking well. Wait a few hours; batter should be bubbly with a noticeable increase in volume and a pungent but fragrant smell, indicating it is ready to be cooked.
• Heat an 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add oil. Pour a scant 1/2 cup batter slowly and steadily into the hot pan in a circular motion from outside to inside. Cover the pan completely in a spiral without swirling. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, allowing steam to cook the top of the bread, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove from pan with spatula and transfer to a plate; cover to keep warm. Repeat with remaining batter.

QUICK INJERA

Steps:

• 1. Put the all-purpose flour, rye flour, baking powder and salt in a food processor and pulse until blended. Pour the club soda into a measuring cup and add the vinegar. Pour the liquid into the processor as it is running and mix until the batter is very smooth. Let sit for 10 minutes.
• 2. Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spray the skillet with a thin coating of nonstick spray. Make the injera the way you make a crepe: Remove the skillet from the heat and tilt the edge farther from you down toward the floor. Pour 1/3 cup of the batter in a pool slightly off-center further from you, and then quickly swirl the pan so that the batter covers the entire surface. Place the pan back on the heat, cover with a lid and cook until the edges start pulling from the pan and the top is shiny and slightly dry, 90 seconds to 2 minutes. Peel the injera from the pan and transfer to a plate, top-side up. Serve cool.

INJERA (ETHIOPIAN SOUR FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• Repeat until all of the batter is used, spraying the pan with cooking spray as necessary.

INJERA

Steps:

• Combine flour and baking soda in a large bowl.
• Add club soda, stir well to form a thin batter.
• Heat a large well-seasoned or non-stick griddle until hot. Brush lightly with oil or ghee.
• Using a large cup or ladle, begin on the outside of the griddle and pour in a circle around the inside edges until the center is filled. Quickly tilt the griddle back and forth to fill in any holes and spread evenly. As if making crepes.Cook for 1-2 minutes, until surface is spongy and filled with tiny air bubbles. Do not flip the bread - just slide off griddle onto a large plate. Continue cooking injera until batter is used, transferring them to the plate as they are done. Arrange them around the outside edges of the plate so that the centers overlap. Serve immediately with a meat or vegetable stew.

INJERA

Steps:

• Begin by making a sponge or yeast starter: In a large non-reactive bowl or plastic jug with a lid, sift a generous 2 cups (9 oz/250 g) of the flour and, using your hands, begin slowly working in about 1 cup (250 ml) of water until you have a very moist, squishy dough without any lumps-it should take about 5 minutes. Pour over½ cup (125 ml) water so that the mixture is entirely submerged, then tightly cover and let it rest for four days at room temperature.
• The mixture will have separated into two layers: a thick, yeasty sponge on the bottom and a watery layer on the top. Carefully pour off and discard the watery top layer so that only the sponge underneath remains. You will need only a portion of this sponge to progress. You can use the leftover sponge to make successive batches of injera; it will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for several days.
• In a large non-reactive bowl, measure out 1 cup (250 ml) of the sponge. Using your hands, mix in the remaining 41/s cups (1 lb 2 oz/500 g) of flour and½ cup (125 ml) of water. When you start smelling a pleasantly sour aroma, gradually add a generous 1 ½ cups (375 ml) of water. Once the mixture is smooth, with no lumps, pour about 1 % cups (400 ml) of water on top; do not stir in this layer of water. Cover tightly and let the mixture rest for three days at room temperature.
• After three days, remove the lid and take a look. The batter may bubble and smell sour-these are good signs. However, if you see any bits of mold develop on the surface, scoop out and discard. Pour off and discard the watery liquid layer on top and reserve what is left: this is the base batter.
• Make the absit. In a large saucepan, bring 1 cup (250 ml) of water to a boil. Whisk in ½ cup (125 ml) of the base batter and½ cup (125 ml) of water. When this mixture begins to thicken and bubble, remove it from the heat. It should have the consistency of thin cooked oatmeal. Let it cool to just warm. This mixture is called absit.
• Mix the absit into the bowl with the base batter to create a final batter. The mixture should have a consistency mid-way between a crepe and pancake batter. If it is too thick, stir in a little additional room-temperature water. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let it rest for about 2 hours, until bubbles have begun to form on the surface. The bubbles are the sign that the final fermentation has occurred and that the injera batter is ready to be cooked.
• To cook the injera, use a non-stick crepe pan or skillet, or large, traditional mitad. Moisten a paper towel with oil and wipe the surface, then place the pan over medium-high heat.
• When the pan is hot, use a spouted measuring cup to scoop ½-1 cup (125-250 ml) of the batter, depending on the size of the pan (a standard 11 inch/28 cm crepe pan will take about¼ cup/175 ml of batter). For a large mitad, use about twice as much batter. Work quickly and carefully in order to pour the batter evenly around the pan. Starting at the outside edge of the cooking surface-going clockwise if you are right-handed or counterclockwise if you are left-handed-pour the batter in a thin stream and in one continuous motion in a spiral formation, without overlapping, until you end at the very center. There might be some batter left over in the scoop. While not traditional, if using a crepe pan, swirl the pan if needed to evenly distribute the batter.
• Cook undisturbed until bubbles have begun to form on the surface of the injera and the batter begins to set. When about 75 percent of the surface batter has changed color, 45 seconds-11/2 minutes, cover the pan with a large lid. (A glass lid is helpful here as it allows you to check the doneness of the injera without uncovering.) Cook until the edges of the injera begin to curl, the top is quite dry, and the injera has released from the bottom of the pan, from 30 seconds-l 1/2 minutes (it might be longer with a larger mitad). Do not flip the injera.
• When cooked, use a long thin spatula and a thin plate or piece of cardboard to transfer the injera to a flat basket or a large plate lined with parchment paper without breaking.
• Remove any stray dough from the cooking surface, and then apply more oil as necessary and reheat. (After the first few injera, lower the heat to medium-low.) Continue making them in the same way, layering each injera on top of the last on the basket or plate as they are finished. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before placing another on top, and allow all to rest for at least 30 minutes before serving. Cover any leftovers loosely with plastic wrap and they will keep for about 2 days.

INJERA

Steps:

• Mix the teff and 1 cup of the self-rising flour with water in a large container and make a thick dough the consistency of bread dough. Cover with water and let it ferment for 2 to 3 days.
• In a separate container, mix the barley flour with enough water to make a thick dough. Cover with water and let it ferment for 2 to 3 days.
• On the third day, throw the water from both containers. Mix 2 cups of the teff mix with 1 cup of the barley mix, the remaining 1 cup self-rising flour and 4 cups of cold water. Put the mixture in a blender and blend until you get the consistency of a thin pancake batter. Let it stand for 1/2 to 1 hour.
• Heat a griddle over medium heat. Pour 4 ounces of batter on the griddle, spread it by turning the griddle around and let it cook for about 1 minute. Remove the injera from the griddle and put it in a tablecloth to cool down. Repeat with the batter until you have about 4 ounces left. Keep that in the fridge as a starter for your next batch.

AUTHENTIC INJERA (AKA ETHIOPIAN FLAT BREAD)

Steps:

• Mix ground teff with the water and let stand in a bowl covered with a dish towel at room temperature until it bubbles and has turned sour; This may take as long as 3 days, although I had success with an overnight fermentation; The fermenting mixture should be the consistency of a very thin pancake batter.
• Stir in the salt, a little at a time, until you can barely detect its taste.
• Lightly oil an 8 or 9 inch skillet (or a larger one if you like); Heat over medium heat.
• Pour in enough batter to cover the bottom of the skillet; About 1/4 cup will make a thin pancake covering the surface of an 8 inch skillet if you spread the batter around immediately by turning and rotating the skillet in the air; This is the classic French method for very thin crepes; Injera is not supposed to be paper thin so you should use a bit more batter than you would for crepes, but less than you would for a flapjack pancakes.
• Cook briefly, until holes form in the injera and the edges lift from the pan; Do not let it brown, and don't flip it over as it is only supposed to be cooked on one side.
• Remove and let cool. Place plastic wrap or foil between successive pieces so they don't stick together.
• To serve, lay one injera on a plate and ladle your chosen dishes on top (e.g., a lovely doro wat or alicha). Serve additional injera on the side. Guests can be instructed to eat their meal without utensils, instead using the injera to scoop up their food.