CUSINE

Ethiopian cuisine characteristically consists of spicy vegetable and meat dishes, usually in the form of wat , a thick stew, served atop injera , a large sourdough flatbread , which is about 50 centimeters (20 inches) in diameter and made out of fermented teff flour. Ethiopians eat with their right hands, using pieces of injera to pick up bites of entrées and side dishes. No utensils are used.

Traditional Ethiopian cuisine employs no pork of any kind, as most Ethiopians are either Muslims or Ethiopian Orthodox Christians , and are thus prohibited from eating pork. Furthermore, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church prescribes a number of fasting ( tsom ) periods, including Wednesdays, Fridays, and the entire Lenten season, so Ethiopian cuisine contains many vegetarian ( Amharic : ye-tsom ) dishes. This has also led Ethiopian cooks to develop a rich array of cooking oil sources: besides Sesame and safflower , Ethiopian cuisine also uses nug (also spelled noog , known also as niger seed ). [1] Ethiopian restaurants are a popular choice for vegetarians living in Western countries.

Ethiopian cuisine is also known for its spiciness. J. Innes Miller cites a publication of the Ethiopian Ministry of Education that listed a number of spices grown in Ethiopia in 1954, which include fenugreek , cumin , basil , coriander , ginger , saffron , mustard , cardamom , "Red pepper" ( Capsicum annuum ) and thyme . Innes Miller notes that "all of these, except red pepper, belonged to the Roman world."