Because we were out of town for the first Friday of the new year, our first official Ethiopian Friday took place on January 8th. The chosen dish was T'ibs Alich'a (Mild Fried Beef Stew) on page 117.
red onions (left) and more beef than my husband usually sees in a week
The recipes in this book call for vast quantities of chopped red onion. At least a couple of cups.
qibbe
Qibbe is a spiced butter and, personally, I think it makes all the difference in the world in Ethiopian cooking. I make my own, and I'll write a post on qibbe itself in the future. I make about 12 cups of it at a time and keep it in my freezer in cup-sized Rubbermaid containers. Then, when I need it, I just pull as many out as I need. Some recipes can call for a couple of cups of this pure gold! The brown layer you see on what is actually the bottom is all of the spices that are simmered in the butter as you clarify it. It's absolutely gorgeous stuff!!
the qibbe and the red onions
everything combined and ready to simmer
One of the things I love about most Ethiopian cooking is that once everything is combined, it can be put in a crockpot or on the back of the stove and left to slowly simmer for the day. The house smells amazing when an Ethiopian stew is gently bubbling away and to walk in and catch a whiff is the best thing ever.
the finished product
The injera was purchased from our local restaurant, which is our favorite. I have also ordered from here and always have some in my freezer, in case our local place chooses not to answer their phone (true story). I hope to tackle injera on my own this year!
the aftermath
The t'ibs alich'a was a hit, though we all decided that we much prefer the dishes with berbere in them!
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