Ethiopian food: fusion's spicy new thing that's easy to make

I love beetroot and thought that I had cooked them in every way possible, that was until I tasted a divine Ethiopian dish at a market stall last year. Now any time I'm near the Emye vegetarian food stall at Mahon Point or Midleton Market I get a takeaway box of delicious Ethiopian food.

I love discovering food like that. Accessible, natural ingredients cooked and combined so thoughtfully and for me, in a new and exciting way. Fizzy teklegiorgis makes these incredible dishes like the beetroot and potato one, best eaten at room temperature.

Other dishes on offer include a potato and cabbage mix, a lentil dish, a cabbage, celery and olive dish that tastes so crunchy and fresh and much more. One of the stars of the stall is the shiro. It’s a type of stew made from ground chickpeas, lentils or beans and spices among other things. It tastes deliciously savoury with a unique umami flavour.

It’s not very spicy but still has some heat. My eldest son is quite addicted to it. When he see’s me open the lid of the take-away box he dives in and scoops up most of the shiro to put on a crusty baguette. Fusion food. He really does love it. Traditionally Ethiopian food is served on injera – a flat bread made from fermented teff grain. Teff flour is widely available here now as it’s being hailed as the new gluten-free grain. A large injera is placed on a platter then several different dishes spooned in mounds on top with even more rolls of injera tucked between. Food is served communally and the injera is used to scoop it up. The flat base injera is then soaked with all of the gorgeous sauces and is possibly the most delicious one as a result.

My potato and beetroot just doesn’t taste the same as the one I get at Emye. It’s missing a few key elements I think but is delicious none the less. The harissa citrus yogurt was perfect with it. Leftovers are even nicer the next day and it makes a lovely alternative to the usual potato salad. The sweetness of the beets and ginger is offset nicely by the spicy yogurt.

I sometimes add harissa paste to the dish itself too. Berbere is the traditional chili spice blend used in Ethiopian cooking. It can be difficult to find but you can make your own spice mix at home using cinnamon, allspice, coriander, chili, cloves and fenugreek along with a few more additions. There are detailed berbere recipes online. It’s well worth making your own as it’s an extremely versatile blend that you can add to most dishes and it will improve them.

Ethiopian potato and beetroot with lime and harissa yogurt

Serves 6

1 onion, diced

2’ chunk of fresh ginger, grated

2 cloves garlic, crushed

700g beetroot, cut into chunks

600g potatoes, cut into chunks, waxy varieties work best

250ml water

250g natural yogurt

Juice of 1 lime

1-2 tsp harissa paste

Sea salt

Combine all of the ingredients for the yogurt and set aside.

Place 2 tbsp oil in a large pot. Add the onion and sauté for five minutes before adding the garlic and ginger. Sauté for a minute or two. Add the beetroot and water and stir to combine. Simmer till the beets are just tender, 20-25 minutes. Add the cubed potato and stir gently. Place the lid on and simmer till the potatoes are just cooked. Taste for seasoning. This can take quite a bit of salt or add a little harissa as well. Serve at room temperature or just warm drizzled with the yogurt.