My name is Sarah Jones and I am a culinary major at Jacksonville State University. In the International foods class we studied the Country of Ethiopia. By far this has been the best food we have studied. I feel this way simply because it has been the most authentic food we have tasted. We had a student from Ethiopia come in and cook the dishes with us. We were able to speak with her about not only the cuisine but the culture of Ethiopia. She cooked two chicken dishes one spicy and one more bland and it was served with Ethiopian cheese, injera, which is a form of bread, and jalapeno peppers filled with tomatoes and onions. All of which were very highly spiced.
When I first thought of Africa I was not imagining this type of food. It was extremely flavorful and spicy! It was interesting to find out that the country of Ethiopia did not have sugar for many years so they substituted spicy seasoning for sweet. Can you imagine drinking coffee or tea with hot red pepper? Does not sound very appetizing to me. The Italian Fascists introduced it in 1930 which was not very long ago if you think about the development of food.
It was also interesting to me to learn how Ethiopians eat only with their hands. They use the bread injera to pick up the food item. It sounds very messy however it was pretty easy compared to using a fork. Ethiopian food is very deceiving when you take your first bite; at first it was not hot then the flavors built and my mouth and stomach felt on fire. Then I realized how much red pepper she had added, it was at least 2 cups ! Ethiopians are used to the spices and even small children eat the spicy dishes.
Overall I think the class really enjoyed studying Ethiopian cooking. If I ever try to make it again I will serve rice with the chicken to tone down the spiciness. Africa is not a continent that many think would be a culinary destination but I must say this class experience really changed my opinion. Africa has overcome many natural disasters so it has been challenging for tourism to be popular. However I will tell everyone to try Ethiopian cooking if they ever get the chance. It was an amazing experience that I will forever carry with me.
Thank you Mrs. Abbas for cooking for our class and sharing an experience most of us will never have the opportunity to have.
Sarah Jones
