Ethiopian Chicken
With a mix of warm and sweet spices Ethiopian Chicken is full of rich flavor. Easy to make, too. You can make it with any cut of chicken. I used wings in this batch. Traditionally the chicken should be on the bone, but feel free to swap out boneless chicken, if you prefer. Just reduce the cooking time by 15 minutes.
Ethiopian Chicken
1 chicken, cut into pieces or 3-4 lbs. chicken pieces like wings, thighs or drumsticks
1 T. paprika
1 t. each cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder, salt and ginger
1/2 t. allspice
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/2 c. flour
3 T. oil
2 large onions, sliced thin
1 c. tomato sauce or 2 c. stewed tomatoes
1 c. chicken stock
Combine spices with flour in a plastic bag. Add the chicken a few pieces at a time and shake to coat. Set aside. Add onion to hot oil in large skillet and cook until onions are browned. Add chicken pieces and brown on all sides. Add sauce and stock. Cover and simmer 35 minutes, adding water if sauce gets too thick. Serve with a cooked grain such as rice, millet, quinoa, wheat berries etc. This dish is also good served with lentils and cooked greens. Serves 4.
Ethiopian Spiced Green Beans
We made these beans in class recently. The class was about how to cook with herbs and spices. The people in class really liked these beans. The Ethiopian spice blend gave the beans a warm rich flavor. They remind me of green beans I get at a local Ethiopian restaurant.
Of course, you could use the seasoning with any number of vegetables. Carrots, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and cabbage are all veggies I have seasoned with this spice blend.
So here is the recipe for the seasoning mix and how to make the beans.
Green Beans with Ethiopian Seasoning
1 lb. green beans, ends trimmed
1 T. oil
2 T. butter
2 t. Ethiopian seasoning, or to taste
Salt to taste
Steam beans until tender, about 6 minutes. I steam them in a microwave. Heat oil and butter in skillet and add the beans, sautéing until the beans get a little color on them. Add the seasonings and adjust to your taste. Serve. Serves 4.
Ethiopian Seasoning
1 T. paprika
1 t. each cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder and ginger
½ t. allspice
¼ t. cinnamon
Ethiopian Spiced Lamb Chops
I was having a friend over for dinner and wanted to make something special. I know he really likes lamb, so I decided to make lamb chops. Since he also likes my Ethiopian seasoning blend, I decided to use them to season the lamb. They were amazing!!
I pan seared the lamb chops in a cast iron skillet, turning them to brown all all sides. They were thick chops and I wanted to cook them through, without burning the outside. So, once I browned them, I turned the heat down to let them cook more gently for a few more minutes. I cooked them about three more minutes per side. They came out great. Very tender, an even pink color throughout, with a nice brown exterior.
The Ethiopian spices complimented the lamb nicely. I’ve used this spice blend with chicken, beef and pork in the past. I can see using these spices with lamb again. They worked so well together.
So here is the recipe. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Ethiopian Spiced Lamb Chops
4 lamb chops, about 3-4 oz. each
1 T. paprika
1 t. each cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder, salt and ginger
½ t. allspice
¼ t. cinnamon
Combine seasonings and rub all over the surface of the lamb chops. Heat a skillet until hot. Place lamb chops in skillet and brown on all sides. Turn down heat and allow chops to cook until cooked to your preference. I like lamb rare, and these were pretty thick chops. They took about three minutes per side to cook, once browned.
Ethiopian Vegetable Soup
In soup class the other night we made this tasty and satisfying soup. A combination of veggies and lentils, along with the warm spices make it a favorite recipe of mine. Like most vegetable soups, you can add whatever veggies you have around. I veered off the original recipe by adding some zucchini, because I had some zucchini.
I used a chicken stock and added cooked chicken to the soup, but this one is easily turned into a vegetarian soup by just using vegetable stock and leaving out the meat. It is tasty either way.
Ethiopian Vegetable Soup
2 T. oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 c. uncooked lentils, rinsed
6-8 c. chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 lb. fresh or frozen green beans, sliced
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 T. paprika
1 t. each cumin, garlic powder and ginger
1/2 t. each allspice, cinnamon and cayenne pepper
2 c. diced cooked chicken, optional
Sauté onion in oil until lightly browned. Add carrots and sauté 5 minutes more. Add lentils and toss with vegetables then add stock and simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, about 1 hour. Add green beans, garbanzos and seasonings and cook 15 minutes more. Adjust seasonings and stir in chicken before serving, if desired. Good as is, or served over cooked rice for a richer dish. Serves 6-8.
Note: You can also use 2 T. Ethiopian seasoning in place of all the spices.
Lamb Ribs
Lamb Ribs
If you haven’t tried these before, lamb ribs are a fun and easy dish to make. They are often a lot less expensive than other cuts of lamb. They are frequently labeled as lamb riblets. A slab of lamb riblets run about 2 pounds and will feed two. You can treat them a lot like other ribs. I marinated these in a little apple cider vinegar for a couple of hours. To cook them I rubbed them all over with Ethiopian seasoning-recipe follows- and I added some pink salt. I started them out at 400 degrees for about an hour and then turned them down to 300 for 30 minutes more. They were juicy and pretty tender.
Ethiopian Seasoning
1 T. paprika
1 t. each cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder and ginger
1/2 t. allspice
1/4 t. cinnamon
You probably won’t need all of the seasoning for 1 rack of ribs. Refrigerate the rest for later use.
Lamb Riblets fresh out of the oven
