Yefesoleya Wot (Ethiopian French beans Stew)

I served this stew with Injera bread (Ethiopian Pancakes). Normally pancakes or bread are usually the side to a dish but in this case it is hard to say which is the star, the stew or the pancake as they both go well together pretty much like salt and pepper to a meal.

This meal is rich in so many nutrients that there should be a separate post dedicated to describe the positives of these ingredients. The only challenging part in making this dish is chopping up so many different vegetables however I promise that it will prove worthy!

Yefesoleya Wot

To make this dish,

You need:

• 600 gms of French beans
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 leek, chopped finely
• 1 spring onion, diced finely
• 2-3 carrots, diced finely
• 1 large potato, diced into cubes
• 1 stalk celery, chopped finely
• 1 shallot, diced finely (large white onion)
• 1 large red onion, diced finely
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced finely
• 1 green pepper/ green chilli. cut finely
• 1 tsp of sun-dried tomatoes (you can also oven dry chopped tomatoes and use)
• 1 tbsp of tomato puree
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 2 tbsp of vegetable or sunflower oil
• 2-3 cloves of garlic crushed
• 1/4 tsp of basil leaves chopped or dried basil
• 1/2 tbsp of Berbere (Ethiopian chili powder)
• 1/2 tsp of black pepper powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup of boiled, cooled water

The Make:

Cooking Time: 35-40 minutes | Preparation Time: 30 minutes | Serves 6 adults

1. Cook the french beans in boiling water till tender for about 10 minutes and take out and strain over an ice cubes or check French Beans the French Way! Chop the French beans.

Strained French beans

2. In a medium sized skillet, heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil or sunflower oil and saute the leeks and onions for about a minute.

Stir in the leeks and onions

3. Next add the rest of the vegetables except the bell pepper and tomatoes with another tbsp of the oil and stir fry the vegetables for 10 minutes.

4. Add the bell pepper and saute for a minute.

5. Next add 1/2 cup water, sun-dried tomatoes, tomato puree, basil, garlic, berbere, salt and pepper.
Berbere is quite spicy so add with discretion. Mix well and allow to cook for 5 minutes.

6. Add the strained french beans and mix. Allow it to blend for 10 minutes.

7. Next add the green pepper or green chili, olive oil and mix .Allow to stand for 3 minutes.

Vegetables stewing away

8. Remove from heat and serve either hot or cold with Injera.

Yefesoleya Wot ready

Yefesoleya Wot served with Injera

Injera (Ethiopian Pancakes)

Whilst chapatis and dosas are common flatbread and pancakes of India, Injera is staple of pancakes in Ethiopia. Its texture is comparable to French crepes or Indian dosas. 'A' 's formative years were spent in Ethiopia when his parents worked there in their younger years. Lucky for me, as I have now begun to explore a cuisine which I never would have earlier on had I not known of it from A and my mom-in-law.

Injera is made of teff flour and is a yeast-risen flatbread with a slightly spongy texture. Teff is a unique grain which is iron-rich in nature. Teff flour is normally mixed with water and is allowed to ferment for days which is then used as a sourdough starter. The sourdough is stored for long periods and is subsequently used in batches of Injera batter to follow. The mildly sour flavour thus follows. Traditionally the batter for Injera is spread over a large clay plate. The batter has to be sufficiently liquid as that of a crepe to spread into a large circle. The bottom of the Injera would be smooth whilst the top would be porous in texture. The porous nature allows the Injera to scoop up stews, sauces and the like. I made the Injera with a Yefesoleya Wot (Ethiopian French beans Stew).

Injera with Yefesoleya Wot

I looked all over Hyderabad and did not find the Teff flour. 'A' checked with some of our Ethiopian church go-ers and they confirm that Teff was unavailable in Hyderabad and they are very  much adjusted to our chapatis and dosas now. They have promised to try and get me a batch of Teff flour in case someone known arrives from Ethiopia:). Reading online I read that some of the common variants to Teff flour is ground millet or ground Bajra. So I went with that.

You need:

• 700 gms of millet flour or bajra flour
• 1 packet of yeast (2 tsp)
• 6 cups of boiled/cooled water

The make:

Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Preparation Time: 30 minutes | Makes 8-10 large injera

• In a large deep bottomed pot/skillet, take 3-6 cups of the water and add the millet flour. Mix well by hand. Tip: Add 2-3 cups of water at first and the flour and slowly add more water as required till a sufficiently liquid batter is formed. Do not make it too watery.

The batter

• Next add the yeast and mix well. Cover and allow the batter to rise up which takes a minimum of 10-20 minutes.
• Preheat a large pancake pan to 425°F. I used an iron one I had from Mum's kitchen. 

Ladle in Injera batter

• Take a deep curved ladle or a cup with at least 3/4 cup of the batter and pour it into the center of the pan and spread the batter with the ladle working your way in clockwise fashion. If using a cup you can pour from the outer circle and work your way in clockwise fashion to the center.

Injera batter spread on a heated pancake pan

• Allow it to cook for 3-4 minutes and then transfer to a clean cloth. Continue the same way until the batter is completely used. Alternatively, you can also reserve a portion of the batter and refrigerate to use as a starter for your next injera batter mix. You can serve this with a stew of your choice. I served it with  Yefesoleya Wot (Ethiopian French beans Stew).

Injera served with Yefesoleya Wot

• Serve warm. Cover and store in a cool, dry place for later meals. Refrigerated, the injera can also last 2-3 days.

Bon Appetit!