Re: Q: teff? buckwheat groats?

[Guest guest]

I've used teff. There are many ways to use it, but I've really only

done one so far. I made injera, the spongey sourdough pancake-like

bread used in Ethiopian cuisine as bread, tablecloth, plate, and

spoon. It's delicious. If you're not familiar with it, it's

typically served with spicy stews, yogurt, and thin bean and lentil

pastes. The various items are arrayed on a large sheet of injera,

each diner uses pieces of injera to scoop up the goodies from the big

sheet. It's a " family " style of serviing. My results weren't quite

as good as what I've had at the restaurants here in Minneapolis or in

San Francisco, but it was still quite good. It's also a natural for

this way of eating since the traditional recipe involves a *very*

long soak.

The first recipe is the one that I used as a guide. The second one

seems interesting, but I didn't really understand it. I'm guessing

that the truly traditional preparation is somewhere between the two

recipes.

INJERA

Ingredients:

* 3/4 cup teff flour

* sea salt

1. Mix teff with 3 1/2 cups water and let stand at room temperature

in a bowl covered with a towel until the batter bubbles and has

turned sour...as long as 3 days.

2. Stir in salt until you can barely detect the taste.

3. Lightly grease a skillet. Heat over medium heat. Proceed as you

would with a normal pancake or crepe.

Pour in enough batter to cover the bottom of the skillet. About 1/4

cup will make a thin pancake covering the surface of an 8-inch

skillet if you spread the batter around by turning and rotating the

skillet.

Injera is not supposed to be paper thin so use a bit more batter than

for crepes but less than for a flapjack.

4. Cook until holes form in the injera and the edges lift from the

pan. Remove and let cool.

Yields 10 to 12 injeras.

INJERA 2

1 1/2 lbs t'ef flour

6 cups water

2 pkt yeast.

Sift t'ef into a deep mixing bowl. Add water gradually and working

with your fingers to avoid lumps. Work into a dough.

In another pot dissolve yeast in some warm water. Add to the flour.

Mix. Leave the dough uncover until fermentation starts (the water

will rise to the top), 2 or 3 days. Discard the water.

Separately boil 2 cups of water. Add 1 cup of the dough to the boiling

water. Put on the stove (make sure it's warm), and stir continuously.

When it becomes thick, remove, and cool down. Return to the original

pot. Add more water, cover and let stand until it rises.

Now you are ready to finally cook the thing

Preheat a pan to about 420 degrees (use a non-stick pan or a pancake

pan). Pour about 3/4 cups of the mixture into the pan, starting at

the edge and going in circles towards the center. Cover and cook for

2-4 minutes. The rim of the injera will rise when it's done. Remove

immediately