Ethiopian Kale (Gomen)

Mild and gentle Gomen (kale) to balance out the zing of the Beg Wot (Lamb Stew)

As a last post in my series of Ethiopian dishes I am sharing a simple recipe for a humble side of kale.

Although the Injera sets the stage for almost every Ethiopian meal and the meat stews are the stars, an Ethiopian feast is not complete without the supporting rolls of the many pulse and vegetable dishes. This mild kale dish contrasts beautifully with those spicy meat stews.

It might seem a bit odd that I am using kale from a glass jar – I have tried fresh and even frozen kale, but it simply does not taste like the Gomen I grew up with….so now I just continue our family tradition and pop open a jar.

 

Ingredients

2 onions
3 tbsp oil
1 large jar of kale (720g) (NL: boerenkool, DE: Gruenkohl)
2 cm piece ginger
salt
green jalapeno pepper (large chili pepper)

 

Recipe

1. Chop the onion very fine (in a food processor).
2. Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a medium size pot. Gently fry the onions until they are translucent. Should they start sticking and burning add a little hot water.
3. Squeeze in ginger in through a garlic press.
4. Drain the kale and squeeze it dry.
5. Add to the onion and cook whilst stirring until quite dry.
6. Cover with a lid.
7. Cook about 20 min, stirring once in a while to prevent it from burning.
8. Season with salt.
9. Remove seeds from the jalapeno and cut it into thin slices or strips. Stir most of the jalapeno into the stew and decorate it with the remainder.

 

Tips & Variations

• Make a triple amount of the onions sauce. Use one third for the kale, a third for yellow split peas and a third  lentils.

Serve with

• Injera (Sour Pancakes)
• Beg Wot (Lamb Stew)
• Doro Wot (Chicken Stew)
• Alitscha (Mild vegetables)
• Kik Alitcha (Yellow Split Peas)
• Kitfo (Mince meat)
• Aib (Cottage cheese)

 

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Ethiopian Yellow Split Peas (Kik Alitcha)

Tender yellow split peas with a hint of garlic and ginger – fragrant Kik Allitcha

Yesterday my dear friend LS invited me to join a dinner party she was giving at a local Ethiopian restaurant.  (Thank you for a fabulous evening!)

Our huge plated was piled high with many different sauces and reminded me that I really cannot get away with only posting recipes for Ethiopian Injera and Lamb Stew. An Ethiopian feast is simply not complete without those many vegetarian dishes made from vegetables and pulses. One of my favourites is this sauce made from yellow split peas.

Instead of yellow split peas you can also use regular green lentils. Another tasty and quicker alternative are red lentils: There is no need to pre-cook these; they only need to be washed and can then be added straight to the onions.

 

Ingredients
150g yellow split peas
2 onions
3 tbsp oil
1-2 cloves of garlic
2 cm piece ginger (about the same amount as garlic)
1/2 tsp tumeric
salt
green jalapeno pepper (large chili pepper)

 

Recipe

1. Wash the peas in a sieve until the water runs clear.
2. Place in a medium size pot and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer on a low flame until they start to become a little tender. About 30 min.
3. Allow to cool..
4. Chop the onion very fine (in a food processor).
5. Bring some water (about 1 l) to the boil.
6. Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a medium size pot. Gently fry the onions until they are translucent. Should they start sticking and burning add a little hot water.
7. Add the peas.
8. Squeeze garlic and ginger in through a garlic press.
9. Add turmeric and salt.
10. Cover the peas with boiling water and allow to simmer on a low flame until tender, about 20 min.
11. Remove seeds from the jalapeno and cut it into thin slices or strips. Stir most of the jalapeno into the stew and decorate it with the remainder.

 

Tips & Variations

• Replace the yellow split peas with regular green lentils
• Replace the yellow split peas with red lentils. There is no need to pre-cook these; they only need to be washed and can then be added straight to the onions.
• Make a triple amount of the onions sauce. Use one third for the split peas, a third for lentils and a third for gomen (a kale side dish).

Serve with

• Injera (Sour Pancakes)
• Beg Wot (Lamb Stew)
• Gomen (Kale)
• Doro Wot (Chicken Stew)
• Alitscha (Mild vegetables)
• Kitfo (Mince meat)
• Aib (Cottage cheese)

Lentils with Celeriac

Some lentils, cleriac, nuts and a bit of seasoning – amazing that something so simpel can taste this increadible

Do you already own Yotoma Ottolenghi’s amazing recipe book ‘Plenty’? No? It is a collection of extremely creative and unbelievably tasty vegetarian recipes.

I already shared recipes based on his chickpea pancakes and his lentils with roast vegetables and grilled aubergine. As I mention in this last post, I will not be sharing many of his recipes as you really should buy his book. But to whet your appetite, here is one more wonderful dish.

And just so you know: I have cooked a few other dishes from the book. I loved them, but will not share them with you. I will not even tell you what they are called so you cannot search for them on-line. You will just have to get the book yourself and explore 🙂

A big thank you to RE for the beautiful little dishes I served the lentils in. Such a lovely present – you know me so well 🙂

 

Ingredients
( hardly altered from Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe from ‘Plenty’)
Serves 3-4

60g whole hazelnuts
200g Beluga or Puy Lentils
700ml water
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs of thyme
1 small celeriac (about 650g)
4 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp hazelnut oil (alternatively use walnut oil)
3 tbsp balsamic (or red-wine) vinegar
4 tbsp chopped mint
salt, black pepper 

Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 140C..
2. Scatter hazelnuts on a baking tray and roast for 15 minutes.
3. Allow to cool and chop roughly.
4. Combine lentils, water, bay leaves and thyme in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or all dente.
5. Drain in a sieve and discard leaves and thyme.
6. Peel the celeriac and cut into 1 cm chips.
7. Bring water to the boil. Add salt and cook celeriac for 8-12 minutes or until just tender. Drain.
8. Mix the hot lentils (if they are cool they will not absorbe the flavours of the dressing) with olive oil, 2 tbsp of the hazelnut oil, vinegar, pepper and plenty of salt.
9. Add three quarters of the celeriac and stir. Adjust seasoning.
10. To serve warm: stir in half the mint and half the hazelnuts. Spoon on a serving dish and drizzle with the remaining tbsp of hazelnut oil. Garnish with the rest of the celeriac, mint and nuts.
11. To serve cold: allow the lentils to cool and adjust seasoning again; possibly adding some more vinegar as well. When you are ready to serve finish the dish the same was as when serving hot.

Serve with

• As a vegetarian main with a side salad. Yotam recommends radish, cucumber, dill dressed with sour cream and olive oil
• As a side dish to a plain steamed white fish

Lentils with Roast Vegetables and Grilled Aubergine

Honest and hearty tasting lentils with crunchy roast vegetables and silky aubergine

Welcome to 2013!

Although I am not superstitious, I really do enjoy rituals of celebration. So what better way is there to start the New Year than with a plate full of lentils for abundance of happiness (or is it money?).

This recipe is from Ottolenghi’s “Plenty”.  (It cannot be a coincidence that I gifted this book to myself on Thanksgiving last year 🙂  )

As lovely as all this the symbolism is, I believe that the first days of the year are for relaxing and lounging around rather than standing in the kitchen for hours on end. So I would not be suggesting this recipe if it were not so easy to put together. The only thing that takes a little effort is the grilled aubergine. At the same time it really tastes amazing and adds another dimension to the dish. I have two suggestions:  either make as much of this fabulous grilled aubergine as possible; keep the rest (refrigerate or freeze) to make baba ganouch to have later with some soft warps and lamb, for example. Or take a short cut by leavening out the aubergine and replacing it with a piece of delicate steamed fish.

By the way, Ottolenghi’s “Plenty”  is a wonderful vegetarian recipe book. I will not be sharing many recipes from it on my blog as I think you really should get it yourself. So consider this a little amuse bouch for the New Year.

Ingredients
(virtually only ratios altered from Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘Plenty’)
Serves 2

1-2 medium aubergine for this dish (but make as many as you can)
2 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar (alternative: balsamic)
4 tbsp olive oil
150g lentils (Black Beluga I love for this dish as they keep their shape but Puy will do)
5 small carrots
4 celery sticks
2 bay leaf
3 sprigs of thyme (or a little dried if you are at a pinch)
1/2 white onion
18 cherry tomatoes
1/3 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp fresh coriander
1 tbsp fresh dill
1 tbsp fresh parsley
salt, black pepper
optional: 2 tbsp yoghurt (or creme fraiche)

 

Recipe

Aubergines

Although the traditional way to cook aubergines is oven an open flame, I prefer making them under the grill so I can prepare as many as possible in one go.

Grill: Line a baking tray with a double layer of aluminum foil. Pierce aubergines a few times with a fork (to stop them from exploding.) Place them directly under a hot grill for about 1 hour, turning them a few times. The aubergines should deflate and the skin should burn and break.

Hob: Pierce aubergine a few times with fork. Place them directly over two moderate, open flames. Roast until burnt (about 15 min).

Lentils

1. Rinse the lentils. Place them in a medium saucepan.
2. Cut 2 carrots and 1 celery stick into large pieces. Add to lentils.
3. Add 1/2 onion in one piece as well as bay leaves and thyme to the pot.
4. Cover with plenty of water, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for about 25 min (or until lentils are tender but not mushy.)
5. Drain in a sieve and remove all the vegetables and herbs.
6. Transfer lentils to a mixing bowl, add 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp vinegar.
7. Season with plenty of pepper and especially salt.
8. Set aside somewhere warm (this dish is best served warm but can be served at room temperature.)

Vegetables

1. Whilst the lentils are cooking, cut remaining 3 carrots and 3 celery sticks into 1-2 cm chunks.
2. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half.
3. Throw the vegetables into a large oven dish and mix with1 tbsp olive oil, the sugar and some salt.
4. Cook in the oven for 20 min until carrot is tender but still firm.

Assemble

1. Chop the coriander, dill, parsley.
2. Add 2/3 of the vegetables and herbs to the lentils. Carefully combine.
3. Taste to adjust seasoning.
4. Spoon lentils onto serving dish. Top with remaining vegetables and herbs.
5. Pile aubergine on the top.
6. Add a dollop of yoghurt if using.

Tips & Variations

• If you are rushed for time skip roasting the aubergine and steam some fish instead
• If you do have the time to make the aubergine make plenty refrigerate or freeze it to use for baba ganouch dip

Serve with

• Some blanched green beans

Duck with Lentils, Kale and Mushrooms

Earthy, rich winter flavours

It is cold and rainy outside and I am craving comforting food. But none of my go-to dishes from the last months will do – they are all to light and summery.

So on a whim I bought some duck breast. It has a more distinct and earthy flavour than chicken  at the same time it is just as lean and healthy (that is if you remove the skin).

Next I hunted for a recipe. I found one that combined all that I was looking for: rich and nutty flavours – nutritious and healthy ingredients. The result was an amazingly satisfying and soothing meal.

I will confess I have made this dish three times in as many weeks. The first time it seemed a little complex;  with all those pots and pans. But by the third time I was sitting down to eat in little over half an hour.

Ingredients
(Recipe based on the blog savory simple)
Serves 2

1 large or 2 small duck breast
2 shallot (or small onion)
2 cloves of garlic
1 cup of lentils
2 cups of vegetable or chicken stock (twice the volume of the lentils)
1 sprig of thyme (or a pinch of dried thyme)
200g of frozen kale (you can use fresh kale but I will admit I prefer frozen for this recipe)
60ml water
salt, back pepper
250g (chestnut) mushrooms

Recipe

1. Bring the duck breast to room temperature (about 30 minutes).
2. Start by chopping the shallots. Slowly fry them in a small pot until translucent.
3. Once cooked place half of the shallots in a second small pot.
4. Rinse the lentils and add to one of the pots.
5. Add the chicken stock to the lentils.
6. Throw in one whole clove of garlic.
7. Add the (sprig of ) thyme. Cover and cook until the lentils are tender. About 20 minutes. (The lentils will stay warm for quite a while so there is no need to try and time everything exactly.)
8. Take the second pot with shallots and add the kale to it.
9. Mince one clove of garlic and add to the kale. Cover with a lid and cook until tender. 7-10 minutes. Once cooked you can let it stand until the remaining dishes are ready. You can quickly reheat it if necessary.
10. Heat a frying pan (no oil!)
11. Score the skin of the duck from left to right and top to bottom a few times into a diamond pattern.
12. Season with salt and pepper.
13. Place the duck breast skin side down into the pan and cook on a medium heat for 6 minutes. Turn and cook for another 4 minutes. Wrap the duck in aluminum foil and allow to rest.
14. Cut the mushrooms into slices. Wipe the fat from the frying pan. Fry the mushrooms quickly until just tender.
15. Now taste and season the mushrooms, kale and lentils with salt and pepper.
16. Optional: remove the skin from the duck (as tasty as it is I remove it as I do not want the additional fat).
17. Cut the duck breast into slices.
18. Serve by layering lentils, kale, mushroom and duck on a plate.