The three women sparkled like jewels. Attired in colorful abayas and numerous bracelets, these lovely natives of Eritrea welcomed me with warm smiles. The Rainier Valley home of the hostess, Halima, would be the setting for an Eritrean Muslim cooking extravaganza.
Everything was ready: ingredients, utensils and a beautiful bouquet adorned the table. Each woman prepared a different dish while I observed, questioned and scribbled furiously. This would truly conjure tastes from their green and hilly homeland.
Eritrea is a small country on the northeast coast of Africa across the Red Sea from the Arabian Peninsula. Roughly two-thirds the size of Washington state, Eritrea is a hilly, pastoral place with a temperate climate. Eritrean culture and cuisine carry influences from Arabia and south Asia.
Halima prepared a classic dish of lamb and rice.
Rinsing the meat first, Halima began with a large onion cut into coarse chunks, a couple of dried lemons and five hot chilies cut into strips. Everything went into a deep cooking pot on the stovetop.
Next in was a pound of lamb bones; neck bones are good because they add meat and flavor. A pound of lamb chunks can be used as well, but bones add flavor and sustenance. Bringing this mixture to a brisk simmer, Halima added two cinnamon sticks, five cardamom seeds and five whole cloves as well as five whole black peppercorns and two tablespoons of minced garlic.
The house filled with a wonderful, spicy aroma. Turning to a low simmer, she covered the pot. Meanwhile, rice was steamed and red and green bell peppers were chopped for later. Fresh, chopped vegetables such as carrots, peas, zucchini and green beans or frozen vegetables can be prepared ahead for this dish as well.
The seasoning, a moist paste called diluk, was next on the agenda. Diluk is the moist version of berbere sauce used in Ethiopian and Eritrean cooking. Composed of toasted and ground seeds and other ingredients, berbere includes ginger, cardamom, coriander, fenugreek, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and allspice.
Chopped onions, garlic and salt are included with red wine, paprika, hot red pepper flakes and black pepper. Combined with water and a little vegetable oil, it forms a paste.
Berbere is the quintessential seasoning. Kept covered and refrigerated, it lasts indefinitely and is sold in Eritrean and Ethiopian groceries.
Returning to the lamb and rice, Halima chose a Pyrex dish of 12-by-16 inches. A generous amount of the diluk was now stirred into the cooked lamb. Alternating the rice, lamb, cooked vegetable medley and chopped peppers, she layered each, pouring a half-cup of diluk over each addition followed by a sprinkling of curry powder. Sliced red and green pepper rings decorated the top. The dish can be served or covered and frozen at this point.
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 dried lemons, rinsed (sold at Middle
Eastern groceries)
5 green peppers (jalapenos), seeded,
cut into strips
2 pounds lamb bones
1 pound boneless lamb, cut into bitesized
pieces
2 cinnamon sticks
5 each of cardamom seeds, whole
cloves, black pepper corns
2 tablespoons fi nely minced garlic
2 or 3 fresh green and red bell peppers,
some minced, some sliced
Curry powder
Place first six ingredients into a large cooking pot; bring to a simmer (add up to 1-1/2 cups water as needed). Reduce heat and add remainder, starting with cinnamon sticks. Simmer for about 35 minutes until meat is cooked through. Add 3 tablespoons diluk or desired hot sauce to mixture. Layer alternately with 3 cups cooked rice and 2 cups cooked vegetables and minced bell peppers in a large, oven proof dish. Sprinkle each layer with curry powder. Cover with foil and heat in the oven if desired; otherwise serve immediately. Makes 6-8 servings.
South Seattle food writer Georgia Lord Watanabe may be reached via mptimes@ nwlink.org.
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