I’ve been way outside my comfort zone lately. First with these Samosa Style Twice Baked Potatoes, and now this Ethiopian-inspired dish! But one of the things that keeps me inspired and excited about life is trying new things. I promise this recipe is super easy just like my usual style, it’s just got a little exotic touch. If you’ve made Thai curry with curry paste from the store, you’ll find this to be the same principle. (I also have a super easy recipe for Veggie Thai Curry you might like as well.) You can use any veggies that you normally like in curry. For this particular recipe, I used broccoli as my primary veggie. But zucchini, carrots, and snap peas are all great options too. I also promise that once you taste the flavor of berbere, you’ll be hooked and want to put it on everything. (Try rubbing it on meats before grilling them, and you can thank me later!)
So what is Ethiopian Berbere anyways
If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably never heard of it before. It’s a mix of spices usually including chili, paprika, fenugreek, ginger, coriander, black pepper, cumin, cardamom, allspice, turmeric, and a few others as well. It’s hard to describe what it tastes like, but here are a few flavors: earthy, light fruitiness from the chili, and ends on a spicy note. Also, different mixes vary a lot, so be careful how much you use. The spice mix I’ve been telling you about is nice and balanced and the heat isn’t overpowering. As the guy from the spice shop where I bought mine told me, ‘It’s basically an Ethiopian chili and spice mix, and be sure to get 2 because you’re going to be needing it’. And you know what… he was right, this stuff is so good! Some people are even going as far as to call it ‘the spice for everything’ and I’m inclined to think they’re right.
How to make this Ethiopian Inspired Berbere Chicken Curry
For this curry, I started by browning the chicken and removing it from the pan so that it can be added in towards the end to avoid tough dry chicken. Once the onions start to become tender, I like to add the berbere spice mix to the pan and sauté briefly to help bring out the flavors of the spices. If you do choose to use broccoli in this curry, the stems are really nice thinly sliced. I peel away the tough outer layer before slicing them, and once they’re cooked, the stems have a sweetness and nice texture to them. Once the stems are peeled, chop the whole crown of broccoli or whatever veggie you use into bite sized pieces. I used fresh tomatoes blended into a chunky sauce for this recipe because I have an abundance of them right now. But to make this in the winter, just use a can of chopped tomatoes. Or whole tomatoes also work, blended in place of the fresh tomatoes. After a short simmer, this curry is ready to be enjoyed with plenty of rice, (or cauliflower rice). Also a little chopped fresh cilantro if you want to go for a little extra pizazz.
Coconut Curry Recipe inspiration
Easy Chicken Coconut Curry (Indian-inspired) Thai Chicken Green Coconut Curry Thai Coconut Curry Noodle Soup Thai Pumpkin Coconut Curry Thai Coconut Curry Noodle Soup Mango Chicken Coconut Curry
I hope you’ve enjoyed coming along with me outside my comfort zone. And I know you’ll absolutely love Ethiopian Berbere spice if you love chilis! If you do make it, I hope you’ll leave me a comment/rating below. And I always love hearing from you here. Or over on Instagram where you can tag me at #getinspiredeveryday with your photos. 5 from 13 reviews
