Injera: cooking it

Once you’ve got a good starter and have completed a couple days of prep, your injera is finally ready to cook. You can cook your injera in a large skillet or a pancake griddle. But one of the things that I did after our girls came home was to spring for a mitad. The one I got is actually called a Heritage Grill and can be used for either lefse or injera. This grill can get very hot– 500 degrees — and does a good job of maintaining an even temperature. It is important to cook the injera in a covered skillet. It can be hard to find a lid big enough to cover a large injera. I went ahead and purchased the matching lid also sold by the Heritage Grill company.

I turn my griddle all the way on high (500 degrees), and wait a few minutes for it to heat up. Before you get started cooking, it’s a good idea to set aside a cup or two of batter in a jar for the next time you make injera. That way you won’t forget, and accidentally cook all your starter.

Once your skillet is hot, sprinkle it lightly with salt. My daughter and I have found it easiest to pour the injera batter onto the skillet using a 2-cup measuring cup. A cup and a half of batter is about right for one 16-inch injera.

Pour the batter quickly onto the skillet in a circular motion, going around and around the skillet, starting at the outside and going inward to fill in the circle. Cover the skillet and let cook for 2-3 minutes. When the injera is done, the edges of the injera will start to curl upwards just a little, and the top of the injera will still look moist and a little sticky. You do NOT need to flip over injera. If you overcook the injera, the bottom will turn dark brown and the top will look very shiny from all the trapped steam.

Taking the injera off the skillet can be a little tricky. It helps to gently run a spatula around all the edges of the injera to loosen it from the pan. I’ve found that two wide spatulas, one on either side of the injera, can help lift the injera off the pan. You can lay the injera on a large tray (or a flat basket if you have one).

Before you pour the next batter on the skillet, make sure there is no residual batter on the surface of the skillet, as that will make the injera stick. If I am having problem with sticking, I wil sometimes pour a small dab of oil onto a paper towel, and quickly wipe off the surface of the skillet, but it is best to keep your oil minimal. Keep cooking until you’ve used up your batter. (But remember to set aside some starter for next time!)

You can stack each fresh injera on top of the previous one. Once the injera has cooled a bit, you can roll it up and stack it on a tray for serving. Some people serve the injeras whole. Some rip each injera roll into two or three pieces to serve that way. Or you can cut each roll at an angle into 2 or 3 pieces.

Then all you have to do is make some wat (this? or this? or maybe this?) to go with the injera, and enjoy! The injera will stay good for a couple days before it gets stale. But even stale injera is perfect for firfir!

Note: I get my teff flour from The Teff Company.

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.