Gennet Mengistu was born and raised in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. Home to about three and a half million people, Addis is Ethiopia’s central hub for the country’s unique culture, which Gennet says has cultivated her love of traditional Ethiopian cuisine. After studying in London, she came back to Addis and taught kindergarten for some twenty years, but seeking a change, joined the tourism industry in 2012. She now works for GO Addis Tour Company, leading groups of tourists on tasteful excursions through the city. The love for her country becomes evident in the way she speaks about its traditional cuisine; she even says Ethiopia’s food is like an anchor, always keeping her steady. In a world of uncertainty and change, Gennet says she can always rely on her country’s native meals to bring her back, even if she is miles away.

 

Who first taught you how to cook? Can you think of a certain person or experience that stands out in particular? In other words, do you have a favorite “food memory”?

Well, the first time I learnt to cook was from our house helper, I was about 8 years old, my mom never allowed me to do so until I was 10 years old, the reason was that we never had gas or electric stove, and we used to cook using fire wood and or charcoal. So she was worried about the fire. So it was Shiro wot, the simple roasted chickpeas, or roasted peas, spiced powder. I tried and wasn’t so good, though. However my best food memory and one that I still love is called Firfir. It’s one of my mom specialties. Myself and my siblings, all family members loved it! Firfir, is done in red onion, garlic, red chili powder (Berbre), tomato paste and spiced butter sauce, and the Enjera, Ethiopian staple bread, will be added, or rather I can say (Scrambled Enjera in sauce).

 

How would you describe Ethiopian cuisine to someone who has never had it or has never been to Ethiopia?

I would describe our cuisine as savory and rich, spicy, healthy, (different spices, not necessarily only hot spicy,) but again mild with flavor and very tasty!

 

What are some of the most common misconceptions Westerners have about Ethiopian food? Why do you think these misconceptions exist?

Well people from western country (some, not majority) think using our hands, fingers and eating from same plate isn’t good for hygiene, so some would ask for spoon or fork, other wise, most are happy with they way we eat. This I think is only because many people now use spoon and fork for each meal.

 

If you could choose one dish that captures the true essence of what Ethiopian cuisine really is, what would it be and why? Is there any specific dish that captures Ethiopia’s history and rich culture?

Well, Doro Wot (Chicken stew), is considered to be the “National Dish” of Ethiopia. The reason for that is mainly connected to religion, as Ethiopia’s 2 biggest religions are Orthodox Christianity and Islam. Both religions at their special holidays, they prepare it. For example, New Years day, Christmas, or Eid…and yes, if they invite special guests, they cook it too. There are a variety of spices and herbs we use in different dishes that we cook, and the reason is because we love spices and almost 99% of spices are available in the country.

 

How does the geological landscape of Ethiopia effect Ethiopian cuisine?

The geological effect has been so great as the country has got very suitable climate and fertile soil in most areas. Even in only small rain fall, everything, (all spices and ingredients) grow easily and as a culture its also normal for people to have a back yard to grow some of them.

 

What outside influences, if any, have made their way into the mainstream Ethiopian cuisine? If there any, how have these influences become a part of the cuisine?

Ethiopia’s history goes back as far as three thousand years and it isn’t easy to say the time. According to old history, before being land locked, Ethiopia used to have trade exchange with different countries, such as the Middle Eastern countries (Yemen), India, and some Persian countries. So even though we haven’t got written documents about it, it’s believed that there have been influences of sharing cooking ideas from these countries, but again, I cant say from what specific country that we learnt these…

 

I’ve heard coffee is a big deal in Ethiopia. Can you explain why this is and how this came to be?

Again to say about coffee, I can’t exactly say from what year , but its believed it was discovered over a thousand years ago.

The story goes to “Kaldi and the dancing goats”, or locally called “Buna” who was a goat herder who discovered the coffee plant and told the priests about this specific plant (in the South region of the country), and so they tried it in different forms,  (trying to chew the cherries, dry and roast and chew it, or brew the roasted beans and drink the syrup of it.) So it was a gradual experiment to reach where we are today that makes Ethiopia a great producer of great coffee, both consumer and exporter.

In every household of Ethiopia, it became a very special drink to be prepared and consumed, and that culture passed through generations until this present day we do “The coffee ceremony” or locally called Buna mafelat.

In majority of households, the coffee ceremony is an everyday practice, as it is a very social drink and it takes an hour and half to two hours to do the whole preparation and drinking. That way we sit down and share news or solve problems, share ideas, etc.

 

Are there any adult beverages that originated and/or are unique to Ethiopia? Where did this drink come from, and/or who first came up with the idea?

We do have a local drink called Tella and Tej. Both are prepared locally by our mothers, or skilled ladies, and is consumed widely in different regions of the country. We haven’t got written document when it was started, but it was the northern people of the country who started it first. Tella is made from beer hops and bear yeast, as per different region they use different ingredients, Barley, maize, etc. Tej, or as the westerner people call it, mead, is a home prepared drink and is made from honey and beer yeast plus the stems of beer hops.

 

 

Because the interview was conducted via email, there were some slight miscommunications about the questions, as well as some possible minor language barriers. However, all in all, Gennet’s knowledge and experience cooking with her own cuisine proved to be priceless, and her generosity in even answering my inquiries were invaluable.