I am going out for Ethiopian food on Sunday. What is it and what should I try if I am not very adventurous?

Definitely try a glass of the Ethiopian HONEY WINE (Tej or Mead)!

Tej - 'Tej' is pronounced as in T'édge, and is the generic name for Ethiopian traditional Honey Wine or Mead. Tej = Ethiopian Honey Wine.

Tej is one of the special elixirs only available in Ethiopia. Be careful though - this sweet wine packs a punch. Tej is served in tej bet (Téj House, similar to Coffee House), or special bars set up strictly to sell tej either by the glass(glass is called Berele Be-re-lé) or by the bottle to take home. Several restaurants serving traditional Ethiopian fare also offer tej on the menus. The distilling ritual, with glass beakers reminiscent of high school chemistry lessons, is fun to watch.

Ethiopians purchase gallons of honey at a time to produce the mead and the taste can be as individual as the imagination of the person making it. The same recipe can vary from mother to daughter, for the mead is made from instinct as much as from a recipe. The extract of a native Ethiopian tree, the Gesho (similar to Hazel) imparts a bitter quality to the T'ej making it the ideal drink to complement the spicy food of the Ethiopians. The honey- sweet, bitter, dry tone of T'ej is enhanced by the food.

Do you like spicy food? That will make a difference. The best Ethiopian food (in my opinion) is spicy!

My best recommendation would be to ask the server what they recommend. Or if you are going with people who have been before just let them order, everything is served family style so it will all be shared anyways. When we introduced my kids to Ethiopian food, we ordered the sampler and that allowed them to try a little bit of everything. Any of the "wats" are good and the injera (pancake like bread) that you use to scoop it up (no forks) is great. It is basic food (meat, veggies with some spice) so I don't think you need to be too adventureous to appreciate it.

Also Enjoy!! Ethiopian food is delicious.

These are Ethiopian Restaurant menus from the web. Try to find something common in the menus that you think you can swallow.

I have had Ethiopian food at the Red Sea here in my town and it was all very good.

http://www.fasika.com/menu.html

http://www.messob.com/menu.html

http://www.themenupage.com/ethiopiamenu.html

http://www.zagat.com/verticals/Menu.aspx?VID=8&R=6...

everything in the menu is great!

Ethiopian stick to these diets: beef, chicken, lamb, lentil stew, and vegetables. it might look totally different than what you expect to see in most restaurents but you have nothing to worry about. when you see the red sauce on your plate it means it is spicy and consists of either meat or lentils. the injera which is served on has good nutrients to. if you are nervous about it than choose fish or vegetable dish. if you want to try their drink go for honey wine.

Enjoy! hmm..i think i might go next week

Yes, there is one in my town and it is very good food, mostly stew-like stuff that you scoop up with a spongy pancake like bread called injera that they use for utensils (they give you utensils, too). They have a lot of vegetarian stuff and some meat items also. It is not overly spicy, but somewhat. The one near me serves you coca cola in a wine glass...kinda fancy..

* Exported from MasterCook

Stewed Dog (wedding style)

Recipe By : Joe Sweeney

Serving Size : 30 Preparation Time :3:00

Categories : Ethnic Lamb

Ethiopia

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

3 kg dog meat -- * see note

1 1/2 cups vinegar

60 peppercorns -- crushed

6 tablespoons salt

12 cloves garlic -- crushed

1/2 cup cooking oil

6 cups onion -- sliced

3 cups tomato sauce

10 cups boiling water

6 cups red pepper -- cut into strips

6 pieces bay leaf

1 teaspoon tabasco sauce

1 1/2 cups liver spread -- ** see note

1 whole fresh pineapple -- cut 1/2 inch thick

1. First, kill a medium sized dog, then burn off the fur over a hot fire.

2. Carefully remove the skin while still warm and set aside for later (may be

used in other recpies)

3. Cut meat into 1" cubes. Marinade meat in mixture of vinegar,

peppercorn, salt and garlic for 2 hours.

4. Fry meat in oil using a large wok over an open fire, then add onions and

chopped pineapple and suate until tender.

5. Pour in tomato sauce and boiling water, add green peper, bay leaf and

tobasco.

6. Cover and simmer over warm coals until meat is tender. Blend in liver spread

and cook for additional 5-7 minutes.

* you can substiture lamb for dog. The taste is similar, but not as pungent.

** smooth liver pate will do as well.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Suggested Wine: San Miguel Beer

Serving Ideas : Rice, naturally.

NOTES : During my wedding reception, my brother- in-law suggested we add to the

feast by having dog stew. Wanting to be part of the family, and having been

subjected to all sorts of socials tests already, I agreed. The result was...

well.. a lot better than I expected. In fact, it was great!

It was only later I found out that dog should *not* be served at weddings, as

it may make the bride and groom flight like dogs during the honeymoon. But what

the heck. It didn't seem to have that effect... at least not until a few year

later. :-)

For the faint of heart, you can always substitute lamb in place of next door's

rover, but the meat will not be as sweet or as rich in flavor.

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