Shiro is a popular Ethiopian and Eritrean fan favorite. I remember asking for multiple servings as a kid, and still remains my favorite comfort food. I have gotten pretty creative with Shiro throughout the years, especially as I have moved around a lot - and don’t always have access to injera.
This dish was created as I remembered that Shiro is essentially ground chickpeas into a flour with Berbere and other spices, and makes a sauce quite well. Given this, I thickened the sauce a bit and enjoyed it with roasted cauliflower, and it was absolutely divine. I made it for a dinner party and it was an absolute hit, I hope you try it out!
Ingredients:
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 1 onion
- 1 tomato
- 2 tbsp Shiro
- 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- Spice rub: 1 tsp Ird, 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp Alicha Kimmem, 1 tsp Korerima
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Bessobela oil: steep ½ cup of olive oil with 2 tbsp dried Bessobela (cold infused overnight, or double boil for 30-45 minutes)
- Garnish: pickled onions, cilantro, drizzle of tahini
Steps:
- Boil your cauliflower for 5 minutes, and set aside to cool.
- Mix olive oil with spice rub and rub over cauliflower.
- Let bake in a 375 degree oven for 30-35 minutes.
In the meantime, make your shiro by sauteeing onions, ginger garlic paste, and tomato for 15-20 minutes. - Add in your shiro, and incorporate with onion mixture.
- Deglaze with ½ cup of water and vigorously stir to incorporate the shiro powder with the water with no clumps.
- Our goal is for this to be thick and coat the back of your spoon. Blend and plate with cooled roasted cauliflower.
- Garnish with Bessobela oil, pickled onions, cilantro, and tahini!
