Next up was Doro Alicha, a mild chicken dish. We did not brown the onions this time and used Makulaya, an Ethiopian allspice mixture. But what truly made this dish was the Niter Kibbe, a seasoned clarified butter. Making our rounds again, we noted the significant difference between dishes made with just oil and those with butter. Even the colors ranged from a greyish green to a bright yellow-green.

Things literally started to heat up as we started the Sega Wot. Not only does the red Berbere provide a good kick to the dish, by this point we had been cooking on medium-high open flames for about two and half hours straight. Once we got the onions to brown and added the Berbere and beef to simmer we all took much-needed breaks to enjoy the breeze outside.

The whole gang sits down for a 3-course meal. Photo: Kelly Baker

Finally finished, we brought our plates into the next room to sit down with heaping injera, a kind of crêpe-meets-naan spongey flatbread, and tej, Ethiopian honey wine. Our instructors demonstrated how to eat using the injera rather than forks, wrapping up bite-size pieces of our dishes “like little burritos.” Shoveling my plate with injera, the meal quickly filled me up. The pride I felt knowing that I created these dishes I thought could only be found in restaurants made the meal all the more delicious. At the end of our meal, we had the opportunity to buy the unique spices we used in our recipes.

If you go:

Brundo Flavors of Ethiopia Culinary Studio

1960 Mandela Parkway (American Steel Studios Bay 8 entrance on 18th Street between Poplar Street and Mandela Parkway)

$85 registration fee

RSVP to lea@brundo.com

I’d suggest giving yourself extra time before class to find the entrance (even more if you need parking) and don’t make plans right after class–my class and meal ended an hour after the time posted on the website. You want to have plenty of time to enjoy your hard work!

ethiopian cooking classesethiopian cooking classes

Ethiopian cooking classes with Brundo in West Oakland