Cook the Book: In Bibi's Kitchen

Recipes and stories from African grandmothers.

This is a new series where I pick a few recipes from a cookbook I own and share my step-by-step experience making them. If you’re new here, welcome! I typically review restaurants, bars, or activities every other Thursday, and share 'Staying In' recipe recommendations every Sunday. Check out pdxrecs.com for even more recommendations and follow RR on Instagram at @rileysrecs. Enjoy!

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Some people buy a lot of shoes. Or dresses. Or bags. I buy cookbooks.

RR Heads (lol) know that my go-tos include Everyone’s Table by Gregory Gourdet, Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden, and That Sounds So Good by Carla Lalli Music. I also unapologetically recently completed the Alison Roman trifecta, own everything by Esteban Castillo, and am close to completing my David Lebovitz collection.

But it’s not enough.

For Christmas, I requested more. And thanks to my mom, I’m now the owner of In Bibi’s Kitchen: The Recipes and Stories of Grandmothers From the Eight African Countries that Touch the Indian Ocean.

I put In Bibi’s Kitchen on my wishlist because it kept popping up on my feeds, and I was intrigued by the premise: the authors filmed African grandmothers cooking their favorite meals, transcribed the steps, and turned them into approachable at-home recipes. The recipes are accompanied by interviews and brief histories of each of the eight featured countries.

I’m using this cookbook addition as an excuse to kick off my new series, Cook the Book. Essentially, I’ll pick a cookbook, make a few recipes out of it, and share my process along the way with pictures and notes.

If you have any suggestions on what cookbook I should review next, let me know in the comments or message me!

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Author(s): Hawa Hassan and Julia Turshen

Cost: $21 at Powell’s Books

Selected Recipes: Kicha, Shiro, Zebhi Hamli, and Kicha Fit Fit

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Until I read In Bibi’s Kitchen, I didn’t know a lot about Eritrea. And it’s safe to say I’d never uttered the words, “I’m craving Eritrean food tonight.”

But after making the four Eritrean recipes I chose for this post, I’m absolutely going to incorporate more of it into my diet. Partially because I loved everything and partially because I now own a lot of berbere spice mix. It’s the traditional spice blend of Eritrea, made from cinnamon, coriander, fenugreek, cardamom, allspice, dried, chilis, and a few other spices. I’ve never had anything like it, and the best way I can describe it is slightly sweet, slightly spicy, and with a nice warming quality from the cinnamon and cardamom.

You can certainly make berbere yourself in normal quantities, but grinding spices in what is normally my coffee grinder is a pain. So I ordered it for $5 dollars on Amazon. They supposedly carry berbere at Le Bouffe in Montavilla and at Safeway, but I struck out after several attempts, so Amazon it was.

Other than a specialty spice blend, Eritrean cuisine generally relies on inexpensive, easy-to-source ingredients, including grains like chickpea flour, millet, and sorghum and vegetables like tomato, onion, and spinach. It’s not too spicy and almost everything is served with rice or flatbread. What I’m saying is that even if it seems foreign or unapproachable, it’s actually a highly accessible cuisine.

The first three dishes I made—Zebhi Hamli, Shiro, and Kicha—I cooked at the same time and served for dinner. The fourth, Kicha Fit Fit, I made the following day for breakfast. It was a lot of juggle, but none of the dishes were particularly complicated. They just required multiple timers and a solid schedule.

I promise you can make this food. And that you’ll make it again.

I included ingredients and recipe directions below, but please consider buying the book! It’s filled with many more dishes from countries like Kenya, Mozambique, and South Africa, plus dozens of interviews with the grandmothers who contributed their recipes and stories.

This is a healthy side dish that could go with anything: grilled chicken, steak, eggs, etc. I chose to make it at dinnertime, but it could easily be made earlier in the day and reheated over low heat before serving, too.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons canola oil

• 1 large red onion, chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 chicken or vegetable bouillon cube

• 1/4 cup tomato paste

• 1/2 cup water

• Two 10 oz packages of frozen spinach

• Pinch of Kosher Salt

Add the oil to a Dutch oven followed by the red onion and garlic. Then, crumble the bouillon on top. Cook for 5 minutes.

Note: rather than rehydrating the bouillon in water, the grandmother who submitted the recipe—Ma Gehennet—just sprinkles the bouillon cube over the top of the onion mix. I loved this shortcut.

Next, add the tomato paste. Cook for another 3 minutes.

Finally, add the water, spinach, and salt. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

This was incredibly easy to make. No notes.

This tastes and looks like Indian dal, but it isn’t. It’s chickpea flour. I do not understand how flour becomes a stew, but it does. Shiro is one of the most popular dishes in Eritrea, and, after making it, it’s easy to see why.

I used Bob’s Red Mill chickpea flour, but you use whatever you find at your local grocery store.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large red onion, chopped

• 10 garlic cloves

• 1/2 cup canola oil

• 2 tablespoons Berbere spice mix

• Kosher salt

• 2 medium tomatoes on the vine

• 1/2 cup chickpea flour

• 2 cups water

• 2 jalapeños stemmed and sliced (optional)

This recipe does call for a food processor. If you have one, place the onion and garlic in the processor and pulse a few times. If you don’t have one, chop as finely as possible. Then warm the oil in a Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-low, and add the onion mixture with the berbere and a pinch of salt.

While the onion is cooking, in the same food processor, add the tomatoes and pulse. Then, add to the Dutch oven and increase heat to high.

Bring to a boil, reduce to low, and add the chickpea flour. Stir while slowly adding water to the mixture. Bring to a boil again, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 5 minutes.

And then you’re done! I would probably make this as close to dinner as possible since the stew can seize up a bit once it cools down.