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Silsi

Spicy tomato berbere sauce

Mornings in Asmara often start with a small pan of silsi set in the middle of the table and a basket of crusty bread beside it, everyone tearing off pieces and dipping. It is a quick red sauce of onion, garlic and fresh tomato cooked down with berbere until thick and glossy, sweet and sharp at the same time, with real heat behind it. Silsi is also the base for fata, where it is tossed with torn bread and topped with yoghurt and egg, and it doubles as a fasting-day relish for injera. Chef's tip: let the tomatoes cook until the oil separates and shines on the surface; stopping sooner is the common mistake, and the sauce then tastes raw and watery.

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