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Kita (quick Ethiopian flatbread)
Kita: unleavened wheat flatbread cooked on a hot griddle, the fast alternative to injera
When there is no fermented injera batter ready, households across Ethiopia make kita: a plain unleavened flatbread of flour, water and salt, spread thin and cooked on the mitad or a heavy pan in minutes. It is soft and slightly chewy with toasty brown spots, and is eaten hot with tea, with shiro or buticha on fasting days, or torn up for kita firfir. Children often eat it warm with a sprinkle of berbere and oil. A wheat dough is easiest at home; mixing in a portion of teff flour adds an earthy flavour. Too thick a layer is the common mistake, as the middle stays raw; spread it thin and cook it covered. Chef's tip: wet your fingertips or the back of a spoon to press the batter-like dough out evenly in the hot pan.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 9 oz plain wheat flouror 200 g wheat flour plus 50 g teff flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ¼ cups waterapproximately
- 1 tbsp vegetable oilfor the pan and brushing
- ½ tsp berbere (optional)to sprinkle
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Mix 9 oz plain wheat flour and ½ tsp salt, then gradually stir in 1 ¼ cups water to make a very soft, thick, spreadable dough, like a stiff pancake batter. Rest for 5 minutes.
5 minStep 2: Heat a 26 cm non-stick or heavy frying pan over a medium heat and wipe it with a little of 1 tbsp vegetable oil.
Step 3: Spoon in a quarter of the dough and spread it with wet fingertips or the back of a spoon into a thin round about 5 mm thick.
Step 4: Cover and cook for 2 minutes until the top looks dry and the base has brown spots, then flip and cook 1–2 minutes more until it puffs slightly and no wet patches remain.
4 minStep 5: Brush with a little oil, sprinkle with ½ tsp berbere if you like, and keep warm wrapped in a cloth while you cook the rest.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 250 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 4 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kita (quick Ethiopian flatbread) take?
- About 25 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
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