Day 7 - Eat Ethiopian Food

Date: January 13th, 2010

Today for my 'thing I've never done before', I... went to lunch!  Ta-Da!

In actuality, there's a little more to it than that.  I only had one foreign cuisine on my list as a "thing I've never done before" and that was Ethiopian food.  I put it on there for two reasons.  The first is that I've never even had cuisine from that continent, not to mention the region.  The second is that Ethiopian food has a little bit of a reputation for being spicy.  Spicy food is my kryptonite.  For I... am a SuperTaster!

Not that kind of super taster.  This kind.

The non-medical/less-than-awesome term for being a super taster is what I like to call "wussy tongue".  You know how puppies will start whining before you even touch them if they think they're about to get a shot or get their toenails clipped?  Yeah, that's what my mouth does with spices.  "Something spicy?  Run!"

So imagine my just absolute delight when 95% of the things on the menu had one of the following two ingredients: jalapenos or spicy berbere sauce.  I found one of the two things on the menu that did not list said items in its description and ordered it.  My friend Justin, who also served as my witness so the skeptics will know I didn't wimp out, ordered the other thing without spiciness specified.

Proof.

The meat I ordered is called Zilzil Wat.  Essentially, strips of tender beef in herbed butter and sauce.  In addition, we got Gomen (collard greens with onions, garlic and jalapenos) and Kik Alecha (yellow peas with herbs and butter).  Justin got something that was essentially stuffed chicken with rice from their seasonal menu.  I'd tell you what its called, but its not listed on the restaurant's website menu, which I'm totally using as a cheat sheet to remember what I got.

Let's talk about Zilzil Wat for a second.  I didn't read the menu close enough because that sauce its marinated in... spicy berbere sauce.  Here's the thing though... it was so delicious.  The heat came a few seconds after the flavor.  The first bite was intensely, amazingly delicious.  Then I started to feel it.  My usual reaction when that happens is to wash down whatever I ate and stop eating it.  Cause, ya know, pain is a bad thing.  Good rule of thumb.

I've never eaten a food so delicious that I was willing to deal with mouth burningness.  Today was different.  It was insanely good.  But to give you an idea of how hot it was... I used the Gomen to cool my mouth off.  The Gomen was cooked in jalapeno juice.  So.  There's that.  But it was totally worth it.

Hotter than the sun.  Significantly more flavorful.

Essentially stuffed chicken.

Also.  This happened:

Waitress: Would you like dessert?

Me: Do you have any traditional Ethiopian desserts?

Waitress: Well, they don't really use sugar in their cooking so... no.

So what's the verdict?  Well, for the first time in my life I love a spicy food.  Will this open new doors to fabulous cuisines I've never tried before?  No.  No, my tongue is still just as wussy.  But if anyone's ever in the mood for some Zilzil Wat, you know who to call.