https://www.chefspencil.com
  • Login
  • Register
  • Recipes
    • Chicken Recipes
    • Seafood Recipes
    • Beef Recipes
    • Pasta Recipes
    • Dressings, Dips, Spreads
    • Dessert
    • Pork Recipes
    • Side Dish
  • Chefs
  • Food News
    • News
    • Guides
      • Product Reviews
      • Gifts & Product Guides
      • Food Substitutes
        • Cheese Substitutes
  • Food Atlas
    • Asian Cuisines
    • African Cuisines
    • European Cuisines
      • Central European Cuisine
      • Northern European Cuisine
      • Eastern European Cuisine
      • Southern European Cuisine
    • Middle East Cuisine
    • South American Cuisine
    • North American Cuisine
    • Central American Foods
    • Caribbean Cuisine
  • Culinary Schools
  • About Us
  • Recipes
    • Chicken Recipes
    • Seafood Recipes
    • Beef Recipes
    • Pasta Recipes
    • Dressings, Dips, Spreads
    • Dessert
    • Pork Recipes
    • Side Dish
  • Chefs
  • Food News
    • News
    • Guides
      • Product Reviews
      • Gifts & Product Guides
      • Food Substitutes
        • Cheese Substitutes
  • Food Atlas
    • Asian Cuisines
    • African Cuisines
    • European Cuisines
      • Central European Cuisine
      • Northern European Cuisine
      • Eastern European Cuisine
      • Southern European Cuisine
    • Middle East Cuisine
    • South American Cuisine
    • North American Cuisine
    • Central American Foods
    • Caribbean Cuisine
  • Culinary Schools
  • About Us
  • Home
  • African Cuisines
  • Top 10 Traditional Ethiopian Christmas Foods

Top 10 Traditional Ethiopian Christmas Foods

Posted on Nov 2nd, 2022
by Rahel Getachew
Categories:
  • African Cuisines
  • Christmas
Top Ethiopian Traditional Christmas Foods

Christmas is the most celebrated holiday in Ethiopia, when families gather to celebrate the day together and join in the Christmas preparations, bringing their own recipes for a special feast.

The days before Christmas are for fasting, meaning dairy products and meat are not allowed. This is why everything includes meat and dairy once fasting is over. 

Let’s have a look at the top 10 traditional Christmas dishes served in Ethiopia.

1. Doro Wot

Doro wot

Doro wot is made with chicken, onion, egg, butter, berbere, ground pepper, ginger, and garlic. It is usually the first meal served in the morning. The family gathers together to eat doro wot and boiled eggs.

Doro wot is a spicy dish, so it is often served with locally made cheese or yogurt.

2. Sega Wot

Sega wot
Credits: @addisabebabarcelona

Sega wot is the main dish served during the holidays. It’s made with chopped meat, onion, butter, berbere, ground pepper, ginger, and garlic.

Sega wot is accompanied with injera and a side dish of locally made cheese, which helps to lessen the spiciness of the stew.  

3. Alecha Sega Wot

Alecha Sega wot
Credits: @Tabor Ethiopian Restaurant

Alecha sega wot is another main dish served during the holidays. This one is popular because it contains less spices, so not so hot. It’s made with chopped meats, onion, butter, turmeric, ground pepper, ginger, and garlic and is served with injera.

4. Fit-fit

Fit-fit
Credits: web.ineons.com

This dish is a favorite for kids. It’s easy to make and can be served as a side to any dish. Fit-fit is made with white meat, onion, butter, turmeric, ground pepper, ginger, and garlic. It is served with minced injera or on its own. 

5. Tibs 

Tibs

Tibs is a special and simple dish that all Ethiopians enjoy. It’s made with sliced meat, onion, chili, ground pepper, black pepper, and butter. It will be served with a hot sauce called awaze. You can eat it with injera or bread.

6. Kitfo

Kitfo

Kitfo is made from raw red meat with butter, ground pepper, cardamom, and mitmita.

It is a favorite of the Gurage people. All ingredients in kitfo are prepared separately and mixed together, creating a unique taste that everyone loves. For those who prefer not to eat raw meat, you can ask for your kitfo to be medium roasted or well done.

Kitfo is served in a taba, a clay bowl, with a banana leaf on top.

7. Dulet

Dulet
Credits: @double.renvoi

Dulet is made from minced liver, white meat, red meat, tripe, onion, ground pepper, garlic, and ginger. It is usually made in small portions and served for breakfast.

8. Ayibe

Ayibe
Credits: @taramctable

Ayibe is a locally prepared cheese mixed with mitmita and butter. It is a side dish served with kitfo or doro wot. Ayibe helps to reduce the heat of the dishes and adds to the taste. Ayibe is usually mixed with collard greens when served as a side to kitfo, when it is called ayibe with gomen.

9. Gomen Kitfo

Credits: @ethiopianfoodie

Gomen is a collard green dish common among the Gurage as a side dish to kitfo. Gomen kitfo is made with collard greens, butter and chili or mitmita.

10. Defo Dabo

Defo Dabo
Credits: @breadtopia

Defo dabo is a locally made bread made with wheat, sugar, salt, oil, banana leaf, and yeast. Every holiday starts with prayers and after that the head of the household divides the bread and hands it out to the rest of the family, wishing them a blessed holiday.


Related: 30 Popular Ethiopian Foods

Top 30 Most Popular Foods in Ethiopia

Related: Popular Ethiopian Desserts

Top Ethiopian Desserts

Rahel Getachew

Rahel is an Amharic and Korean translator based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She has a BSc Degree in Software Engineering from the Addis Ababa Institute of Technology. She loves coding, reading fiction, watching movies and hanging out with friends.

Add Your Comment Cancel reply

Recipe Rating




Best Gift Ideas For Chefs

Gifts for Professional Chefs
Gifts for Professional Chefs

Best 23 Grilling Gifts for BBQ Fanatics

Best Grilling Gifts

World Cuisines

African Recipes by Professional Chefs

African Recipes by Professional Chefs

American Recipes by Professional Chefs

American Recipes by Professional Chefs

Asian Food Recipes by Professional Chefs

Asian Food Recipes by Professional Chefs

Australian Recipes by Professional Chefs

Australian Recipes by Professional Chefs

Austrian Recipes

Austrian Recipes

Belgian Recipes

Belgian Recipes

Brazilian Recipes

Brazilian Recipes

British Recipes

British Recipes

Bulgarian Recipes

Bulgarian Recipes

Canadian Recipes

Canadian Recipes

Caribbean Recipes

Caribbean Recipes

Chinese Recipes

Chinese Recipes

Colombian Recipes

Colombian Recipes

Continental

Continental

Croatian Recipes

Croatian Recipes

Cuban Recipes

Cuban Recipes

Czech Republic Cuisine

Czech Republic Cuisine

Danish Recipes

Danish Recipes

Dominican Recipes

Dominican Recipes

Dutch Recipes

Dutch Recipes

2023 © Chef's Pencil   Privacy Policy & Terms of Service  Contact us

Chef's Pencil is part of the Amazon Associate Program and earns from qualifying purchases.