What is injera?
First of all, let us look at what injera is for those readers who aren’t sure. Injera is a traditional Ethiopian sourdough flatbread that looks a little like a crepe with tiny holes in it. It has a unique spongy texture.
It may also have a darker color than a regular crepe because they aren’t made with wheat flour. Instead, injera is made with teff flour. Teff is the smallest grain in the world and has a unique flavor.
Some make injera with a mixture of teff and other flours. The flatbreads have a sour taste that is perfect with rich, oily foods.
Injera is used for scooping up foods such as stews and other juicy meals. Users tear bits off with their right hand and use them as edible eating utensils.
Leftover injera
You may have been lucky enough to have visited an Ethiopian restaurant and come away with a takeout of leftover injera. It is served instead of bread or rice in many of these eateries.
It will be even more delicious the next day as reheating develops the flavors. Or perhaps you have made some injera at home and now have a batch too big to use up in one day!
No worries, whatever the situation, we are going to give you 5 ways of using up your leftover injera because it would be a great pity to waste them.
What to Do with Leftover Injera?
1. Make fattoush salad
Many of us take salad of some description to work for lunch, and what better way to use up your leftover injera?
A Lebanese fattoush salad is a good one to pick because it requires the addition of a crunchy element to finish the salad off. That element is usually leftover stale pita bread or matzo crackers, but injera will work just as well.
Make a salad with a base consisting of Romaine lettuce and halved grape or cherry tomatoes. Add a handful of chopped pitted dates and raisins. Make a dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, seasonings, and honey.
Next, prepare the injera. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt, pepper, and chopped parsley. Toast them under a preheated grill until golden and crispy.
Break them into bite-sized pieces and when cool, put them into an airtight container.
When you’re ready to eat your salad, pour the dressing over the salad and sprinkle the top with the injera pieces. Eat and enjoy your healthy lunch straight away.
2. Use them for fajitas
Fajitas are a Tex-Mex dish consisting of shredded meat such as beef or chicken, fried onions, and peppers. It is seasoned with chili, salt, pepper, and cumin and served in a tortilla. However, an injera wrap will work just as well.
Add all the trimmings, such as shredded lettuce, avocado, sour cream, grated cheese, and pico de Gallo, and you have a meal fit for a king that nobody would say was made with leftovers!
3. Make fruit or bacon stacks
If you want to make something sweet for after your dinner or even for breakfast, you can make fruit stacks with leftover injera.
To prepare these stacks, you need to whip up half a cup of ricotta cheese with the juice of one lemon and two tablespoons of honey. Spread a little of this mixture on each injera wrap.
Next, peel and slice fruits such as bananas, mangoes, papayas, or peaches. Really, you can use whatever soft fruit you have available.
Lay some fruit on top of the creamy spread, then top with another injera wrap. Keep going until you have assembled a stack.
A similar idea is to layer the injera with rashers of cooked bacon, drizzle with maple syrup or golden syrup, and top with banana slices. Add another injera wrap and keep going until you have a stack.
These stacks are served by slicing them as you would a cake.
4. Prepare vegetable wraps
If you want to make an easy dinner, you can make healthy vegetable salad wraps with the leftover injera. To make these wraps, lay out the injera and spread each one with hummus.
Next, top with some shredded lettuce, sliced cucumber and tomato, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Add some shredded cooked chicken breast if you like. Roll them up and serve at once.
If you prefer to make cooked vegetable wraps with your leftover injera, thinly slice a combination of zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, and onions. Season well with salt, pepper, oregano, and lemon juice.
Grill or roast until caramelized. Spread the injera with hummus and top with warm vegetables. Roll up and serve at once.
5. Enjoy nachos
Nachos are one of the best choices when it comes to snacking or even as a supper dish. Did you know that your leftover injera will make delicious nachos?
Simply cut them into wedges, arrange these pieces on a sheet pan that has been lined with parchment paper, and bake them at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about fifteen minutes until toasted and crispy.
Once the nachos are ready, top them up with cheese, dal, sour cream, avocado, sliced jalapenos, and sliced or diced red onion. Remember to spritz them with some lemon or lime juice to add tantalizing flavor.
The Bottom Line
Injera is a versatile type of flatbread that doesn’t only have to be eaten with Ethiopian food but can be used with a variety of ingredients to create new flavors that match your preferences.
They can even be frozen for use at a later stage. Just remember to separate each flatbread with parchment before freezing to prevent them from sticking together.
We would be interested to learn how you used your leftover injera, so do let us know in the comments section.