Ethiopian Tomato Salad with Berbere

Ethiopian tomato salad, made with Ethiopia's famous berbere seasoning blend, is a close cousin to Israeli salad, but with more kick from hot peppers (you can also make a mild version if you prefer).

This refreshing salad goes perfectly with warm, spiced Ethiopian stews (recipe links included below). If you need to shake up your usual salad routine, it's got the wonderful flavors of berbere, Ethiopia's signature national spice blend, which includes chili peppers and warming spices, too.

A shortcut tip

This recipe has you mix the dressing right in the salad bowl, which accomplishes two things: first, one less thing to clean; but also, it helps marinate the onion and jalapeño to cut down on their sharpness while you're chopping the rest of the vegetables.

Where to find kosher certified berbere

Although it's possible to approximate berbere with a homemade blend, I think this is a spice mix worth having on hand if you enjoy the flavors of Ethiopian cooking. The Spice House makes an outstanding, hand-mixed, kosher-certified berbere seasoning, which you can now buy in ½-cup flatpacks with free shipping. (No affiliation, I'm just a fan.) Scroll down in their FAQ to see how to request kosher-certified spices from Spice House.

Looking for more Ethiopian recipes?

• Injera - Ethiopian Teff Sourdough Flatbread—the perfect serving vessel for this or any Ethiopian stew.
• Ethiopian Cabbage, Carrot, and Potato Stew – Tikel Gomen
• Ethiopian Stewed Yellow Split Peas – Kik alicha
• Ethiopian Spicy Stewed Red Lentils – Misir Wot
• Ethiopian Collard Greens – Ye’abesha Gomen
• Ethiopian Tomato Salad with Berbere

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Ethiopian Tomato Salad with Berbere (parve)

Ethiopian tomato salad, made with Ethiopia's famous berbere seasoning blend, is a close cousin to Israeli salad, but with more kick from hot peppers.

Course Salad

Cuisine African, Ethiopian

Ingredients

• ½ head green leaf lettuce - rinsed, dried, and roughly chopped
• 3-4 medium tomatoes - diced
• 1 red bell pepper - seeded and chopped
• ½ onion red onion - finely minced
• ½ jalapeño - seeded and minced (optional, use more or less to taste)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp white or other mild vinegar
• 1 ½ tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1 tsp berbere seasoning
• salt and pepper - to taste

Instructions

• To a large salad bowl, add the oil, vinegar, ginger-garlic paste, berbere, salt, and pepper. Whisk to combine, then add the onion and jalapeño.
• Prepare the lettuce, tomatoes, and bell pepper. Add to the bowl and toss to coat.