SPICY EATER

It’s often said that some like it hot. But some, like Peter Kidane, like it even hotter.
Kidane, a freshman in the pre-pharmacy program, calls himself the “Hot Tamale” and has grown up acquiring a taste for heat. On a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the hottest, Kidane definitely likes his food sizzling at level 10.

“Otherwise it’s just not worth it,” he said.

As daring as Kidane’s eating habits are, his taste buds are used to it because Kidane comes from an Eritrean background. In Eritrea, a country located on the Horn of Africa, spices are not used sparingly, and heat is more than an idea.

One common Eritrean dish, and a favorite of Kidane’s, injera, is a pancake-like flatbread that’s often served with tsebhi, a spicy stew consisting of chicken and a common mixture of spices known as berbere.

When not eating injera, Kidane can also be found eating ga’at, a temperate porridge often served at breakfast that looks like a miniature volcano filled with a mixture of tesmi, a type of butter, and berbere.

Kitcha fit-fit also lies in the pantheon of Eritrean favorites as enumerated by Kidane. This dish consists of kitcha (unleavened bread), onions, berbere and tesmi.

Kidane’s expectations are simple: It has to be hot. Anyone daring enough can try some of his favorite dishes at Major, an Ethiopian/Eritrean restaurant in Indianapolis.
Otherwise, leave it to the experts.