Injera (Ethiopian Sour Flatbread)

By
Ashley Adams
Ashley Adams
Ashley Adams is a restaurant professional and workshop instructor with a specialty in dairy-free cooking and baking.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 10/7/22
Tested by
Diana Andrews
Diana Andrews
Tested by Diana Andrews
Diana has served as head recipe developer and editor for the Emmy-nominated PBS series Moveable Feast, food editor and test kitchen manager at Fine Cooking Magazine, and recipe developer and product tester at Food Network. 
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 75 mins
Rest Time: 72 hrs
Total: 73 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 4 to 6 servings
Yield: 13 to 15 flatbreads

Injera is a sour flatbread used in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine that is thicker than a crepe but thinner than a pancake and has a delightfully sour taste. Vegetable, lentil, or meat dishes are often served on top of the injera, and the food is eaten with your hands, using the injera to scoop up the other dishes.

Traditional injera uses all teff flour, made from the seeds of an annual grass native to the Horn of Africa. Teff is high in protein and fiber and indispensable in Ethiopian cuisine; it also happens to be a gluten-free flour. However, most injera recipes in the United States, like this one, use a combination of teff and all-purpose flour. The flours are mixed with salt and water and left to ferment, giving the injera its pleasant sourdough flavor and spongy texture.

Since the bread is naturally fermented, similar to sourdough, you'll need to plan ahead. The mixture needs to sit out and be stirred occasionally for three or four days. Fermenting foods can be tricky, since temperature, timing, and contaminants can all influence the mixture. Look for the telltale bubbles and sour smell when deciding if your batter is ready.

Serve with spicy vegetables, lentils, or meat dishes of your choice such as doro wat. Injera is dairy free and suitable for vegans or those with dairy allergies.

Stacked and rolled up injera Ethiopian flatbread on a plate

The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

"Now you can make injera in your own home by following this simple process. Let the batter sit longer for a more fermented, tangier, sourdough flavor that distinguishes this flatbread from others." —Diana Andrews

Injera (Ethiopian Sour Flatbread) Tester Image
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 2 cups teff flour

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt

  • 5 cups lukewarm water

  • Cooking spray, for the skillet

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for injera Ethiopian flatbread recipe gathered

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  2. In a large mixing bowl, stir or whisk the teff flour, all-purpose flour, and salt until well combined.

    Flours and salt combined with a wooden spoon in a bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  3. Add the water, stirring or whisking until combined.

    Water being stirred into flour mixture

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  4. Cover loosely with a paper towel or clean kitchen towel and let stand, undisturbed, overnight. The batter will be loose and watery.

    Bowl with batter covered loosely with paper towel

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  5. Gently agitate the mixture with a wooden spoon in the morning (there should be bubbles already forming on the surface, and the fermenting water should have risen to the top).

    Fermented brownish batter with liquid and bubbles risen to the top

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  6. Cover again and let stand at room temperature, undisturbed, overnight. Repeat the process of agitating the mixture the following morning, and then one more round of overnight resting.

    Smooth batter being stirred with wooden spoon

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  7. After three to five days, your injera should smell sour and be bubbly, especially when the bowl is agitated, which means that it's ready. Stir the mixture until combined.

    Bubbly injera batter in the bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  8. Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Add about 1/3 cup of the batter to the skillet, swirling it around to the edges of the pan to form a thin layer. Cook until bubbles form on the surface, the flatbread begins to look dry, and the edges pull away slightly from the pan. Cover the pan and continue to cook until the flatbread's surface is dry, about 2 minutes. All in all, it will take about 5 minutes total per bread to cook.

    Thin injera with a few bubbles cooking in a skillet

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  9. Using a spatula, remove the injera and transfer to a plate.

    Injera transferred to a plate using a pan turner

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

  10. Repeat until all of the batter is used, spraying the pan with cooking spray as necessary.

  11. Roll up the injera and serve with lentils, vegetables, and/or meat dishes.

    Injera stacked on a plate, with the top flatbreads rolled up

    The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii

Tips

  • Check your injera batter often. When it's ready, it should be bubbly and smell sour. If the injera batter has gone bad, it will have an unpleasant, stinky odor. Pitch it and start over.
  • To keep from cracking, cover the finished injera with a lid or a lightly damp cloth until all of the injera is cooked and you are ready to eat.

Can I Store and Use Leftover Batter?

If you have leftover injera starter, or decide not to use it right away, you can store it in the refrigerator, loosely covered in a dry, clean jar. Before using, bring to room temperature and feed the starter with equal amounts of teff flour and water; place in a warm spot and let the mixture rest for 24 hours. Give the starter a stir—if it's active and bubbly, go ahead with making the injera. If it doesn't bubble, you will have to toss it out.

How to Store

  • At room temperature, injera will stay fresh for a couple of days. In the fridge, it should be good for up to a week.
  • Wrap each flatbread in aluminum foil completely and freeze. You can also layer injera one on top of the other; just use a piece of waxed paper in between each layer, wrap it aluminum foil, and tuck it away in a zip-close freezer bag. It will keep in the freezer for up to three months. Of course, the longer it is stored, the more likely the texture and flavor will change.
  • These taste best when they are thawed at room temperature for a few hours. You can reheat injera in the microwave in between damp paper towels or in a dry skillet over low heat.

Is Ethiopian Injera Healthy?

Injera is naturally low in fat and a healthy addition to your diet. Teff flour, the main ingredient in injera, is gluten free and rich in protein and nutrients, and the natural fermentation may help with gut health.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
348 Calories
2g Fat
71g Carbs
11g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories 348
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 2g 2%
Saturated Fat 0g 2%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 191mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 71g 26%
Dietary Fiber 5g 19%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 11g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 108mg 8%
Iron 6mg 33%
Potassium 272mg 6%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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