| The Ethiopian coffee ceremony is very important | | | | very heavy wooden bowl. The beans are poured |
| in the Ethiopian culture. The coffee ceremony will | | | | inside, and then crushed with a zenezena, which is |
| be performed when friends visit, during | | | | a wooden or metal stick that is used in an up and |
| celebrations, or simply as a part of the daily | | | | down motion, rather like a mortar and pestle. |
| routine. It is so important to how the Ethiopians | | | | The ground coffee is then put into a traditional |
| view coffee that most Ethiopian restaurants will | | | | clay pot called a jebena (pronounced jay-ben-ah). |
| have the coffee ceremony performed for you at | | | | Water is added, and then the pot is put over heat |
| your table. | | | | until the coffee boils. The scent of the boiling |
| The Ethiopian coffee ritual takes the participants | | | | coffee again fills the room, tempting the senses |
| through the entire coffee preparation process. | | | | of all the participants of the ritual. |
| Whether you are witnessing the ritual in a | | | | Coffee prepared in the Ethiopian coffee ritual is |
| restaurant or lucky enough to participate in | | | | then served in small ceramic cups resembling the |
| someone's home, the green coffee beans will be | | | | small cups you see in Chinese restaurants for tea. |
| brought to your table by a woman. She will wash | | | | The cups are arranged on a tray very close |
| the beans, and then start a fire in a small open | | | | together, and the coffee is poured from one cup |
| roasting furnace. | | | | to another in a single pour from the pot. This is a |
| The washed beans will be put into a small pan | | | | very important step, even if some sloshes onto |
| with a long handle and held over the fire. The | | | | the tray. If the server poured each cup |
| woman preparing the beans will shake the pan | | | | individually, the coffee grounds would get mixed |
| back and forth, like an old-fashioned popcorn | | | | up with the liquid, resulting in gritty coffee. With |
| maker. This keeps the bean from burning. Some | | | | the single pour method, the coffee remains free |
| people have described the sound of the shaking | | | | of the sediment. |
| beans as similar to shaking coins in a tin can. Once | | | | Once you've taken your first sip, you've |
| the beans are roasted, the preparer takes the | | | | witnessed the full life-cycle of making coffee, |
| pan and walks around the room, filling the room | | | | from washing the raw beans, through roasting, |
| with the enticing aroma of freshly roasted coffee. | | | | grinding, and boiling the coffee. If you're in a |
| Experiencing the sounds and smells is an important | | | | restaurant, the ceremony usually ends here. |
| part of the ritual. | | | | Traditionally, second and third servings are often |
| The next step in the Ethiopian coffee ceremony | | | | prepared as well. Each serving has its own name: |
| is to grind the freshly roasted beans. In | | | | the first serving is called Abol, the second serving |
| restaurants, they may use an electric grinder to | | | | is called Huletegna, and the third serving is called |
| speed up the process. Traditionally, the beans will | | | | Bereka. Once you've reached this stage, you |
| be ground in a small tool called a mukecha | | | | have completed the Ethiopian coffee ceremony. |
| (pronounced moo-key-cha). The mukecha is a | | | | |