Ethiopian Kitfo
Photo: Milo.G · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

Kitfo is one of Ethiopia's most distinctive dishes; the raw or barely-warmed beef preparation, similar in spirit to French tartare but Ethiopian in seasoning, is the national special-occasion meal. Washington DC has the largest Ethiopian-American population of any US city, centred around Adams Morgan, Logan Circle and Shaw, with the U Street corridor known as Little Ethiopia. The community arrived in waves from the 1970s onward; today Dukem, Etete and Chercher run authentic kitfo. The dish is served leb leb (briefly warmed), tire (fully raw) or yebesele (cooked). Mitmita, made of dried bird's eye chilies, cardamom, cloves and salt, is the structural seasoning.

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Common allergens: Dairy

Make it at home

Yield 4Hands-on 40 minTotal 1 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 600g very fresh lean beef sirloin or fillet (top quality from a trusted butcher; ideally from a piece previously frozen at minus 20 degrees Celsius for 7 days for safety, the Ethiopian-Western standard)
  • For the niter kibbeh (Ethiopian spiced clarified butter): 250g unsalted butter
  • 1 small white onion (finely diced)
  • 4 garlic cloves (smashed)
  • 5cm fresh ginger (sliced)
  • 2 tsp ground cardamom
  • 2 tsp dried fenugreek leaves
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • For the mitmita spice blend: 30g dried Ethiopian bird's eye chili powder (or 30g dried African bird's eye chilies, ground; substitute with cayenne plus paprika in a pinch but the heat is sharper)
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp fresh basil seeds (the Ethiopian basil seed garnish; optional, sold at Ethiopian groceries)
  • Sea salt to taste
  • To serve: 8 to 12 sheets fresh injera flatbread (sold at Ethiopian groceries; or substitute with quality teff sourdough flatbread)
  • 200g ayib (Ethiopian fresh cheese, similar to a dry cottage cheese; substitute with paneer crumbled with a splash of lemon juice and salt)
  • 300g gomen wat (collard greens braised with onion, garlic, ginger, jalapeno, niter kibbeh)
  • 1 jalapeno, sliced
  • Mitmita and additional niter kibbeh in small dishes at the table

Method

  1. Make the niter kibbeh: melt the butter slowly in a heavy saucepan over very low heat, do not let it brown. Add the diced onion, smashed garlic, sliced ginger and all the dry spices. Simmer at the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, swirling occasionally, until the milk solids have separated, settled to the bottom and turned deeply spiced.
  2. Strain through a fine sieve lined with muslin into a clean glass jar. Discard the solids. The resulting niter kibbeh keeps for weeks in the fridge.
  3. Make the mitmita: combine the chili powder, cardamom, cloves and salt in a small bowl. Toast briefly in a dry hot pan for 30 seconds, then cool. Store in an airtight jar.
  4. Trim the beef of all sinew and silverskin. Cube into 5mm dice with a sharp knife (the hand-chopped texture is structural; never use a food processor).
  5. Keep the cubed beef refrigerated until the very last moment.
  6. For the canonical leb leb (warmed) version: warm 60ml niter kibbeh in a heavy pan over very low heat until just liquid and shimmering, not hot.
  7. Off the heat, add the chilled cubed beef and 1 to 2 teaspoons of mitmita (start gentle; the dish gets re-spiced at the table). Toss for 60 seconds with two wooden spoons; the beef should warm to room temperature and barely change colour, the niter kibbeh coating each cube.
  8. Season with salt to taste.
  9. For tire (raw) version: skip the warming step entirely; toss the cubed beef with cold niter kibbeh and mitmita just before serving.
  10. Lay 1 to 2 fresh injera sheets on each plate, then mound a generous portion of kitfo in the centre. Add a heap of ayib cheese on one side, a heap of gomen wat on another, and a small pile of mitmita on the rim.
  11. Sprinkle with basil seeds if using.
  12. Serve immediately. Each diner tears a piece of injera with the right hand, scoops up a bite of kitfo plus cheese plus greens, eats. The extra mitmita is for those who want more heat.

Tip from the editors. The beef freshness rule is absolute; source from a trusted butcher who can speak to the cut. The 7-day freeze is a Western-Ethiopian safety standard. Niter kibbeh is the structural Ethiopian flavour; make a batch and keep refrigerated for the next dish. Use authentic Ethiopian mitmita if available; the chili powders sold under that name at African groceries are usually correct.

Where to eat ethiopian kitfo

Ethiopian Kitfo in Washington DC

Dukem Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.4

$$ EthiopianShaw

Dukem Ethiopian Restaurant in Washington DC is the U Street Ethiopian dining room since 1997, the older sister to Etete and a U Street institution.

OrderThe kitfo (Ethiopian raw beef tartare) leb leb or rare with mitmita spice; the room's deepest cut.

TipLive Ethiopian music plays Friday and Saturday from 21:00; the back booth is the quietest table.

Directions Book

Chercher Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.5

$$ EthiopianShaw

Chercher Ethiopian Restaurant in Washington DC is the second-floor 9th Street rowhouse Ethiopian dining room in Shaw's Little Ethiopia, a no-reservations.

OrderThe shiro chickpea stew with extra injera; the menu's editorial signature.

TipNo reservations; the staircase line moves fastest at 17:30 on weeknights and crowds outside the door by 19:00. Cash and card both accepted.

Directions Book

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