Name: Ethiopian Kitfo (Washington DC style)
Prep time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
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

DC's Little Ethiopia signature: cubed lean raw beef warmed in spiced niter kibbeh and fiery mitmita chili, served on injera with ayib fresh cheese and gomen collards, with extra mitmita at the table.

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.

2 editor picks for Ethiopian Kitfo in Washington DC, ranked by editorial score. All Washington DC signature dishes · Ethiopian Kitfo across every city.

Chercher Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.5

Ethiopian

shaw · 1334 9th St NW, Washington, DC 20001

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

Dukem Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.4

Ethiopian

shaw · 1114 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009

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.

Where to eat Ethiopian Kitfo in Washington DC

Chercher Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.5

Dukem Ethiopian Restaurant ★ 4.4