Tibs: Ethiopia's Sizzling Sautéed Beef

Tibs is Ethiopia's celebration food — cubes of beef seared fast and hot, perfumed with spiced butter and berbere, and often served still sizzling. It's the dish you order when there's something to toast.

Niter kibbeh and berbere do the work

Two ingredients define it. Niter kibbeh is butter simmered with garlic, ginger and spices until nutty and clarified. Berbere is the fiery, complex chili blend at the heart of Ethiopian cooking.

Tibs is cooked hot and fast — the beef should be seared and just cooked, the onions still with a little bite, everything glossed in spiced butter. Scoop it up with injera, the tangy sourdough flatbread.

Ingredients

• 600 g beef, cubed
• 2 tbsp niter kibbeh (spiced clarified butter)
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, 1 tsp grated ginger
• 1–2 tbsp berbere
• 1 sprig rosemary, 1 jalapeño
• Injera, to serve

Method

1. Sear hot. Get a heavy pan very hot and sear the beef in batches so it browns rather than steams.
2. Add the butter base. Add niter kibbeh, onion, garlic and ginger; cook until fragrant and just softened.
3. Spice. Stir in berbere and rosemary; toss to coat and cook another minute or two.
4. Finish. Add sliced jalapeño, adjust salt, and serve immediately — ideally sizzling — with injera.

Master it in ZEST

In ZEST, Tibs is all about speed and order — you arrange the aromatics and spices in sequence, learning the fast rhythm the real dish demands.

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