Tibs (Ethiopian Sautéed Beef)

Method

Tibs is the wok-cooked contrast to the long-simmered wats — faster, drier, and more caramelised — and where the wats reward patience, tibs rewards a hot pan and a light hand. Cut the beef into bite-sized cubes and pat them thoroughly dry; any surface moisture steams the meat instead of searing it, and the sear is the whole character of the dish. Season the cubes with salt and pepper and leave them at room temperature for twenty minutes while you prepare the aromatics.

Cut the onion into thick petals rather than a fine dice — in tibs the onion should keep some bite and body, not dissolve. Slice the tomatoes into wedges, slit the green chillies lengthways, and crush the garlic with the grated ginger. Get a heavy frying pan or wok properly hot, then add the niter kibbeh and let it foam. Add the beef in a single layer and leave it undisturbed for a minute so it takes colour before you toss it; if the pan is crowded it will stew, so work in two batches if your pan is small.

Once the beef is well browned but still pink at the centre, add the onion petals, garlic, ginger, and rosemary, and stir-fry for a couple of minutes — the onion should soften at the edges and colour without going limp. Stir in the berbere and let it bloom against the hot fat for thirty seconds, coating the meat in the ethiopian-cuisine|spiced butter. Finally add the tomato wedges and green chilli and cook just until the tomato begins to slump but still holds its shape.

The finished tibs should be glossy and dry rather than saucy, the beef deeply browned and tender, the vegetables bright and barely cooked. Taste and adjust the salt. Serve it immediately, straight from the pan onto injera, with the sourdough bread doing the work of both plate and cutlery. Tibs is the celebratory, sociable end of Ethiopian cooking — quick to make, meant to be eaten the moment it leaves the heat.