Tihlo
A dish from the historical Agame province of Tigray, genuinely distinct from the site's other Ethiopian dishes: roasted barley flour is kneaded into a firm dough and shaped into small balls, arranged around a central bowl of spicy meat and berbere stew, and eaten by spearing each ball with a real, specific two-pronged wooden fork called a shint'ar and dipping it into the stew. It's commonly served on cultural holidays and is one of the most widely recognized traditional Ethiopian barley-based foods, distinct in both technique and eating ritual from injera-based dishes.
Meat-optionalVegetarian
⚠ Contains: Gluten, Dairy. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
Ingredients
- 2 cups barley flour, dry-roasted
- 1 cup warm water
- 300g beef, cubed
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 tbsp berbere spice blend
- 3 tbsp niter kibbeh
Steps
- Knead the roasted barley flour with warm water into a firm, uniform dough.
- Break the dough into small balls and arrange them around the rim of a serving plate.
- Cook the beef with onion, berbere, and niter kibbeh into a thick, spicy stew.
- Pour the stew into the center of the plate, within the ring of dough balls.
- Spear each ball with a fork and dip it into the stew to eat.