Name: Kilishi
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Niger, West Africa
Ingredients: 1 kg beef topside, sliced paper-thin; Â½ cup roasted groundnut paste; 2 tbsp cayenne pepper; 1 tsp ground ginger; 1 tsp onion powder; 2 cubes seasoning cubes, crushed

Kilishi

Paper-thin dried beef jerky coated in a spicy groundnut and chilli paste, then sun-dried until crispy. Niger's premium dried meat snack.

Country

Niger

Region

West Africa

Time

80 min

Serves

Level

hard

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Kilishi is the gourmet beef jerky of the Sahel, perfected by the Hausa people. The process of slicing beef paper-thin, coating it in a spiced groundnut paste, and drying it in the sun requires great skill. It is a prized gift and travel food.

What the dish tastes like

Paper-thin dried beef jerky coated in a spicy groundnut and chilli paste, then sun-dried until crispy. Niger's premium dried meat snack.

When to cook it

Best for Snack and gift, with a hard cooking level and about 80 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

On its own as a snack

Follow the collection route

Kilishi belongs to 2 AfroKitchen collections. Sunday Specials is the strongest cluster route to start from. Sunday Specials

Slice the beef

Using a very sharp knife, slice the beef into paper-thin sheets, as large as possible. The thinner the better.

Partially freeze the beef for 30 minutes to make slicing easier.

First drying

Lay the beef slices on wire racks in the sun or in an oven set to 70C. Dry until firm but still pliable, about 3-4 hours in sun or 2 hours in oven.

Dry beef 120:00

Make the labu paste

Combine groundnut paste, cayenne, ginger, onion powder, seasoning cubes, and enough water to make a smooth, spreadable paste.

The paste should be thick enough to coat the meat without dripping.

Coat and re-dry

Coat each dried beef slice generously with the labu paste on both sides. Return to the racks and dry again for 2-3 hours until crispy.

Dry coated beef 120:00

Quick grill

Briefly grill each piece over low heat for 1-2 minutes per side to toast the coating. Store in airtight containers.

Kilishi keeps for weeks at room temperature when properly dried.

Toast kilishi 02:00

Kilishi

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Step-by-step instructions

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