1
Brown the beef
Season beef with salt and pepper. Brown it in hot oil, then remove from the pot.
Brown beef
10:00
Eritrea | Stew
Zigini with Injera
A slow Eritrean beef stew with berbere, tomato, onions, garlic, ginger, and a thick red sauce for injera.
Country
Eritrea
Region
East Africa
Time
100 min
Serves
4
Level
medium
Recipe overview
What to know before you cook
Zigini is not a quick red sauce. Brown the beef, let the onion and berbere bloom, then braise until the meat gives way and the sauce clings to injera.
What the dish tastes like
A slow Eritrean beef stew with berbere, tomato, onions, garlic, ginger, and a thick red sauce for injera.
When to cook it
Best for everyday meals, with a medium cooking level and about 100 minutes total.
What to serve alongside it
Injera, salad, lentils, or sauteed greens
Regional lane
Eritrea national table. A verified Eritrea dish in the AfroKitchen archive.
Chef watch-outs
- Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
- Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
- Rushing the rest or fermentation period.
How you know it is ready
- The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
- The bread or batter should smell pleasantly fermented, toasted, or nutty rather than floury.
- The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
Recipe photos
See the dish before you cook
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Chef board
Build the table around Zigini with Injera
Injera, salad, lentils, or sauteed greens
Best route from here
Eritrea national table
Collections to keep cooking
How to cook it
Step-by-step method
Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.
5 steps
100 min total
medium
2
Cook the onion base
Add onions to the same pot and cook until soft and beginning to brown. Stir in garlic, ginger, and berbere.
Cook onions
15:00
3
Build the sauce
Add tomato paste, tomatoes, and stock or water. Stir until the sauce is smooth.
Start sauce
05:00
4
Braise
Return beef to the pot, cover, and simmer gently until tender and the sauce is thick.
Braise beef
60:00
5
Finish
Taste for salt. Stir in tesmi or niter kibbeh only if using, then serve over injera.
Some cooks use tesmi or niter kibbeh, while many home versions use oil and keep the stew dairy-free.