How To Make Nitir Kibbeh (Ghee) Ethiopian Spiced Butter

Nitir Kibbeh is a version of ghee, or clarified butter, from Ethiopia. The butter is cooked with a curry-like spice blend that makes it very versatile and useful in lots of recipes. We learned how to make this when we were researching Ethiopian food and it’s been our go-to ghee recipe ever since.

Uses For Nitir Kibbeh (Ghee)

We use this for a wide variety of things; Indian Food, Indonesian Food, Frying Fish, Cooking Vegetables, Stuffing for Peppers, and on and on. You can use your imagination and the list is limitless. Any recipe that starts with ghee in the pan is is starting on a good flavor footing. Without the milk solids, ghee can take a higher temperature than unclarified butter.

Watch a Video

Here is a video of the process of making Nitir Kibbeh. Once you have the basics you can change the ingredients for a flavor that is to your liking.

Ingredients For Nitir Kibbeh (Ghee)

• 1 lb Butter
• 1/4 cup Chopped onion
• 3 Tbls Chopped Garlic
• 2 Tbls Grated Ginger
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• 1 tsp Black Peppercorns
• 1 tsp Coriander Seeds
• 3 Black Cardamom Pods
• 3 Whole Cloves
• 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1 tsp Fenugreek
• 1 tsp Dried Oregano
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg

This is one of those times when it pays to have a well-stocked spice cupboard. When we were researching Ethiopian food we had to seek out a lot of spices that have since become staples in our kitchen. Eventually we had to find a way to organize our spices better and we found this great system at Verticalspice.com.

Sweat the Whole Spices

Yes, that’s a lot of spices but if you’ve ever made Ethiopian food or even Curry, that’s not unusual. We will start by sweating all the whole spices in a dry pan until they are fragrant. This fills the kitchen with a wonderful smell. Stir frequently and avoid burning the spices.

Cook the Butter With All the Spices For 2 Hours

Put the butter in a saucepan and add the powdered spices, onion, garlic and ginger. Add the whole spices and cook on medium low heat for 2 hours. This will give time for the milk fats to separate out from the butter (the clarification process) and all those flavors to get into the butter. Be careful when using turmeric, it can stain your countertops!

Strain the Nitir Kibbeh (Ghee)

The final step is to strain the butter through several layers of cheesecloth. We have a cocktail strainer that fits in a pint jar so we just put the cheesecloth on top of that. The result is a pint of nice, clear flavor. Some people can make a mess doing this so doing it in the sink is advised. Turmeric can stain your counters.

Explore our Ethiopian Recipe Collection for a complete meal.

• Nitir Kibbeh (Ghee) Ethiopian Spiced Butter
• Berbere (Ethiopian Spice Paste
• Injera (Ethiopian Fermented Flatbread)
• Zigni (Ethiopian Goat and Carmelized Onion Stew)
• Misir Wat (Ethiopian Spiced Lentils)

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