Berbere

Berbere - actually berbère - is the usual substitute for pepper in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine. The name is derived from papere, which in Ge'ez - an ancient language spoken in Ethiopia - meant hot. It is one of the oldest herbal mixtures in the world. It was already made in the fifth century, long before people in this part of Africa became acquainted with the chili pepper.

Berbere has been a familiar spice mixture for decades, known here only in its dry form. There is also a 'wet variant' with fresh onion, ginger and garlic, in the dry variant replaced by onion flakes, ginger and garlic powder. Although the composition of berbere, as is the case with most spice blends, may vary from region to region, retailer to retailer and household to household, pepper always predominates.

Like no other country, Ethiopia has a tradition of integrating elements from other cultures. Already in the time of the Egyptians, this part of Africa was the center of the trade in spices from the Orient, which were mixed with home-grown spices, such as koarima and African peppers, such as timiz, the African long pepper.

Berbere is not chili powder, and many available berbere emphatically contain too much chili pepper, which pushes out the other spices. A richly filled berbere contains the following spices, most of which are roasted:

• kunitali - cumin seed, 
• korarima - white cardamom, 
• dimbibal - coriander, 
• abish - blue fenugreek seed, 
• tikuri beribere - black pepper, 
• timiz - cape long peppers,
• kiloki - cloves,
• allspice, and

(not toasted)

• besobela - ethiopian (clove) basil
• zinjibil - ginger and 
• tena'adam- winter rue

Smell and taste

Berbere is spicy and spicy. This berbere does not contain tena'adam, which is the case in many authentic berberes. If you are curious about the influence of this passion fruit pepper on the taste, we also sell tena'adam. Dose it sparingly, tena'adam has a slight bitter note.

Use

Berbere is used in Ethiopia and Eritrea in many stews (wots) from lentils to chicken. Berbere is powerful enough to also be used as a rub on red meat. One of the most important uses is in awaze, a condiment that you can also make yourself, from berbere, honey wine (t'ej or mead) and some oil.

Features:

• this berbere contains: cayenne pepper, black pepper, fenugreek, coriander, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, cumin and ginger
• contains no preservatives, no paprika, garlic or salt
• origin: Ethiopia, Eritrea

Allergen information

• this berbere has been carefully put together in the United Kingdom
• the mixture may contain traces of celery and mustard

Assortment

• available in glass and stand-up pouch (no test tubes)
  
• glass jar contains 60 grams
• stand-up pouches with a capacity of up to 30 to 250 grams
• larger quantities on request

Gift packaging

• the jar is available in a tasteful gift packaging, consisting of a cube box filled with black tissue paper
• for an overview of our other gift packaging, please refer to the section  gift packaging 
  

Save

• store berbere in closed packaging
  
• preferably store in a dark, dry and cool place
• best before February 2025 (02/25)
• this expiration date is an indication