Camel Meat Platter · Somali Region Specialty
Hilib Geel
Photo: Abdifatah7 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Camel meat is leaner and lower in fat than beef, and herders often say it doesn't spoil as fast in the region's heat, which made it especially practical long before refrigeration.
Hilib geel, simply 'camel meat,' is boiled or roasted camel served with cabbage and warming spices — a lean, richly flavored meat that pastoralist communities in Ethiopia's Somali region have relied on for generations.
Why it's made this way: Camels are central to pastoralist life in the Somali region's arid lowlands, prized for milk, transport and meat alike, and hilib geel remains a prestige dish served to guests and at celebrations.
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Part of World of Street Food — 3248 dishes from 118 countries.
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