Doro Wat

Doro Wat

Ethiopia's national dish: a slow-cooked chicken stew built on a deep, spiced onion base perfumed with berbere and niter kibbeh, finished with whole boiled eggs and served on injera.

Prep

25 min

Cook

95 min

Total

120 min

Serves

4 to 6

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •120 g (½ cup) niter kibbeh (spiced clarified butter), homemade preferred; ghee is an acceptable substitute but lacks the spiced aromatic layer
• •500 g (1.1 lb) red onions, finely chopped, yellow onions work if red are unavailable
• •30 g (¼ cup) berbere spice blend, quality matters; a fresh, fragrant blend is essential
• •15 g (1 tbsp) sweet paprika, supports the colour if your berbere is mild
• •10 g (2 tsp) ginger-garlic paste, freshly grated ginger and garlic, crushed together
• •5 g (1 tsp) salt, or to taste
• •1 g (½ tsp) korerima (Ethiopian cardamom), green cardamom is the closest substitute
• •2 g (½ tsp) fenugreek seeds, toasted and ground, essential for the authentic savoury depth
• •900 g (2 lb) bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks, skin on for flavour; leg pieces are traditional
• •250 ml (1 cup) water or mild chicken stock
• •60 ml (¼ cup) fresh lemon juice, helps tenderise the chicken
• •6 whole large eggs
• •injera, to serve, no acceptable home substitute; the dish is not doro wat without it

Steps

1. 1 Marinate the chicken: combine the chicken pieces with the lemon juice and 5 g (1 tsp) of salt. Let sit for 20 to 30 minutes while you prepare the onions.
2. 2 In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, melt the niter kibbeh over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and cook gently, stirring often, for 20 to 30 minutes until they have collapsed into a soft, translucent, jam-like mass with no raw onion smell. Do not brown the onions; this stage is about drawing out their sweetness and moisture.
3. 3 Stir in the berbere, paprika, ginger-garlic paste, korerima, and ground fenugreek. Cook the spice paste in the butter for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the oil begins to separate and the mixture turns a deep brick red. If it looks dry, add a splash of water to keep it loose.
4. 4 Add the marinated chicken and the stock, stirring to coat every piece in the spice base. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer gently for 35 to 45 minutes, turning the chicken occasionally, until the meat is completely tender and pulls cleanly from the bone. The sauce should be thick, glossy, and coating the back of a spoon; if it thins too much, simmer uncovered for the last 10 minutes.
5. 5 Meanwhile, hard-boil the eggs: lower them into cold water, bring to a boil, then cook 9 minutes. Cool in iced water, peel, and prick each egg 3 or 4 times with a toothpick so they absorb the sauce.
6. 6 Nestle the peeled eggs into the stew, spooning sauce over them. Simmer uncovered for a further 8 to 10 minutes so the eggs take on the colour and flavour of the wat.
7. 7 Rest the stew off the heat for 5 minutes; the sauce should coat a spoon thickly and the chicken should read 75°C (165°F) on an instant-read thermometer at the thickest part. Serve hot on a large piece of injera, with extra injera on the side.