andrejthechef
InternationalStewDinnerGluten-free

Doro Wat

Ethiopia’s great chicken stew: a mountain of dry-cooked onions, fierce amounts of berbere, spiced butter and scored eggs, eaten with injera.

prep
30 min
cook
1 h 30 min
total
2 h
serves
6
level
medium
Injera with Doro Wat, a classic from Ethiopia.

Doro wat begins with a move that looks wrong: a kilo of chopped red onions cooked dry, no oil, stirring, until they collapse and sweeten. That onion mass is the body of the sauce, carrying an amount of berbere that reads like a typo and tastes like Ethiopia.

Hard-boiled eggs, scored so the sauce can enter, simmer in the wat and are treasured pieces. It is served on injera, which is plate, utensil and sour counterpoint at once; store-bought injera is a perfectly honorable start.

Doro Wat is one of the world's classic dishes from 67 countries.

method

  1. Rub the skinless chicken with lime and salt and set aside.

  2. Cook the onions in a dry heavy pot over medium heat, stirring often, for 20 minutes until collapsed, golden and sweet. No oil yet; this is the Ethiopian way.

  3. Add the niter kibbeh, garlic and ginger and cook 5 minutes.

  4. Add the berbere and fry it into the onions for 3 to 4 minutes, adding a splash of water if it catches.

  5. Add the chicken, turning to coat, then the water. Simmer gently, partly covered, for 45 minutes.

  6. Add the scored eggs for the final 15 minutes, spooning sauce over them.

  7. Rest 10 minutes and serve ladled over injera, eating with torn pieces of it.

chef's tips

  • The dry onion cook is non-negotiable; it is the foundation of every Ethiopian wat.
  • Four tablespoons of berbere is correct. This is a berbere dish; trust it.
  • Skinless chicken is traditional; the sauce does the work skin normally would.