Doro Wat is a popular Ethiopian dish that is believed to have originated in the northern region of Ethiopia in the city of Gondar. The dish is a stew made with chicken, and is cooked with a spicy sauce made from its key ingredient which is the berbere spice mix.
Doro Wat became a staple of Ethiopian cuisine and is now considered one of the country’s national dishes. Doro Wat is usually enjoyed during festivities – it is often eaten with Injera which is a sourdough flatbread made from teff flour, and commonly served in a communal bowl. Doro Wat has also spread beyond Ethiopia’s borders and is now enjoyed in other parts of the world.
STEPS ON DORO WAT
Doro Wat, a spicy Ethiopian chicken makes it a perfect accompaniment to rice or any bread that can soak up the flavorful sauce. Doro Wat is sure to satisfy your cravings for a hearty and flavorful meal.
Lets get buzzin’:
Doro Wat:
Ginger Garlic paste
- 4 cloves of Garlic
- 1 inch of Ginger
Berbere spice
Ground spices:
- Chilli Powder (depending on preferred spice )
- Smoked Paprika powder
- Turmeric powder
- All Spice powder
- Ginger powder
- Nutmeg powder
Whole spices:
- Fenugreek seeds
- Yellow Mustard seeds
- Black Peppercorns
- Coriander seeds
- Cumin seeds
- Cloves
- Green Cardamom pods
- Cinnamon stick
Doro Wat
- Berbere spice
- Ginger Garlic paste
- Ghee
- Tomato paste
- Salt
- Water
- Vegetable Oil
Begin by boiling all the eggs for 6-7 minutes. After the eggs have cooled, carefully peel off the shells and make a 1.5 cm slit in each egg using a sharp knife. Set the eggs aside. Prepare the chicken by cutting the chicken into 8 pieces and set it aside. If you are not comfortable cutting a whole chicken, you can request your butcher to do it for you.
Next, finely chop all the red onions and transfer them to a bowl. To make the ginger and garlic paste, pound the ingredients using a mortar and pestle or blend them. Transfer the paste to a small bowl and set aside.
For the berbere spice, toast all of the whole spices in a pan over medium heat until fragrant. Remove the pan from the heat and let the spices cool. Once cool, transfer them to a blender and blend until smooth. Place the blended spices in a small bowl along with the ground spices and set aside.
In a casserole pan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onions and stir until caramelised. This step requires a bit of elbow grease to prevent the onions from burning. Then, add the berbere spice and the ginger garlic paste, and sauté everything for 2 minutes.
Add the ghee, tomato paste, and salt and cook for another 2 minutes. Next, add the chicken and fry it with the spice paste for 5 minutes.
Add 100 ml of water and hard-boiled eggs, and gently mix everything. Cover the casserole pan with a lid and let it cook on medium-high heat for another 10 minutes, stirring intermittently to prevent burning at the bottom.
Serve warm with Injera (recipe coming in the future), rice or any preferred bread.
Enjoy!
Doro Wat (Ethiopia)
Ingredients
Ginger Garlic paste
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 1 inch Ginger
Berbere Spice mix
Ground spices
- 1-3 tablespoon Chili powder depending on preferred level of spiciness
- 2 teaspoon Smoked Paprika powder
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon All Spice powder
- 1 teaspoon Ginger powder
- ½ teaspoon Nutmeg powder
Whole spices
- ½ teaspoon Fenugreek seeds
- ½ teaspoon Yellow Mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Black Peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon Coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 2 pods Green Cardamom
- 1 stick Cinnamon
Doro Wat
- 6 hard boiled Eggs
- 1 kg Whole Chicken cut into 8 pieces
- 4 tablespoon Vegetable Oil neutral oil such as Sunflower Oil
- 3 Red Onions finely chopped
- Berbere spice
- Ginger Garlic paste
- 2 tablespoon Ghee
- 2 tablespoon Tomato paste
- 2 teaspoon Salt add more if needed
- 100 ml Water
Instructions
- Begin by boiling all the eggs for 6-7 minutes. After cooling, peel the eggs and make a 1.5 cm slit on each with a sharp knife. Set aside.
- Cut the chicken into 8 pieces and set aside. If you are not comfortable cutting a whole chicken, you can request your butcher to do it for you.
- Finely chop all the red onions and transfer them to a bowl.
- To make the ginger and garlic paste, pound the ingredients using a mortar and pestle or blend them. Transfer the paste to a small bowl and set aside.
- For the berbere spice, toast all of the whole spices in a pan over medium heat until fragrant. Remove the pan from the heat and let the spices cool. Once cool, transfer them to a blender and blend until smooth. Place the blended spices in a small bowl along with the ground spices and set aside.
- In a casserole pan, heat oil over medium-high heat.
- Add the chopped onions and stir until caramelised. This step requires a bit of elbow grease to prevent the onions from burning.
- Then, add the berbere spice and the ginger garlic paste, and sauté everything for 2 minutes.
- Add the ghee, tomato paste, and salt and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Next, add the chicken and fry it with the spice paste for 5 minutes.
- Add 100 ml of water and hard-boiled eggs, and gently mix everything.
- Cover the casserole pan with a lid and let it cook on medium-high heat for another 10 minutes, stirring intermittently to prevent burning at the bottom.
- Serve warm with Injera, rice or any preferred bread.
- Enjoy!
NUTRITION FACTS
Total Fat: 56.76 mg
Sodium: 1735.58 mg
Dietary Fiber: 5.58 mg
Protein: 42.31 g
Vitamin C: 7.77 mg
Cholesterol: 380.79 mg
Carbohydrates: 16.74 g
Sugars: 5.62 g
Vitamin A: 592.21 mcg
Iron: 5.47 mg
Daily values based on a 2,000 calorie diet.