Doro Wot
Tender chicken leg or thigh marinated in lemon sauteed in seasoned butter and stewed in red pepper sauce, flavored with onions garlic, ginger root and pinch of cardamom.
Ethiopia's National Dish
Washington Post -
Wednesday, May 18, 2005; Page F02
Doro Wat - 12 servings
In Ethiopia and for Ethiopians in the Washington area, no holiday meal is complete without doro wat -- a spicy chicken stew that includes whole, hard-boiled eggs. Senedu Zewdie, owner of Sodere restaurant on Ninth Street NW, uses a recipe passed down from her mother, Bogelch W-Maryam.
Doro wat, like many Ethiopian dishes, is extremely spicy for those unaccustomed to the cuisine. To enjoy the sauce, dip injera bread into it. Allow at least 4 1/2 hours for the preparation of this traditional dish.
8 cups chopped onion
6 1/2 cups water
Once 6-ounce can tomato paste
2 cups spiced butter*
1 1/2 cups berbere*
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon ground ginger
6 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
6 bone-in, skinless chicken legs
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup sweet white wine
12 hard-cooked eggs, peeled
In a pot large enough to eventually hold all the ingredients, on medium-low heat, heat the onions and 1/2 cup of the water, stirring occasionally, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the onions have turned golden brown.
Add the tomato paste to the pot and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring to incorporate until heated through. Add the spiced butter, berbere, garlic and ginger. When the butter has melted, adjust the heat to low and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
When the spice-onion mixture has cooked for 30 minutes, prepare the chicken. In a medium pot on high heat, add the chicken with just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat slightly to poach the chicken, about 15 minutes. Drain the chicken, discarding the cooking liquid.
When the spice-onion mixture has cooked for a total of 1 hour, add the chicken to it and let cook for an additional hour over low heat.
Add the remaining 6 cups of water and stir carefully to incorporate the liquid. Let cook, adjusting the heat to a simmer, until the sauce thickens and heats through, about 15 minutes. Stir in the cardamom, black pepper and wine. Mix in the hard-cooked eggs and cook for 15 minutes.
*NOTES: Spiced butter, known as nitir kibe , is sold in small tubs at Ethiopian markets.
Berbere, also sold at such markets, is a ground spice mixture dominated by red chili pepper. Manufacturers have their own secret recipes.
Recipe tested by Stephanie Sedgwick;
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