Ethiopia | Stew

Shiro Wat

Name: Shiro Wat
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 bowls
Cuisine: Ethiopia, East Africa
Ingredients: 1¼ cups shiro powder or chickpea flour; 1 large onion, finely chopped; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 2 tbsp berbere spice; ¼ cup neutral oil; 4 cups warm water or vegetable stock; salt, to taste

Ethiopian chickpea flour stew simmered with onion, garlic, berbere, and oil until smooth, spicy, and ready for injera.

Country

Ethiopia

Region

East Africa

Time

45 min

Serves

Level

easy

Start cooking Explore Ethiopia recipes

01 / Get ready

Everything you need

Tap each ingredient as you gather it. Illustrations are visual guides; follow the ingredient names and quantities.

Servings 4

Scale the dish before you shop, then use the checklist while you cook.

Jump to method My cookbook

Ingredients

For 4 bowls

Stew

Base

1¼ cups shiro powder or chickpea flour 1 large onion, finely chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced

Spices

2 tbsp berbere spice

Fat

¼ cup neutral oil [Sub: niter kibbeh for a non-vegan version]

Liquid

4 cups warm water or vegetable stock

Pantry

salt, to taste

A few kitchen essentials

Suggested from the recipe method. Use equivalent equipment you have.

Lidded pot

Wooden spoon

02 / Let’s cook

One step at a time

Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.

Back to Ethiopia

4 steps 10 min prep 35 min cook (check method) 45 min total easy

Cook the onion

Cook onion in oil until soft and lightly golden, then add garlic and berbere.

onion base 12:00

Whisk the shiro

Whisk shiro powder with 1 cup warm water until smooth.

whisk 03:00

Simmer smooth

Add the shiro mixture and remaining water to the pot while stirring. Simmer until thick and glossy.

Kitchen noteKeep the heat moderate so the flour cooks without sticking.

simmer 20:00

Adjust and serve

Adjust salt and thickness with hot water, then serve with injera.

finish 03:00

Some versions are mild and garlicky, while others are rich with berbere, niter kibbeh, or tomato.

Cooking notes, photos & serving ideas

Recipe context

More about this dish

Serving ideas, regional context, and cooking cues for when you want more detail.

When to cook it

Best for fasting meals, quick dinners, and injera platters.. Plan on a easy cook. Allow about 45 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Injera, gomen, misir wat, or atkilt wat.

Regional lane

Injera and wot table. Stews, sauces, and flatbread built for communal injera service.

Chef watch-outs

Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
Rushing the rest or fermentation period.

How you know it is ready

The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
The bread or batter should smell pleasantly fermented, toasted, or nutty rather than floury.
The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.

Pantry lane

teff, berbere, mitmita, niter kibbeh, split peas

Recipe photos

See the dish before you cook

Take a closer look at the dish and its serving ideas.

Shiro Wat recipe from Ethiopia — Shiro Wat finished dish

Chef board

Build the table around Shiro Wat

Injera, gomen, misir wat, or atkilt wat.

Best route from here

Injera and wot table

Collections to keep cooking

Ethiopian Fasting Table

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