Ethiopia | Stew

Shiro Wat

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
4
Level
easy
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Recipe overview

What to know before you cook

Shiro wat is one of Ethiopia's everyday comfort stews, especially important on fasting tables. Chickpea flour thickens quickly, so the cook's job is steady stirring and patient seasoning.

What the dish tastes like

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

When to cook it

Best for Best for fasting meals, quick dinners, and injera platters., with a easy cooking level and 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

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
Servings 4

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

How to cook it

Step-by-step method

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

Back to Ethiopia
4 steps 45 min total easy
1
Cook the onion
Cook onion in oil until soft and lightly golden, then add garlic and berbere.
onion base 12:00
2
Whisk the shiro
Whisk shiro powder with 1 cup warm water until smooth.
whisk 03:00
3
Simmer smooth
Add the shiro mixture and remaining water to the pot while stirring. Simmer until thick and glossy.
Keep the heat moderate so the flour cooks without sticking.
simmer 20:00
4
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.

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