Wat or wot ( am, ወጥ, ) or tsebhi ( ti, ጸብሒ, ) is an Ethiopian and Eritrean

stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables and ...

that may be prepared with chicken, beef, lamb, a variety of vegetables, spice mixtures such as ''

berbere Berbere ( Oromo: ''Barbaree'', am, በርበሬ ''bärbäre'', ti, በርበረ ''bärbärä'') is a spice mixture whose constituent elements usually include chili peppers, coriander, garlic, ginger, Ethiopian holy basil (besobela) seeds, ''kora ...

'', and ''

niter kibbeh ''Niter kibbeh'', or ''niter qibe'' ( am, ንጥር ቅቤ '), also called (in Tigrinya), is a seasoned, clarified butter used in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine. Its preparation is similar to that of ghee, but ''niter kibbeh'' is simmered wi ...

'', a seasoned clarified butter.

Overview

A formal serving of wat atop injera in Brussels, Belgium

Several properties distinguish wats from stews of other cultures. Perhaps the most obvious is an unusual cooking technique: the preparation of a wat begins with chopped onions slow cooked, without any fat or oil, in a dry skillet or pot until much of their moisture has been driven away. Fat (usually

) is then added, and the onions and other aromatics are sautéed before the addition of other ingredients. This method causes the onions to break down and thicken the stew. Wat is traditionally eaten with injera, a spongy

flat bread A flatbread is a bread made with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pizza and pita bread. Flatbreads ra ...

made from the

millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...

-like grain known as teff. There are many types of wats. The popular ones are doro wat and siga wat, (Amharic: ሥጋ ''śigā'') made with beef.

Doro wat

Doro wat ( am, ዶሮ ወጥ ''dōrō we̠t’'', ti, ጸብሒ ደርሆ '' Tsebhi derhō ''), made from chicken and sometimes hard-boiled eggs is the most popular traditional food in Eritrea and Ethiopia, often eaten as part of a group who share a communal bowl and basket of injera.

Misir wat

Misir wat is a lentil stew; its key ingredients include split red lentils, garlic, onions, and spices. It is a popular vegan dish, and in high demand during fasting periods for Orthodox Christians.

Sanbat wat

A Jewish version of doro wat is eaten by the

Beta Israel The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...

(

Ethiopian Jews The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...

) called "sanbat wat" (Sabbath wat). Sanbat wat is a traditional

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...

dish. In order to avoid mixing of meat and dairy, vegetable oil can be used as a pareve substitute in lieu of ghee. Yeqimem zeyet, a form of niter kibbeh made from vegetable oil, can also be used.

References

{{African cuisine Eritrean cuisine, Tsebhi Ethiopian cuisine National dishes Stews

Overview

Doro wat

Misir wat

Sanbat wat

See also

References