Doro Wat

Ingredients

• 1.4kg bone-in chicken drumsticks and thighs, skin removed
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1.2kg red onions (about 6 large), very finely chopped
• 120g niter kibbeh (Ethiopian spiced clarified butter), or 120g unsalted butter plus 1/2 tsp ground cardamom and 1/2 tsp ground fenugreek
• 6 tbsp berbere spice blend
• 6 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 thumb fresh ginger (about 30g), finely grated
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 500ml chicken stock or water, plus more as needed
• 6 large eggs, hard-boiled and peeled
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
• Injera or rice, to serve

Before you cook

• Pull the skin off the chicken pieces and discard it, then slash each piece twice down to the bone.
• Toss the chicken with the lemon juice and 1 tsp of the salt in a bowl, cover, and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Chop the onions as finely as you can manage, ideally to a rough mince rather than slices.
• Grate the garlic and ginger into a small bowl and set it beside the stove.
• Boil the eggs for 9 minutes, cool them under cold water, peel them, and prick each one a few times with a fork so the sauce can get in.

Steps

1. Put the chopped onions into a wide heavy pot with no fat and no water at all, and set it over medium-low heat.
2. Cook the dry onions for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring every few minutes and scraping the base, until they collapse into a soft khaki paste and smell sweet rather than raw.
3. Add half the niter kibbeh and stir it through the onions until it melts and the mixture loosens.
4. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook for 3 minutes until the raw edge is gone.
5. Add the berbere and the tomato paste and stir constantly for 5 minutes, keeping the heat low so the spice toasts without catching.
6. Pour in 250ml of the stock, stir until smooth, and let it bubble gently for 15 minutes so the sauce darkens to a deep brick red.
7. Lift the chicken from its marinade and nestle the pieces into the sauce, turning each one to coat.
8. Pour in the rest of the stock, bring to a gentle simmer, then cover and cook for 45 minutes.
9. Uncover and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon and the chicken is falling from the bone.
10. Stir in the remaining niter kibbeh, the cardamom and the remaining salt.
11. Slide in the peeled eggs, spoon sauce over them, and simmer for a final 10 minutes.
12. Taste and add salt, then let the pot sit off the heat for 15 minutes before serving over injera.