Instant Pot Doro Wat

Instant Pot Doro Wat. The Ethiopian classic chicken with berbere spices from your pressure cooker.

I love Ethiopian cuisine, loaded with berbere seasoning and served with a flatbread used as an eating utensil. I first tasted Ethiopian at Empress Taytu restaurant in Cleveland, and that meal was a revelation. The spices! Eating with your hands! It was fantastic, and I've gone back many times since then.

Jump to:

• What is Doro Wat?
• Ingredients
• How to Make Instant Pot Doro Wat
• Serving Suggestions
• Storing Leftovers
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Instant Pot Doro Wat Recipe
• 💬 Comments

What is Doro Wat?

Wats are the curry-like stew at the heart of Ethiopian cooking. My favorite is Doro Wat, cooked with bone-in, skinned chicken pieces, especially chicken drumsticks. It's an obvious recipe to convert to pressure cooking, replacing the long, slow simmer with high pressure in my Instant Pot.

Ingredients

• 8–12 chicken drumsticks, skin removed
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon Berbere seasoning blend
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large red onion, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-inch piece of ginger root, peeled and minced
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ¼ cup Berbere seasoning blend
• 1 cup homemade chicken broth (or water or store-bought low-sodium broth)
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (if using homemade broth or water)

Accompaniments

Flatbread (I substitute large tortillas or pita bread)

What is Berbere Seasoning?

Berbere seasoning is an Ethiopian spice blend and the backbone of Ethiopian cooking. Berbere only has a little heat but a lot of rich spice flavor. There is no one recipe for berbere. Each region, and sometimes each household, has its own version.

How to Make Instant Pot Doro Wat

Skin and season the drumsticks

Peel the skin from the drumsticks - I grab it with a paper towel for extra grip. Sprinkle the drumsticks evenly with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of Berbere seasoning.

Sauté the aromatics, bloom the spices

In an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker, melt 2 tablespoons of butter using Sauté mode set to medium. (Use medium heat in a stovetop pressure cooker). Add the red onion, garlic, and ginger to the pot, and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon fine sea salt. Sauté, stirring occasionally with a flat-edged wooden spoon, until the onions soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in ¼ cup of Berbere seasoning and let it sizzle for 30 seconds.

Stir in the drumsticks, add the broth

Add the drumsticks to the pot and toss to coat with the Berbere and onion mix. Pour in 1 cup of chicken broth or water, and stir in ½ teaspoon of salt if using homemade broth or water. Scrape the bottom of the pot with a flat-edged wooden spoon to ensure nothing is sticking to the bottom.

Pressure Cook for 15 minutes with a Natural Release

Lock the lid. Cook on high pressure for 15 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric PC or for 13 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use "Manual" or "Pressure Cook" mode in an Instant Pot.) Let the pressure come down naturally for about 15 more minutes. (If you get impatient, you can quick release the remaining pressure after 15 minutes of natural release.)

Serve with the pot sauce and accompaniments

Unlock the lid, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Gently move the drumsticks to a serving platter, then spoon a generous amount of the pot sauce over the drumsticks, coating them well. Pass the rest of the sauce at the table in case anyone needs more. Serve with flatbread, tearing pieces of bread off as pinchers to pull the meat off the bone.

Serving Suggestions

Ethiopian food is traditionally served with Injera, a sourdough bread made from fermented teff flour. The bread is the serving utensil - you rip off pieces and use them to pull and scoop up the food. (Think of pinch-sized tacos). Fermented teff flour dough is more of a project than I'm willing to take on. (I'm not much of a baker.) I go with a flatbread from my local grocery store, usually "burrito size" tortillas, though pita bread and naan will also work.

Storing Leftovers

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I find berbere spice blend?

The only trick to this recipe is finding a berbere seasoning blend. I have ordered it from Amazon, and found it at my local Whole Foods and World Market stores.

How do you pronounce "berbere"?

The trick to pronouncing "Berbere": Picture a grizzly wearing a French hat. Then say: bear-beret, emphasizing the "ay" sound at the end of beret. Bear-berAY.

What does doro wat mean in English?

Doro wat is Amharic for "chicken stew" and is the national dish of Ethiopia.

Can this recipe be made in a slow cooker?

Yes, this doro wat recipe can be adapted for a slow cooker. Follow the instructions as written, sautéing the aromatics and spices in a frypan on the stove instead of in a pressure cooker. Then, instead of the pressure cooker step, transfer everything to a slow cooker and cook it for 4 hours on low.

Is Doro Wat spicy?

Doro Wat does not have spicy heat but has a lot of rich spice flavor. The heat level depends on the berbere seasoning you buy. Most of them are low heat. Look for cayenne in the ingredient list; the lower it is on the list, the milder the heat.

Do I need to remove the skin from the chicken before cooking?

You don't have to, but it is traditional. I like it better with the skin removed. The spices are right up against the meat, not stuck on the skin on the outside.

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What do you think?

Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.

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My other Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipes

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