Minchet Abish Wot
ምንቸት አብሽ ወጥ·(min-chet ah-bish wot)
Sunday Suppers: Slow Wots & Gathering
Scrape a pound of supermarket ground chuck into a hot pan; because a food processor makes quick work of the punishing volume of onions required, you can pull this off on a busy Tuesday night. Watch the onions collapse, building the foundation through the patient work of dry-sweating onions, blooming authentic Berbere, and finishing with spiced butter—a heavy spoonful of niter kibbeh. Keep the heat low and let the berbere do the work.
Ingredients
- red onions4 med
- kosher salt1/2 tsp
- neutral cooking oil1/4 cup
- Berbere4 tbsp
- garlic1 tbsp
- fresh ginger1 tbsp
- ground fenugreek1/2 tsp
- Tikur Kimem1/2 tsp
- lean ground beef1 lb
- beef broth1 1/2 cup
- Nit'ir Kibbeh2 tbsp
- Mekelesha1 tsp
- eggs4 large
Method
- 01
Pulse the roughly chopped red onions in a food processor until very finely minced but not puréed.
Transfer them to a dry, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium heat with the salt. The absolute secret to Ethiopian stews is dry-sweating the onions for about 15 minutes until they collapse into a dark, jammy paste, evaporating their water before any fat is introduced. If they begin to scorch, add a tablespoon of water, never oil.
- 02
Pour in the neutral oil and fry the onion paste for two minutes before stirring in the Berbere.
Stir constantly for about five minutes to toast the spices in the oil, turning the mixture a dark brick red. Keep a cup of hot water nearby and add a tiny splash to deglaze if the spices start to stick to the bottom of the pot.
- 03
Stir in the minced garlic, ginger, ground fenugreek, and Tikur Kimem.
Cook for another two minutes until the raw garlic edge softens and the kitchen smells incredibly fragrant.
- 04
Add the ground beef and use a wooden spoon to break it apart as finely as possible.
Fold it thoroughly into the spicy onion base, cooking for eight to ten minutes until fully browned and saturated with the spices.
- 05
Pour in one cup of the hot broth, bring to a gentle boil, and reduce the heat to medium-low.
Simmer uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes, allowing the dissolved onions to naturally thicken the stew into a rich, velvety gravy, adding the remaining half cup of broth only if it looks too dry.
- 06
Make four shallow vertical slits around the sides of each peeled hard-boiled egg and drop them into the stew.
Turn off the heat entirely. Immediately stir in the Nit'ir Kibbeh and the Mekelesha finishing spice, taking care not to boil the stew further lest you destroy the delicate, sweet aromatic oils, and serve hot.
Notes
If you cannot find Tikur Kimem or Mekelesha, you can quickly hack them from a standard American pantry.
For the Tikur Kimem (black spice), substitute equal parts ground nigella seeds and ground cardamom. For the Mekelesha (finishing spice), mix together a pinch each of ground cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper, and cloves.
Nit'ir Kibbeh can be substituted with high-quality ghee.
If you don't have authentic Ethiopian spiced butter on hand, steep two tablespoons of ghee for ten minutes with a pinch of ground cardamom, a pinch of fenugreek, and a crushed garlic clove.