Misir Wot is a very popular Ethiopian dish. This red lentil stew is an amazing vegan dish that uses the ever popular Berbere spice to give it great depth of flavor. In this recipe we will be making our Berbere spice blend from scratch to add that authentic Ethiopian flavor to our Misir Wot.

Berbere Spice Blend

Ingredients

• 1/4 fresh nutmeg
• 1/2 cinnamon stick
• 5 cardamom pods
• 4 grains whole clove
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp whole geera
• 1 tsp mathie/ fenugreek
• 1 tbsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp all spice
• 3 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp ginger powder

Method:

1. Toast nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, clove, geera, mathie, black peppercorns & all spice in a pan until fragrant. This should take approximately one minute
2. Transfer toasted spices to a spice grinder or mortal and pestle then grind to a find powder
3. Combine well with remaining spices.
4. Store in an airtight container or ziploc bag.

Misir Wot

Ingredients

• 300g red lentils washed
• 6 onions diced
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tbsp minced ginger
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 shadon beni (culantro leaves) chopped
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 4 tsp berbere spice blend
• 4 cups water
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• salt to taste

Method

1. Add oil to a pot then sauté onions on medium heat for 5 minutes or until golden brown
2. Add berbere spice, garlic and ginger then sauté for 1 minute
3. Add tomato paste, bayleaf, lentils then season with salt to taste
4. Add water then bring pot a boil
5. Reduce heat to low then cover and allow lentils to cook for 20 minutes or until tender
6. Finish with fresh shadon beni
7. Serve & Enjoy

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