Spicy Ethiopian Red Lentils , also known as Misr Wat or Mesir Wat, is the 3rd recipe in this Ethiopian food series. I generally don’t like to call something, “the best”. Because let’s face it, there are a lot of really good foods out there that are amazing. And who’s really to say that one particular dish is “the best”? But guys… seriously, these Spicy Ethiopian Red Lentils are the best lentils I’ve ever had! Like ridiculously better than any other lentil dish I’ve tasted. The secret is berbere – a blend of spices that form the cornerstone of many Ethiopian dishes.
Since my husband and I moved from Washington, D.C. (a city with a vibrant Ethiopian population – the largest in the US, I’ve read), to Atlanta, we’ve been lacking in our weekly Ethiopian food night out. Don’t get me wrong, Atlanta has a truly fantastic food scene – but we are not longer within walking distance of several Ethiopian eating establishments as we once were. Our proximity, or lack thereof, motivated me to make my own. A surprisingly easy endeavor, most dishes come together quickly and nearly all of the ingredients can be found at general grocery stores, save perhaps fenugreek – a spice with quite a unique flavor, the best way I can describe it is a subtle mixture of celery leaf and maple syrup. A reader informed me that you can often find it at one of those health grocery stores, if you don’t have an international market nearby. Personally, I have not been able to find a decent substitute for fenugreek, so I would suggest omitting it if you can’t find the spice.
A largely vegetarian cuisine, it’s healthy and uses many different vegetables and legumes. What you may not expect, is that it’s filling and seriously packed with a ton of flavor! I know a dish is really good, when I constantly sneak bites in-between photographs. Each time I’d grab a quick spoonful out of a separate bowl I prepared for myself, my eyes would roll back in complete and utter taste satisfaction.
Lentils come in 3 major colors – green, brown, and red: Green lentils have the strongest flavor of the 3, with a slightly peppery taste. They take the longest to cook, about 45 minutes, and hold their form better after cooking than the other two varieties – which makes them ideal for soups and stews. Brown lentils are mild and earthy in taste. They cook up in about 30 minutes and still hold their form fairly well. Red lentils have a slightly nutty taste and only take 5 -10 minutes to cook. They tend to break their shape fairly easily, so they’re perfect for curry dishes and thickening soups. They are also ideal in Ethiopian cuisine – the softer consistency makes it easier to scoop up mouthfuls of food with injera, a spongy flatbread that is used for grasping food. If you’re looking for red lentils in your grocery store, try the international aisle if you cannot find them with the other legumes. If you still can’t find them, I’ve used both brown and green lentils as a substitute and the taste is still great! Just be aware that you’ll need to boil them longer initially. For that, I recommend following the package directions.
- 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 2 tablespoons berbere*
- ½ - 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups water
- 1 lime, juiced
- 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped (optional)
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the lentils and cook according to the package directions, though leave them a little al dente, as they will simmer in a spiced liquid a little later in the recipe. About 5 -10 minutes, depending on the size of the lentils. Drain the lentils and set aside.
- In a large saute pan, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger, cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the berbere to form a paste.
- Add the lentils, ½ teaspoon of salt, and water. Bring to a simmer for 10 - 15 minutes, until most of the water has evaporated and the mixture has thickened into a stew-like consistency. Taste and add more salt, if need. Finish with fresh lime juice.
- Garnish with cilantro (if desired) and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Hello- have you gotten a chance to try Desta in ATL?! Soo good! Anywho I was wondering where I can BUY Ethiopian spice from. I tried the frontier berbere spice on amazon and it tasted nothing like the mesir wat I had in restaurants.
Any tips would be appreciated 🙂
Hi Claire! We were in Atlanta, moved to the Bay Area, and just moved back to Atlanta last month! No, I have not been to Desta, but I just looked it up! I’ve actually been craving Ethiopian food lately, so this is some place I will certainly have to check out!
I actually have a really great recipe for berbere! Check it out here: https://hapanom.com/berbere/ I have purchased berbere at DeKalb farmers market – it’s good in a pinch, but I think it’s much better to make your own. That said, if you’re living in ATL, DeKalb Farmers Market has all the spices you’ll need to make the blend… and at great prices too!
Thank you!!! Yes go there! We LOVE IT. I get mesir wat there ALL the time and I have been trying soo soo hard to find a recipe that replicates theirs. Yours might be it!! Can’t wait to try it 🙂
You’re right! Best ever!
Thanks, Dana! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Atlanta is lacking Ethiopian food to you?? I just got here a couple of weeks ago, and have also lived in the NOVA/DC area. I’ve been arund more ethiopians here than ever in my life. Cafes, resteraunts, grocery stores. Even the Bengali store was stocked full of Ethiopian products, including green coffee beans, a jebena (clay coffee pot), different types of injera including the harder to find %100 teff one, and of course, berbere and every other type of spice.
Maybe I was just lucky, but for this lover of Ethiopian food and culture, I couldn’t imagine it seeming lacking to anybody. Just my experience. Thanks for the recipe, by the way.
Hi Ibrahim! Don’t get me wrong, I loved living in Atlanta and was REALLY impressed with their food scene overall! In fact, we miss it very much and would love to move back! While living in DC, I experienced a stronger Ethiopian food culture – but then again, I grew up there and knew all the places to go. Perhaps that’s the only difference. That being said, I’m totally with you on the grocery stores in ATL! AMAZING! Never lived somewhere with grocery stores that diverse (not even where I’m living now, in the SF Bay Area)! Buford Farmers Market and Dekalb Farmers Market – both phenomenal! And yes… the only place I have every found injera for sale 🙂 I hope you enjoy the lentils – we eat them regularly in my house.
Ok, right at I-85 and Clairmont are 3 great Ethiopian restaurants. Your Dekalb Farmers Market has all the spice blends (including fenugreek and berbere) and there just north of there on Ponce is Yashi Market with fresh injeera (there are at least 3 places that stock injeera from them).
Thanks for the tips, Daniel! We’re in CA now, but hoping to move back to Atlanta – we absolutely loved it and really miss it! If we do make it back there – I will certainly check out those Ethiopian restaurants on 85 and Clairmont. They were working on Ponce City Market when we lived there (about 2 years ago) and I think they opened up shortly after we left. That old Sears and Roebuck building is absolutely gorgeous – I would love to see the inside of it now! We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we can move back soon! If we do… I’ll definitely check out your suggestions! Thanks!
I love ordering this at restaurants, and when I found your recipe today I needed to try it! This had a little too much spice for me, so next time I would probably cut the berbere back to 1 tablespoon. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Carla! I’m sorry this was a bit spicy for you. Cutting back on the amount of berbere should still give you some really nice flavor while cutting some of the heat. Hope you give it another try 🙂
Just made this recipe with split chickpeas instead of red lentils (i only had 1/2 a cup left 🙁 ) and it came out delish! Made the berbere mix first doubling measures to have for another day.
Thank you!
That’s fantastic, Annie! I’m so glad you enjoyed the dish. I’ll have to give it a try with spilt chickpeas 🙂
Thanks for this delicious recipe – my first attempt cooking Ethiopian. I ordered the Berbere spice mixture from Amazon and putting the rest of the dish together was easy.
One issue I had was between pre-cooking the lentils and then letting them simmer in the seasoned stew, was they lost their form a bit and got mushy (which did not affect the taste). I compensated for this by adding some uncooked lentils to the simmering stew, so there would be range of lentils that went from mushy to “al dente.” Just an aesthetic issue.
Very tasty!
That’s great, I’m so glad you enjoyed the dish! I’ve always had misr wat served to me on the softer side, so I like to cook them before adding them to the pan. However, if you prefer the lentils more on the al dente side, then cooking them directly in the seasoned stew is a great solution! I’ve actually had them both ways, and like you said, still tasty, it just comes down to aesthetic and consistency preference 🙂
Hi. I’ve been eating Ethiopian food for 35 yrs, since my days in Berkeley. Have a terrific recipe to share, when I find it
Thanks, Sam. I look forward to seeing the recipe.
I finally tried this recipe – my husband absolutely loved it – for me it was bit too spicy, and I usually like spicy food. I only took 1 bite, so guess who had great lunch left-overs? I’m going to try it again because I do love lentils and I also loved the fragrance of the berbere spice blend. It is such an easy dish to make.
Hi Cherie! I’m so glad your husband enjoyed it! If it’s too spicy for your tastes, feel free to cut back a bit on the berbere – you’ll still retain a ton of flavor!
my freind josh really loves this and suggested i try it, I cant wait to prepare and try it,,, Thanks so much for the recipe.
That’s fantastic! I make this dish all the time – I hope you love it too! 🙂
This recipe is delicious and amazingly simple! I served it with sourdough from a local bakery to mimic the injera that completes the experience 🙂
Hi Hillary. I’m so glad you enjoyed the dish! Homemade injera is still on my list of things to-do. I’ve made several batches, and I’m still tweeking the recipe. The sourdough bread is a great idea though… I’m going to have to try that next time!
I make these lentils all the time! Once you’ve made the berbere spice mix, it’s so easy to throw this dish together! In fact, on nights when I don’t feel like cooking… I’ll just make a big bowl of these Ethiopian red lentils 🙂
I came across your recipe because I just left Atlanta where I had one of the best ethiopian restaurants in town. I loved their Mesir and I was wondering how I could make it at home. I haven’t tried your recipe yet, but I will. I wanted to tell you about the Ethiopian restaurant in Atlanta since you said you couldn’t find any. The restaurant is called Desta Ethiopian Kitchen. You should try it. I really enjoyed my meal and they’re always busy so I would like to say a lot of others enjoy as well. I hope you can make it there to try their food. It’s very authentic cuisine 🙂
This is great! Thanks, Alaine! I just checked out their website, and it looks great! Close to our house as well – so this is fantastic! Thanks so much for the recommendation 🙂
I hope you give the lentils a try, it’s my absolute favorite way to make them.
I must have been hiding under a rock because I totally missed your Ethiopian series. . . and I love Ethiopian food. So does my hubby. Funny thing is when he used to go to Ethiopia on business no one ever want to go out for Ethiopia food. So there he was in Ethiopia eating Italian. Go figure! Anyhow, these lentils loom aMAZing.
Hi Lynn. No worries, I’m only in the middle of my Ethiopian Series – I still have a few more yummy veggie dishes as well as an injera recipe I’ve been working on. So funny about your husband – but the overall experience must have been AMAZING! I hope you at least got to go out and enjoy some of the local cuisine 🙂
Great lesson on the lentils! I never tried Ethiopian food, but the vibrant flavor in this dish sounds amazing! My boyfriend like bean dishes a lot and I’ll definitely try out this one! Pinned 🙂
Oh you should give Ethiopian food a try! The first time I had it, I was truly amazed at how incredible the flavors were. If your boyfriend likes a bit of heat, I know he’ll love this dish.
You used to do Ethiopian once a week??? Honestly, I have NEVER even had Ethiopian food!! I really need to make one of your recipes. All the flavours I love. I have fenugreek! Use it in some Indian recipes 🙂
Oh my, you have to give it a try! I know you would love it – it’s truly amazing how much flavor is packed into the dishes!
I was introduced to the wonders of lentil dishes when I lived in Greece, and I’ve never looked back since!
It sounds like these have some amazing flavours in them (would love to try fenugreek, now that you’ve described it to me!) And the ginger and lime … mmm!
Lentils are great, aren’t they!? Fenugreek is really a wonderful spice. If you like to make Middle Eastern or Indian food, it is used quite often in those dishes as well – so if you hunt down some fenurgeek, it won’t be one of those “one dish spice”.
I really enjoy these Ethiopian dishes Kathleen! Love lentils and am curious to try this dish! I’m sure it tastes great! Pinned of course!
I’m so glad you enjoy the dishes! Thank you so much, as always 🙂
I’m loving this series, Kathleen! I remember always seeing so many Ethiopan restaurants in DC but they are few and far between up here in the Philly area. So I really don’t know much at all about this type of cuisine, but I’m enjoying learning from you! This dish sounds fantastic and I love the way you’ve styled the photos 🙂
Thanks so much, Allie. We were really fortunate to have some really great Ethiopian restaurants in the area. If you ever get the chance to eat at one, I highly recommend it!
Oh wow, these look amazing. I haven’t made lentils for ages and now they’re on my mind!
Thanks, Marissa. These lentils have been on my mind all day 😉
Kathleen, this sounds absolutely wonderful. I just happened to get a large bag of red lentils (I have to mail order them), so this sounds like a great thing to make with them.
About Fenugreek, I find that if a grocery store has Spice Islands spices, they’ll usually have Fenugreek. Health food groceries might be another option.
Hi Susan. I’m so glad that this recipe was so well timed for you 🙂
Thanks so much for the heads-up on Fenugreek! I never thought about checking one of those health food grocery stores. I really appreciate the tip – I’ll certainly make a note of it in the post!
I love lentil dishes and this sounds like it has so much flavor from the berbere. I have all the spices in my kitchen right now, I just need the lentils and the Thai chilies and I’m set. I can’t wait to taste this.
Oh I hope you enjoy it! It’s not just my favorite lentil dishes, it’s one of my favorite dishes period 🙂