Any goat meat recipes? And what does goat taste like?

[ExercisetoEat]

My local organic market just started carrying goat meat (I'm not quite sure what cuts, but I'm assuming a variety of stew meat, leg, roasts, etc.) I can't say that I've ever eaten goat meat, and the thought is rather off-putting. However I've decided to put on an adventurous face and buy some this weekend. Does anyone have a tried and true recipe for goat meat? Also, how does it generally taste? Is it similar to lamb? I pretty much like all foods so spice and unique flavor combinations are welcome.

[lobsterchurch]

I haven't had kid but the goat I've had reminds me of a cross between say lamb shanks and maybe beef brisket -- classic recipes, try : Birria(Mexican goat stew), Jamaican jerked goat, goat also makes a really good rogan josh but it needs more braising time than lamb. Goat is usually pretty tough so it needs long cooking but it makes a crazy good stew. You could probably use it in any recipe that calls for lamb shanks. I hear kid is more tender like lamb.

[tacowalker]

I had a goat curry at an Indian place in my town. I thought it was great, similar to lamb as others had said, but the Indian curry worked very well with it.

[azhotdish]

My first experience with goat meat was a couple months ago in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. We had a vip taxi for the day, so we drove into town and our driver took us to a local joint. My gf played it safe, but I went for the chivo guisado, naturally served w/rice and beans. It required a little bit of work with a fork and knife to get all the meat around the bones, but it was very tender and quite good.

Here is a link w/the recipe for a similar dish.
http://www.dominicancooking.com/meat-...

[sidkhullar]

Goat meat is quite tender but requires quite some cooking to get there. Unless you like cooking the 'traditional' way, pressure cooking is recommended. Here's one goat meat recipe:

You'll need:
* Mutton
* Onions
* Bay leaves
* Garlic
* French beans
* Potatoes
* Fresh black pepper
* Butter
* Mutton/Chicken stock
* Oil

Sorry about the missing quantities. This recipe is from a time when I wasn't recording quantities.

1. Heat the oil. Fry the mutton on high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove mutton and set aside.
2. Boil some water. Blanch the chopped (1″) beans for about 3 minutes. Remove beans and set aside.
3. Quarter the potatoes.
4. Add the butter to the oil still in the pan. Melt.
5. Add the finely chopped onions. Saute till transparent
6. Add the smashed garlic. Saute for 30 seconds. Add the bay leaves. Saute for 10 seconds.
7. Add the mutton and follow with stock.
8. Simmer for 2 - 3 hours, or till meat is tender.
9. Add beans, pepper - adjust seasoning and stir once before serving.

Here's a pic of the end result.

[willownt]

I think that goat is much nicer than lamb. Much less gamey/strong smelling than lamb, but adding ginger helps give it a better aroma.

[FrankJBN]

I too disagree that goat is necessarily gamier than lamb. It is certainly a leaner meat.

I recently back a couple of racks of goat from a local ahllal grocery - likely the last time - what a pain in the rump to carve.

[TSQ75]

goat is fabulous!

here's a pretty traditional Dominican creole goat recipe...

http://www.dominicancooking.com/meat-...

[chazzerking]

If you can get a side of kid, or a hindquarter of kid, especially unweaned kid(you will need to be able to get past the psychological aspects of it) you are in for a culinary treat. take the leg and rub it generously with a mixture of garlic, paprika, black pepper, cmin, salt, a little cayenne, a little cardamom, and the grill over ver hot coals until seared and remove from direct heat and cook at 375-400 until internal temp is about 130 then let rest and serve with grilled onions, yoghurt and lemon juice. it is like a milk-fed lamb, but less pronounced in its flavor and very rich in texture. the flavor is more delicate than lamb, especially the older lamb that is usually available in this country. if You can get it, you won't go back to lamb.

[luckyfatima]

I love goat. I disagree that it always tastes gamey. It depends on what kind of goat it is. Some goat tastes so gamey that I can't eat it. I just can't swallow it despite how well the dish is prepared. Even doctored up in an elaborately spiced curry. However, other varieties of goat are just delicious. The trick to cooking a goat curry is slow cooking. Goat is a very tough meat if not cooked for a long time. I usually put the dish covered on low flame for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes until tender. You can cut the time with a pressure cooker. Tough goat is just, blegh. If you invest the time to slow cook it it will be heavenly.

[Melanie Wong]

OK, I bought a chivo hindquarter (grown in Sonoma County) today. Weighed just under 7 pounds including the bone. I had the butcher remove the bones for me. I asked whether this was a small goat or what, and was told it was "medium" and bigger than cabrito (baby) but not a large goat. Whatever.

I had been planning to roast it. But maybe low and slow is the way to go? I'm usually a fan of rare, roasted meat (e.g., leg of lamb, prime rib), but maybe this should be cooked more than that? Suggestions for internal temperature?

[Melanie Wong]

Here's the advice rec'd by email this morning from a shy 'hound:
"Yepper. Unless you like gnawing on leather. Kid can sometimes be tender but it has no fat, so....when in doubt, use a casuela."

[Melanie Wong]

Here's what went down. I salted the butterflied piece of meat liberally the day I bought it, so it had nearly 2 days of "dry" brining. The day of the dinner, I slashed some of the thickest parts of the leg so that it would be a more uniform thickness all round. This was quite lean, so I rubbed it with fresh lard, and sprinkled with more salt and ground pepper. Some of the Spanish recipes I surveyed used olive oil, but when I saw one that used lard I went with that since I had some on hand and that doesn't happen very often.

I took the meat out of the fridge three hours beforehand to take the chill off, putting it on a rack in a roasting pan on the kitchen counter. The leg bones, sawed into sections by the butcher, went toward making stock after roasting with an onion and some garlic. But before I put them in the water, I scraped off a bit of the browned meat from the bone to test its tenderness and flavor. Even without any salt, the meat was quite delicious with a milky backnote to it and not gamey at all. It was also quite tender, which made me think that I could get away with a quick cooking and not have to go low and slow. As it turned out, I did sort of a compromise method to good result.

Three hours before I wanted to serve it, I roasted the butterflied leg for 30 minutes in a preheated 450 degree oven. Then I turned it over and basted it with a garlicky dressing and roasted it for another 15 minutes. Here's the recipe for the dressing:
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
Couple spoonfuls of fresh minced Italian parsley
Salt
Spoonful of wine vinegar
1/4 c Amontillado sherry
1/2 c boiling water
Mix all the above together.

After this first 45 minutes of cooking, I had a decision to make. I'd trimmed off some of the more done meat from the edge, and I liked its succulence and flavor at this pink stage. Luckily, my friend who was to help me with the cooking arrived at the moment to help me decide whether to go pink or cook this until past well-done to guarantee tenderness. He tried it and agreed with me that it was delicious rare. At the thickest point, the meat was 120 degrees at this stage. Spence suggested that I turn my oven down as low as it would go (175 degrees) and let the meat come up to temperature as slowly as possible.

We were shooting for "chazzerking's" 130 degrees, but things got a little hectic and when I checked it an hour later, we were already up to 135 degrees and with carryover, ended up at 140 degrees at the thickest point. I set the meat to rest on the cutting board with a piece of foil resting over. The roasting pan went back in the oven with some quartered freshly dug red potatoes (skin-on) and cippolini purchased from the farmers market in Healdsburg that morning.

An hour later, the potatoes and onions were done. I made a sauce by deglazing the pan with the reduced goat stock (about one cup). The stock itself had amazing flavor and texture from the dissolved marrow and cartilage and had almost set up just sitting at room temperature on the counter. The pan juices were quite sweet from the onion and rich with roasted depth, making a delicious, garlicky sauce in combination.

The butterflied roast was quite easy to carve. The color was a uniform pink with just a bit of browning around the edges. I sliced it very thin, less than an 1/8". My friend did some of the carving too and the slices that were about 1/4" were too chewy.

All in all, a very successful experiment! Now that I know that this source has tender chivo, if I do it again, I'll try to hit a lower internal temperature. The leftovers reheated nicely for a second dinner, and then the done parts and other remainder swere chopped up and went into a killer black bean chili.

Edited to add: Here's the complete dinner menu and wine list for the evening.

RIBERA DEL DUERO
Bacchus Wine Tasting Society
Saturday, October 27, 2007

Welcome Wine:
2006 Abad Dom Bueno Godello Bierzo

Blind Tasting: Horizontal of Ribera del Duero
1994 Teófilo Reyes Ribera del Duero
1994 Condado de Haza Ribera del Duero
1994 Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Crianza Ribera del Duero
1994 Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Reserva Ribera del Duero
1994 Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera “Janus” Ribera del Duero

Palacios Chorizo Picante
Selection of Spanish Olives

Appetizers:
NV Barbadillo “Solear” Extra Dry Manzanilla Sanlucar de Barrameda

Boquerones with Green Sauce
Marcona Almonds
Garlic Soup with Poached Quail Egg

Entrees:
1994 Alion Reserva Ribera del Duero
1994 Ismael Arroyo “Val Sotillo” Reserva Ribera del Duero
1990 Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Gran Reserva Ribera del Duero
1985 Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera Crianza Ribera del Duero

Sonoma Goat with Roasted Potatoes and Cippolini
Escalivada
Vegetarian Fabada

Cheeses:
Lemon Verbena Tea
Manchego and Drunken Goat with Matiz Andaluz Tortas de Aceite
Bellwether Jersey Ricotta and Hector’s Blackberry Honey with Salad Greens
La Reyna Pan de Muerto

Dessert:
2004 Jorge Ordoñez Seleccion Especial Moscatel Vino Naturalmente Dulce Malaga
Convento de la Purisima Concepcion de Penaranda de Duero Flourless Almond Cake with Fresh Figs and Lemon-Ginger Whipped Cream

[bills]

Hi Melanie,

Where did you get your chivo? I've been searching for a good source - really want to experiment with goat but don't know where to get it.

Did you know that Roger Praplan at La Gare has goat on the menu on occasion? He seems to do curry or rack of goat and the rack, obviously, is done rare.

I'm going to call the restaurant and ask him where he gets his goat.

Thanks,

[Melanie Wong]

This particular leg came from carniceria contreras in Santa Rosa.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/4591...

[bills]

Many thanks, Melanie. I had found the name from a woman who serves birria - and huaraches. She told us that many of the tacquerias who say they serve goat are really using lamb. So, we asked for her source. She gave us Carneceria Contreras, and said she liked it because it was clean and didn't smell "not like Lola's."

[kikogoats2002]

There is a goat meat recipe book for sale on the internet. It has over 100 goat meat recipes in it and only cost $ 15 per book which includes shipping and handling. Go to www.theikga.org and click on "IKGA items for sale". This is the International Kiko Goat Association website.

Enjoy,
Michael

[ExercisetoEat]

Ok, this weekend I bought a goat leg and a package of bone-in cubed goat meat. I think I'll try a curry with the cubed meat and a braise with the leg. My DH was a little disturbed about spending almost $30 for organic goat meat, so I hope that it turns out! I've had my work cut out just getting him to warm up to the idea of eating goat. Has anyone tried a recipe from the All About Braising cookbook that would translate well to goat meat? Also, any tried and true curry recipes would be appreciated. I'm a newbie with curries. Thanks for the input everyone.

[ExercisetoEat]

I cooked the goat leg this week, using a Molto Mario recipe that called for braising it over a bed of green onion tops and mint, along with paprika a touch of red wine, and water. I cooked it according to the recipe which was in a covered pot at 375 degrees for 1.5 hours (after browning it first).

The results were, I'm sad to say, quite disappointing. The meat was very chewy, and tough. It was full of stringy tendons and just plain difficult to take off the leg once cooked. I picked through it the best I could rather than slicing it, trying to get good bits of meat separated from the tough parts, but once it was "deboned" so to speak, neither one of us found the somewhat cheese-funk taste very appealing either. The leftovers are in the fridge and likely won't be eaten.

I still have bone-in cubes in the freezer, and am willing to give goat one more try (though I may have to wait a week or so). Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can improve on the last experience? One thought I have is to cook the heck out of the cubes in a low heat stew or curry. Does cooking for a longer period eventually break down the chewy tendons? Also, I noticed a membrane on the outside of the goat that kind of looked like silver skin on chicken. Is this something that should be cut off? I was tenative in trimming the meat because I didn't recognize a lot of the "extra" stuff around the meat. It didn't look like fat, and wasn't easy to separate from the meat. I'm not quite sure what it was.

Any tips, or thoughts on why this didn't work would be appreciated! With so many goat lovers out there, I've got to be missing something.

Thanks

[Sam Fujisaka]

Again, I prefer long, slow braising in a fairly spicy sauce.

[paulj]

When I braise meat, I don't pay a lot of attention to time. Instead I taste every now and then, judging it by the tenderness. The other thing I watch for is the liquid level.

paulj

[rcallner]

That's sad, E2E...but thanks for the feedback. I hope the leftovers make it to a worthy dog or cat.

Goat IS tough - needs long long long cooking, and certainly has silverskin, as this animal is the tougher relative of the tender lamb.

[rcallner]

Someone on this post should just say it - Goat Is Great.

[roasted138]

Baby Goat Ragu.
One of the recent issues of Food & Wine featured a 'baby goat ragu' which sounded like a great introduction to goat. If interested, I could scan it at my house and post it here. It's in the issue featuring the 10 best new chefs of 2007.

[Pia]

Goat is much more gamy than lamb, so be prepared (but then, maybe I have only eaten old goat).

I like to make keema, a homey Indian dish with ground goat meat. My husband calls this "goat and stuff" (or "turkey and stuff," or "lamb and stuff" -- you can use any type of meat for a different taste) because it is basically ground meat with small chunks of potatoes and whatever else happens to be in the fridge. Bell peppers, green beans, peas, zucchini, diced carrots, tomatoes are all good. Raisins can be a good addition too. First make a paste of ginger and garlic, and fry that in a little oil with diced onions. Then cook up your veggies, adding some garam masala and chili powder, S&P, and -- I learned this from my mom -- a squeeze of ketchup. Finally, add the meat, season again, and let everything cook together for a few minutes. My non-traditional way of serving (not that this recipe is all that traditional, with its ketchup and zucchini) is to mix it into couscous.

[JungMann]

Goat curry is really spectacular. The added earthiness of the meat really does go great with Jamaican or Indian seasonings.

Also Filipino goat stew (kalderetang kambing) is perfectly delicious if you have a few hours (or a pressure cooker).

[rcallner]

Goat tastes like lamb, only more so. It takes very well to being curried and wrapped in a roti, ala Antigua.

[paulj]

There's a large collection of goat recipes on this web page of a goat farmer:

http://www.jackmauldin.com/goat_recip...

[Sam Fujisaka]

Goat--one of my favorite meats. Why not start wirh a crockpot/slowcooker/ stove top braise with your favorite sauce? The meat speaks for itself.

[polyhymnia]

just remembered there was a nytimes article this past year (maybe 4-6 months ago) about cabrito and how to do fantastic goat that sounds alot like bigjim's suggestion. You could try starting there. I'm having trouble finding the exact link, anyone else remember this article?

[polyhymnia]

Okay, unfortunately you need to have timeselect to view the article (or try the free preview). The article is called The Way We Eat: The Year of the Goat

[bbc]

Goat tacos. Mmmm - I found it milder and a bit tougher than lamb, but it was in a taco. Sorry no recipe but I'd assume subsituting pork or beef out of something would be fine.

[bigjimbray]

I took a whole dressed goat in one piece and wrapped in foil, then wrapped a gunney
sack around that then took a wire and tied it up to where it would`nt come apart,
then we put it into a pit with hot coles and put a sheet of tin over the hole and let
go over night. the next day we unwrapped that. and the meat would fall off the bones.
that was some of the best bar-b-que I have ever had, with chili beans , potato salad,
green salad, plenty to drink and a peach cobbler with ice cream for dessert. that sure
brings back good memories.

[ginqueen]

I agree that it tastes like a cross between lamb and goat's cheese--it has got that same tang that the cheese does. The only goat I've had has been sort of stringy, like shaved steak or something, in tacos and enchiladas at the local Mexican place, but pretty tasty.
I don't know if this recipe actually works, but I was just leafing through the Molto Mario cookbook and came across this recipe (which was luckily online): http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recip...

It at least looks like the accompanying flavors of lemon, almond, and mint with the grilled goat would be very very good.

[dhedges53]

Just as there is a huge difference between lamb and mutton, there is a huge difference between a kid (young goat) and a grown goat. I'd recommend that you ask your butcher what he has . I've eaten Cabrito (made with young goat) numerous times in Mexico, and it is wonderful.

[itryalot]

Definitely the young goat!

[cheftori]

The best tamales I ever had were goat stewed in red chili. I think maybe the fact that the family was in the process of making the tamales and the goat skin was freshly stretched out in the yard to dry in the little Mexico border town may have added to the experience. ;)

I love grilled goat and Barbacoa de Cabrito!

Because goat is so popular in Central and South America I would look around for recipes from those countries. Although Goat Korma sounds rockin.

[paulj]

In many Middle Eastern and Indian markets, the least expensive cut of goat is cubes cut on a bandsaw from a frozen carcass. These work well in a slow cooked stew, where the flavor from the bone is valued as much as the meat itself. A simple dish just uses onions and Rogan Josh curry paste (e.g. Pataks brand).

A classic Ecuadorian dish is Seco de chivo - 'dry stew of kid'. Peru has a similar dish. I make something along that line using a Mexican salsa verde, with the addition of some piloncillo (brown sugar), and spices like cinnamon and cloves.

paulj

[Louise]

I'm reminded of a scene from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where the main character describes how her Mom tries to force her to eat the eyeballs from the roast lamb "because it makes you smarter".

[itryalot]

We traditionally eat goat at easter or at Christmas. They key is how it is cut; my parents cut their own pieces. We all vie for the long rib bones with the tender meat along the whole length of the rib. Not to gross you out, by my grandparents used to clean with white vinegar and half the goat head; then roast the same way. The cheeks and brains are delish and tender if done right. I remember my grandmother used to spend hours cleaning it and removing veins, blood, etc. My husband nearly passed out when he saw over 20 of us fighting over the brains and cheeks with those half heads came out on a platter! It is funny.

Oven roasted low temp for quite a while (onion, s and p) covered. When almost done, pour in a generous portion of good white wine, raise the temp so juices reduce and it gets a nice carmelization.

Enjoy!
P.S. Had the stew before; great in the winter.

[mlgb]

Goats head soup is another Jamaican recipe, but I have not tried that.

I remember seeing the sheep heads roasting on spits in the tavernas in Greece.

[mlgb]

If you like mutton, you'll like goat. It's gamy but tastes different than lamb. Curried goat! Favorite Jamaican recipe.

[auburnselkie]

I love goat - especially in birria de chivo! Maybe it's a little heavy for summertime, but it's such a delicious, meaty stew...mmm! There's a little restaurant in Reno that serves it and I stop by every time I pass through town. Sadly, I don't have a recipe for it that I've tried myself - although your post inspires me to look for one and try it out. Does anyone else have one?

[Candy]

Yes very similar to lamb. One of our favorites is Barbacoa de Cabrito, slow roasted and smoked kid. Mild and lovely.

[polyhymnia]

also, if you've ever had goat cheese, like a chevre, the wang you get in the cheese is similar to the flavor of goat meat. There's some tasty south american stewed goat recipes that you might like. Can't think of any names right now, but that's an area to explore.

[novelgazer]

Perfect way to describe the flavor. When I lived in Houston I used to love a roasted goat dish at Hugo's that was served with habanero sauce that played great against that gamy/musky thing.

[Fussy Foodie]

That sounds delicious! Do you have a recipe or link to a recipe that is good?

[Eat_Nopal]

Try this: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recip...

[equinoise]

eat_nopal-

Its too bad minipax just shut down our seattle argument..that was fun! No hard feelings here. So, do you (or anyone else) have a birria recipe?...I have one that looks tasty from Kennedy's book, but it calls for veal and lamb. Could i just substitute for goat? I got some great looking free-range bone-in stew goat from a farmer's market in SEATTLE and I'd like to give birria a shot.

[jenn]

No birria recipe but I can tell you leg o' goat works splendidly as a substitute for lamb in the classic french 7 hour leg o' lamb. Better than lamb, actually because american lamb is too mild to hold up to that much cooking.Anyrate, based on my substitution, I'd go ahead and try subbing the goat for the lamb [don't get why veal is in it, thats decidedly NOT the way the taco lady at the hollywood farmer's market makes her birria........]

I know the goat dealer to which you refer. I took a goat cheese making class from a dairy goat farmer near where the goat meat farmer lives. Nice goat meat.

[Eat_Nopal]

Sorry I didn't see this earlier... no hard feelings. Yup I think Goat generally cooks in about the same time as lamb.

[chef chicklet]

Do you use the same rule of thumb for temperature? Would you serve it med rare?

[Fussy Foodie]

Very much like lamb. If you're into Indian food, follow a lamb curry recipe and use the goat instead. My Dad makes it all the time with goat chops.

[marthadumptruck]

Goat korma is one of my favorite foods!

[ExercisetoEat]

Martha - does this recipe sound similar to the Goat korma that you love? I'm not sure where I could find sour mango powder, but maybe a local Asian market would have it?
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.fo...

[marthadumptruck]

Hmmm, I don't deep fry the shallots, but I can see the appeal ;) I don't use as much oil as is called for (cooking the meat & spices in 2-3 cups of oil). That's just really excessive to me.

I'd add a little bit of cinnamon, fennel & turmeric. If you can't get your hands on the sour mango powder, use a super-duper tangy yogurt.

Hope this helps!

[luckyfatima]

hmmm. that google groups recipe looks spot on *except* for the aamchur. Mango powder shouldn't be in a qormah. Qorma isn't supposed to be sour. I would just leave it out. Traditional qorma is made with a fresh new yoghurt that is sweet and has no sourness (after a few days yoghurt developes it's sourness).

Also, carmelized onions are essential for an authentic qormah. It is just as important as the fresh yoghurt. You don't have to deep fry them. You can shallow fry them. Start with a finely sliced onion in about 3 tbs oil on high heat for a few minutes, then turn down the heat and allow to caramelize until nicely golden brown (it takes about 25 minutes). 3tbs will look like not enough oil at first, but as the onions lose their moisture, they will all fit in the oil.You then take them out of the oil with a slotted spoon and set them on a paper towel to remove the excess oil. A real authentic my-fat-old-auntie-made-it qormah actually has a few inches of oil floating on top of the gravy. But I don't cook like that and I usually pour off most of the excess oil at the end of the dish.

A good cheater's qormah recipe is to be found at your South Asian grocer on the back of a box of ready made spice mix called Shan Masala Qorma mix-it is just a packet of all of the spices used in qormah already mixed up for you. I would use three heaping tbs of it, not the whole packet as suggested on the box (that would be wayyy too much). The end result is great and would be the perfect thing for a goat recipe. In addition to that, I would suggest a few drops of "kewra jal" or screw pine essence water to add to the qormah at the end of cooking. You can use your qormah as the meat and gravy part of a biriani as well. You would just layer that the basmati rice when the qormah is finished cooking. It becomes "qormah biriani.

[JungMann]

I thought mango powder doesn't impart a flavor. I thought it was just used to tenderize meat.

[luckyfatima]

that would be papaya powder or raw green papaya as a tenderizer. mango powder is specifically used to impart sourness. It is a crucial ingredient in dishes that are supposed to be sour.

[Fussy Foodie]

If you have an Indian Grocery store around you they will have it. It's called amchoor or amchur.