Goat Chilli
Goat Chilli, with chunks of tender meat and black beans in a rich, spicy sauce, makes a great change from the usual beef.
So easy to put together, you can simmer the chilli-spiked stew either on top of the stove or in the oven.
Thick and delicious, you can serve the chilli with rice if you like.
But I love it in a soft taco with all the fixings: cheese, soured cream and a fresh tomato, onion and avocado salsa!
If you can’t find goat meat, then substitute lamb.
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GOAT MEAT
Here in the UK, goat meat is one of the most underrated meats.
Ask someone to name a goat dish and I bet the only one they’ll come up with is goat curry/curry goat.
Bafflingly, while goats milk and goats cheese are widely consumed, outside of some ethnic minority communities it seems that few people in Britain want to eat goat.
In this interesting article, Tim Hayward posits the idea that it’s a class issue: “the goat…. could be fed on waste and supply both milk and meat to a family. The goat was the livestock of the poor and the poor rarely wrote down recipes”.
If you’re concerned that goat meat is overly strong in taste, don’t be. I find it very similar to the good quality lamb I buy from Troutsdale Farm.
Goat meat’s relatively low level of saturated fat is often extolled as one of its virtues. Personally, I have no problem with saturated fat but if it’s a concern of yours then goat may be a good option.
Happily, the availability of goat, both on restaurant menus and to cook at home, is now growing thanks to small producers.
And you’re likely to find those producers at local farmers markets.
I bought the diced goat casserole meat you see in this post (as well as some goat kidneys) from the Beaudesert Park Farm stall at Stone Farmers Market.
Beaudesert Park is a traditional family farm in Cannock Chase. Here, as well as goats, they raise rare breed White Park Cattle.
I’d previously bought lovely rolled and stuffed breast of goat from them, so I knew the meat was going to be good.
GOAT CHILLI
Cooked low and slow, goat meat will become lovely and tender. Its full flavour also marries beautifully with a spicy chilli sauce.
Chilli is basically a meat stew or casserole. So, if you’ve made one of those before then you’ll be familiar with the simple method I’ve given in the detailed recipe at the end of the post.
Briefly, it goes like this.
- brown the cubes of goat in oil and set aside
- soften the aromatics: onion, garlic, chillies
- add the meat back in along with stock, tomatoes, tomato plus herbs and spices
- simmer on top of the stove or in the oven until the meat is tender and the sauce is wonderfully thick and rich
The time this takes will vary on individual circumstances, but plan on it taking between one and two hours.
To thicken the chilli, you can bubble a little longer with the lid off if you like. To thin, stir in a splash of water or stock.
I don’t always add beans to my chillies (sacrilege in some quarters, I know). But when I do, to eke out the meat, it tends to be black beans rather than the usual red kidney beans. I think their smaller size is less intrusive in the final dish.
Once the beans are warmed through in the sauce, all that’s left to do is stir in some fresh coriander leaf and a squeeze of lime.
SERVING GOAT CHILLI
I know most people in Britain wouldn’t dream of eating chilli without rice. But I virtually never do.
I’d much rather have it with bread or, as with my veggie Black Bean Chilli with Pepper & Corn, just have a big bowl of chilli on its owned, topped with soured cream, grated cheese and salsa.
But I decided to eat this Goat Chilli taco style.
I thought its intense flavour would work wonderfully well in small amounts wrapped in my easy tortilla-like Quick Flatbreads (no yeast).
And I was right!
Rolled up in the chewy bread with cooling soured cream, melting cheese and tangy lime and coriander flavoured salsa, the tender, flavourful goat in its spicy, hot sauce was even better than I’d hoped.
Whether you’re new to goat or are already a fan and want something beyond curry goat, I hope you’ll give Goat Chilli a try.
It does require longish cooking, but the hands-on time is minimal. I also found that leftovers the next day were brilliant so it’s worth making a big batch.
HAVE YOU MADE GOAT CHILLI?
LEAVE A COMMENT & DON’T FORGET TO RATE IT!
Goat Chilli
With chunks of tender goat and black beans in a rich, spicy sauce, Goat Chilli makes a great change from the usual beef.
Simmer on top of the stove or in the oven.
Try the chilli stuffed in a tortilla or other flatbread with cheese, soured cream and salsa.
Ingredients
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 500 g diced goat meat
- salt and black pepper
- 2 medium onions roughly chopped
- 6 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 fresh chillies finely chopped
- 2 rounded tsp ground cumin
- 2 level tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried sage
- 1-2 tsp mild chilli powder or flakes e.g. New Mexico or chipotle
- 1 medium bunch coriander chop stems finely, the leaves roughly
- 1 tbsp tomato puree
- 400 g tinned tomatoes
- 400 ml stock beef, chicken, vegetable or just water
- 1-2 tsp sugar optional
- 1 tin black beans, rinsed and drained drained weight approx 240g
- 0.5 lime juice only
Instructions
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The chilli can be cooked on top of the stove or in the oven: if using the oven, preheat it to 170 C / 150 C Fan / Gas 3.
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Put 1 tbsp of the oil in a large casserole dish or saucepan and put over medium high heat.
Toss the diced goat with a little salt and pepper.
Quickly brown the goat meat in the hot oil: do this in batches if necessary and transfer to a plate when done. Add more oil if needed.
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Turn down the heat to medium and add the onion, garlic and chilli. Cook, stirring often until starting to soften and brown (10-12 min).
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Stir in all the spices and dried herbs plus the coriander stems (reserve the leaves for later).
Add the tomato puree and tin of tomatoes. Add the stock or water (swish it around the empty tomato tin first to get all the tomato out).
Season lightly with salt and pepper plus 1 tsp sugar if using.
Return the browned goat meat to the pot, including any juices that have collected on the plate.
Give everything a good stir then put on a lid and bring to a boil.
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If cooking on top of the stove: turn down the heat so that the chilli simmers gently.
If using the oven: put the casserole in the preheated oven.
Cook until the meat is very tender (1 - 2 hrs), stirring now and then to make sure the chilli isn't sticking to the bottom of the pot.
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Taste the chilli and add more seasoning or sugar if needed.
If you want to thicken the chilli, take off the lid and allow to bubble and reduce for a few minutes. To thin it, add a splash of stock or water.
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Stir in the black beans and cook gently for a few minutes to warm them through.
Before serving, stir in the reserved coriander leaf and squeeze in the lime juice.
Serving suggestion: fill tortilla or other flatbread with goat chilli, grated cheese, soured cream mixed with spring onion and/or chives, and a salsa of chopped tomato, onion, coriander leaf and avocado seasoned with lime juice and chilli. Roll up and eat.
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