So I Cooked a Goat

Today was one of those days where something really terrible happened, but it was also a huge relief at the same time and by the end of the day I was spent and needed something fun to do to get my mind elsewhere, so, I cooked a goat.  Well, not a whole goat, just the leg.  And not even the whole leg either, just the part between the shank and the shoulder.  But I digress. 

I’m not going to bore you all yet once again about the transition of the Crescent City Farmer’s Market to Mid-City, however one of the vendors at the new incarnation of the market is Ryal’s Farms. Ryal’s has all things goat (cheese, milk, meat, etc) and I was excited about their arrival because in addition to some local restaurants putting Ryal’s goat meat on the menu, a member of the local bloggerati had been whetting my “appetite” for some roasted goat.

Thing is, I had never cooked goat before.  In fact, I might have eaten goat less than half-dozen times in my life and most of those were either in a Mexican or Lebanese joint.  Never mind the fact the goat has a lengthy history as a mealtime choice of civilized man and never mind the fact that goat is a protein staple in a significant part of the world. I just had never thought to cook goat at home.  After tonight, however, all of that is going to change.  This goat was good, it was easy and there is a lot you can do with goat.  Tonight, I went Mexican.  Kind of.

barbacoa de cabra
I rubbed my goat leg (sounds like the beginning of a dirty joke) in a little white wine vinegar and kosher salt and let it sit for about 6 hours or so in the fridge.  Meanwhile I fired up my Big Green Egg to 350.  I pulled out the food processor and made a paste for the goat leg made of:

• 2 small jalapeño peppers, seeded
• 10 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 2 teaspoons whole cloves
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
• 8 quickly steamed tomatillos (I used a bamboo steamer)
• 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
• 2 tablespoons safflower seed oil

I pulsed all that up into a fine-ish paste and then liberally greased a metal Dutch over, in went the leg and paste and I sprinkled another ½ cup of raw pumpkin seeds in the Dutch oven.

The goat leg after 2 hours on the BGE

I roasted the goat at 350 over an indirect heat in the Egg for a little over 2 hours.  It could have gone a little shorter, but I wanted to get a full medium cook to it as I was nervous about the potential gaminess – of which there was none.  About an hour into it I poured a Lazy Magnolia Indian Summer (coriander flavor) into the pan and basted the leg.  I basted it about 4 times total its second hour.

While that was going I made a fresh Salsa with

• A pound or so of ripe Louisiana tomatoes, chopped
• A green bell pepper, chopped
• About 4-5 green onions, minced
• A handful of cilantro, minced
• Two fresh uncooked tomatillos
• A clove garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin seed, ground
• Kosher salt to taste

Me, I like my Salsa Chunky.

I mix all of this up in a food processor, giving it a few good shots and then sauté in a pan until the tomatoes start to break up, then into a glass bowl and into an ice bath to stop the cooking.

I title this one: goat leg under shitty flourescent light

When the goat came off and was resting I took the roasting Dutch oven and deglazed the pan with some butter (not a Mexican preparation, but I am a coon ass and of French heritage.  When I see a pan in need of deglazing I grab butter.  Shoot me) and another Lazy Magnolia.  I let the butter do its magic and then added the beer, reserving a little of it to mix with 1tsp of Corn Starch which I added when the bubbling of the beer subsided.  For good measure I hit the goat gravy with an immersion blender to get all those good pan scrapings incorporated into the sauce.

The roasting pan, pre-deglazing.

I thinly sliced the leg into strips, topped with fresh salsa and a drizzle of goat gravy and rolled it up in a flour tortilla.  I really wish I’d had a little fresh feta to sprinkle on top but it was pretty damned good as its.

Et voila, barbaco de cabra with salsa fresca and a sauce a closet coon-ass couldn't avoid.

I opened an ‘06 Casa Nuestra Tinto St. Helena (Rofosco, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Zinfandel) and the spiciness and nutmeggy/jammy dark fruit going on in that wine was just IDEAL with that roasted goat.  Earthy, spicy flavors all around – not too tannic, just right.  But then, as I’ve written before, I expected nothing less from Casa Nuestra.

An adventure in goat. Just what the doctor ordered.

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