“What are we going to do with this goat?” Elise asked. Her acupuncturist Steve had given her an entire front shoulder of a goat from a local farm. Why not goat curry? It was one of my favorite Jamaican foods growing up in New Jersey, along with those awesome meat patties the street hawkers would sell on corners in New York City. Rich, filling and spicy, goat curry (often made with beef back then, when goat was a little harder to find in NYC) was just as good on a hot day as a cold one. Turns out this is one of the great dishes of Jamaica, along with jerk chicken. No matter which meat you use, the long-simmered stew makes great use of tough cuts of meat, or those with bones in them. Definitely use goat if you can find it – look in ethnic markets, especially a halal market if your town has one – but the dish works fine with lamb, too. Substitute beef if you’d rather. You need to know that Jamaican curry powder is different from Indian curries, although they tend to have most of the same ingredients: turmeric, coriander, cumin, mustard, cayenne and the like. Jamaican curry is heavier on the allspice, so if you cannot find the real stuff, mix in some allspice with regular curry powder. Is this stew spicy? You bet, but it’s not so fiery as you might think. We used one habanero chile, and I could barely detect the heat – although Elise could taste it. If you are into hot food, you could use as many as 4-5 habaneros here. Time is your friend with goat curry. While it’s good freshly made, the stew deepens over time and is actually better several days afterward. It will last for a week or so in the fridge, so make a big batch and eat it for your lunches during the week. Put the meat (and bones, if using) back into the pot, along with any juices left in the bowl. Mix well. Bring to a simmer and let it cook until the meat is falling-apart tender, which will take at least 2 hours. Longer if you have a mature goat. The stew is better the day after, or even several days after, the day you make it. Serve with Jamaican rice and peas, a coconut rice with kidney beans.
