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Kittitian goat water
Peppery goat stew
Goat water: the peppery national stew of St Kitts, Nevis and Montserrat
Goat water is what St Kitts, Nevis and Montserrat serve at weddings, village fêtes and every Saturday cookshop: a thick, dark, peppery goat stew-soup flavoured with cloves, thyme, tomato and a heap of hot pepper, thickened with flour and studded with breadfruit, green papaya or dumplings. On Montserrat it is the national dish and comes with crusty bread rolls. The common mistake is thinning it out; despite the name, true goat water should coat a spoon. Ask your butcher to chop bone-in goat into small pieces. Chef's tip: brown a spoonful of flour in the pot before adding the liquid; it gives the gravy its deep colour and nutty taste.
- Total time
- 180 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
- 3 ⅓ lb bone-in goatcut into 4 cm pieces
- 1 limehalved
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 onionschopped
- 5 cloves garliccrushed
- 3 tbsp tomato purée
- 14 oz chopped tomatoes
- 5 sprigs thyme
- 4 chives or spring onionschopped
- 2 scotch bonnet peppers1 whole, 1 finely chopped
- 2 litres water
- 14 oz breadfruit or green papayapeeled, in chunks
- 2 ⅛ oz plain flourfor thickening
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
For the dumplings
- 5 ½ oz plain flour
- ½ cup cold water
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Wash 3 ⅓ lb bone-in goat with the cut 1 lime and rinse. Pat dry and season with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper.
Step 2: Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a large heavy pot over a medium-high heat and brown the goat in batches for 8 minutes until well coloured.
8 minStep 3: Add 2 onions and 5 cloves garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in 3 tbsp tomato purée and ⅝ oz plain flour and fry for 2 minutes until the flour browns.
7 minStep 4: Add 14 oz chopped tomatoes, 6 whole cloves, 5 sprigs thyme, 4 chives or spring onions, 2 scotch bonnet peppers and 2 litres water. Bring to the boil, skim, cover and simmer gently for 1 hour 45 minutes, until the goat is tender and coming off the bone.
105 minStep 5: Mix 5 ½ oz plain flour with ½ cup cold water and a pinch of salt into a firm dough and roll into small dumplings. Add to the pot with 14 oz breadfruit or green papaya and simmer for 20 minutes.
20 minStep 6: Whisk the rest of 1 ½ oz plain flour with a ladle of the hot liquid until smooth, stir it into the pot and simmer for 10 minutes, until thick and glossy. Season with the rest of 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper, lift out the whole pepper, and serve with bread rolls.
10 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbs
- 22 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kittitian goat water take?
- About 180 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 150 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of lime?
- Lemon, same amount.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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