African Goat Stew

When we butchered goats for the first time, we really had no idea what to do with the meat. After trying to simply substitute goat meat for beef in some recipes and not enjoying it, I decided to start looking for specific goat meat recipes, and this African Goat Stew quickly became one of my favorite goat stew recipes along with Goat Goulash! 

I admit I was skeptical when I saw cinnamon and cumin in the same recipe. After all, we normally see cinnamon blended with cloves and nutmeg in sweet recipes, and cumin is usually added to Mexican recipes and combines well with chili powder in spicy recipes. But with a freezer full of goat meat, I figured I had nothing to lose by trying it. And I’m so glad I did.

Tips for making African Goat Stew

You can use either vegetable broth or bone broth in this recipe. Broth made with goat bones is quite tasty and perfect for a goat meat recipe. Since we raise our own goats, we always ask for the bones when we take our animals to get processed. Making bone broth is quite simple, and the process is the same for whatever type of bones you have. (Here is more info on bone broth and another recipe for it.) If you don’t have goats bones to make broth, vegetable broth also works great. 

How do you cook goat meat?

It is important to understand that goat meat is the most lean meat available! That means it is easy to dry it out when cooking, if you don’t do it right. It’s so sad to hear people say that they had goat meat that was tough and stringy because it shouldn’t be that way. Do not skimp on the fat in this recipe, and do not turn the heat above medium.

I didn’t specify the type of cooking oil because there are a couple that work great. We usually use either lard from our pastured pigs or avocado oil. Do not use lard from the store unless it specifically says it is from pastured pigs. Also check the label to be sure it is not hydrogenated or even partially hydrogenated. Hydrogenated oils equal saturated fat, which are the worst kind of fat when it comes to heart health.

The most important thing is to let the meat simmer until it is tender, especially if you purchased the goat meat from the store. If you raised the goat yourself or purchased it directly from a farmer, and you know it is a year old or less, it should be tender after 30-45 minutes of simmering. If its age is unknown or it more than about 18 months old, it probably will need to be simmered longer. 

Other Goat Meat Recipes

• Indonesian Goat Satay Recipe
• Goat Goulash Recipe