Goat and Vegetable Stew
My husband recently bought a whole goat from a butcher so I have been on a mission to try and find new ways to cook goat. I did a goat curry which we all loved, but this time I wanted to do something Croatian inspired.
There wasn't a goat stew recipe that I could find that I wanted to cook, but I found a Croatian chicken duvec recipe that look good, which I decided I would use loosely as a guide. I combined that recipe with how my mother in law cooks meat in stews. now I've made up my very own recipe.
This is a comforting stew, it kind of reminds me of a Turkish dish I recently made with all the vegetables that go into this. The meat is soft, the vegetables perfectly cooked, the flavour is delicious. My family really enjoyed this.
I used a goat leg for this recipe, I just took the meat off the bone (you need at least 500g of meat, I think I had 800g), used the meat in this recipe and made a soup out of the bones. You can use my Chicken Soup recipe as a guide, just replace the chicken with goat bones. Here I also made a double batch of my homemade grated pasta for the soup.
There wasn't a goat stew recipe that I could find that I wanted to cook, but I found a Croatian chicken duvec recipe that look good, which I decided I would use loosely as a guide. I combined that recipe with how my mother in law cooks meat in stews. now I've made up my very own recipe.
This is a comforting stew, it kind of reminds me of a Turkish dish I recently made with all the vegetables that go into this. The meat is soft, the vegetables perfectly cooked, the flavour is delicious. My family really enjoyed this.
I used a goat leg for this recipe, I just took the meat off the bone (you need at least 500g of meat, I think I had 800g), used the meat in this recipe and made a soup out of the bones. You can use my Chicken Soup recipe as a guide, just replace the chicken with goat bones. Here I also made a double batch of my homemade grated pasta for the soup.
I do love cooking food from all over the world, but I especially love cooking Croatian, as it keeps that tradition alive in my household. My kids love it more and more, the older they get.
With the eggplants I like to pick small-medium sized ones, I find they have less seeds inside, they tend to not be bitter and I skip the whole salting step. If your eggplant have loads of black seeds , just slice them 1-2cm thick, sprinkle with cooking salt and leave for 10 minutes, once they release their juices, pat dry with paper towels, dice up and continue with the recipe.
You can also add other seasonal vegetables to this dish like green beans, carrots or peas etc. Swap the goat for beef or lamb, or add extra eggplant to make it a vegetarian dish.
If you were going to make a chicken version, I would use diced chicken thighs, and start the recipe with the onion step (as chicken cooks quicker), then add the chicken, sauté for 5 minutes, then continue with the recipe as written below, until you need to place it in the oven, with chicken you don't need to do 30 minutes with the lid on, just bake it 30 minutes uncovered.
With the eggplants I like to pick small-medium sized ones, I find they have less seeds inside, they tend to not be bitter and I skip the whole salting step. If your eggplant have loads of black seeds , just slice them 1-2cm thick, sprinkle with cooking salt and leave for 10 minutes, once they release their juices, pat dry with paper towels, dice up and continue with the recipe.
You can also add other seasonal vegetables to this dish like green beans, carrots or peas etc. Swap the goat for beef or lamb, or add extra eggplant to make it a vegetarian dish.
If you were going to make a chicken version, I would use diced chicken thighs, and start the recipe with the onion step (as chicken cooks quicker), then add the chicken, sauté for 5 minutes, then continue with the recipe as written below, until you need to place it in the oven, with chicken you don't need to do 30 minutes with the lid on, just bake it 30 minutes uncovered.
This is something we loved, hope you do to.
Recipe
1 goat leg, deboned, meat diced into bite sized pieces
2 medium onions, diced
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 medium potatoes, diced, bite sized
2 large red capsicums, diced
2 medium sized eggplants, diced into bite sized pieces
2 large zucchini. diced
200g cherry tomatoes, quartered
2 large, juicy tomatoes, heirloom or oxheart, diced
salt and pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 medium onions, diced
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 medium potatoes, diced, bite sized
2 large red capsicums, diced
2 medium sized eggplants, diced into bite sized pieces
2 large zucchini. diced
200g cherry tomatoes, quartered
2 large, juicy tomatoes, heirloom or oxheart, diced
salt and pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
In a large oven proof dish (with a lid) add the oil. Heat the oil over a low-medium heat, add onion and sauté until the onions soften and become translucent, this takes about 10 minutes.
Add the meat season with a little salt and pepper. Stir, cover, and cook for 45 minutes, over a low heat, stirring occasionally.
Preheat your oven to 200C/180C fan forced.
After 45 minutes remove cover, increase heat to high, cook out the liquid until you are left with a thick mixture. Decrease the heat to medium.
Start adding the vegetables one by one, start with potatoes, give it a stir, cook for two to three minutes, stirring regularly. I give the potatoes extra time, as once you add the tomatoes, potatoes can be tough, they cook differently, so just make sure you give them a little alone time in the pot to start the cooking process.
Then add the capsicums and garlic, stir through for a minute, add the eggplant, stir through, then the zucchini, stir through then add the cherry tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and add oregano, stir through. Sauté for 10 minutes.
Add the diced tomatoes, stir through, until they begin to release their juices. If by chance your tomatoes are not juicy, add 1/2-1 cup water now.
Cover your pot with a lid and place in your preheated oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and cook a further 30 minutes until your meat has cooked and your sauce has reduced.
Add the meat season with a little salt and pepper. Stir, cover, and cook for 45 minutes, over a low heat, stirring occasionally.
Preheat your oven to 200C/180C fan forced.
After 45 minutes remove cover, increase heat to high, cook out the liquid until you are left with a thick mixture. Decrease the heat to medium.
Start adding the vegetables one by one, start with potatoes, give it a stir, cook for two to three minutes, stirring regularly. I give the potatoes extra time, as once you add the tomatoes, potatoes can be tough, they cook differently, so just make sure you give them a little alone time in the pot to start the cooking process.
Then add the capsicums and garlic, stir through for a minute, add the eggplant, stir through, then the zucchini, stir through then add the cherry tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and add oregano, stir through. Sauté for 10 minutes.
Add the diced tomatoes, stir through, until they begin to release their juices. If by chance your tomatoes are not juicy, add 1/2-1 cup water now.
Cover your pot with a lid and place in your preheated oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and cook a further 30 minutes until your meat has cooked and your sauce has reduced.
Enjoy!