Goat Stew with White Wine

Ah Stew! the wonderful, flavorful gravy in which you can dip a crusty bread and enjoy the deliciousness. A ladle of stew looks so appealing right? Maybe because of the combination of meat and vegetables that have been simmered for hours in a delicious aromatic liquid. The hearty, chunky pieces of meat with a thick almost gravy like liquid just reminds me of a cold winter evening. I just love to eat those meals where the food is still hot even when everyone has finished eating and after Khichuri, stew is my next favorite. Winter is anyways the best time to enjoy stew because you can just curl up in front of the fireplace while the stew is slowly getting cooked. Since stew has both meat and vegetables, it also curtails the need to prepare sides or a main course. 

Debarshi took the inspiration of this recipe from an authentic Italian lamb stew. If you have never cooked with wine before, this recipe is a must try! If you drink wine, then this should be easy enough for you. Choose a wine you would drink, period! Think like this, you will only be using a cup or two to cook the dish, rest you will be drinking. So the wine you choose should be good enough for a drink. The best way to use the leftover wine is to serve it with the stew. As a rule of thumb, remember, a good wine will strengthen and improve the flavor and aroma of the food. A bad quality wine will take over the flavor thus spoiling the entire dish. 

Debarshi also said that he would have never thought that shoulder pieces could bring such a delicious flavor in the stew. I did some research on this, and shoulder is actually one of the most sought after cuts for making stew. They can be bone-in or boneless or have soft bone pieces. After a long slow cook these bones turn juicy and tender and hence more flavorful.

Try this recipe and serve it with a crusty bread. I am sure you will also fall in love with the mouthwatering flavor and ease of preparation.

Ingredients:

• Goat meat – 2 ½ pounds, big size, meaty parts of goat shoulder
• Kosher Salt – about 2 cups
• White Oil (Canola or Vegetable) – 1 cup
• Cinnamon – 1 inch
• Dry Red Chili – 3-4
• Bay Leaf – 1
• Star Anise – 2
• Mace – 1 blade 
• Black Cardamom – 1
• Green Cardamoms – 2
• Cloves – 3-4 
• Whole Black Peppercorns – 5-6
• Shallots – 2-3, finely chopped
• Tomato – ½, big
• Ginger – 1 inch
• Garlic – 4-5 cloves
• Coriander Powder – ½ teaspoon
• Cumin Powder – ½ teaspoon
• Smoked Paprika – ½ teaspoon
• Turmeric – ½ teaspoon
• Nutmeg – ¼ teaspoon, freshly grated
• Gelatin – 7 grams
• Chicken Stock – about 2-3 cups
• Molasses – 1 tablespoon (Pomegranate or regular)
• Dry White Wine – 2 cups
• Fresh Thyme – 5-6 sprigs, washed
• Heavy Whipped Cream – ½ - 1 cup
• Cilantro – a handful, washed and chopped
• Sweet potatoes – 1, cut into big cubes

Directions:

• Start by doing an overnight dry brine (explained below). Use kosher salt.
• Next day, when you are ready to cook, pat dry each and every piece.
• Take a Dutch oven and heat it over low medium heat.
• Add the Oil (it should be enough to shallow fry all the meat). Divide the meat in two parts. Start by adding the meat in the Dutch oven and frying on all sides. Do not fry in more than 2 batches because it would start burning the oil. Fry till the meat turns brown, set aside.
• Now temper the oil by adding the whole spices in the Dutch oven (Cinnamon, Bay Leaf, Star Anise, Mace, Black and Green Cardamoms, Dry Red Chili, Cloves and Black Peppercorns). 
• Turn up the heat to medium. Add the shallots, let them caramelize (explained below).
• Make a paste with the Tomato, Ginger and Garlic. Add 2 tablespoons of this paste in the Dutch oven with the spices (Coriander Powder, Cumin Powder, Smoked Paprika, Turmeric powder and grated Nutmeg). Add the Sweet Potato as well.
• Fry till the raw smell of spices is gone.
• While this is cooking, take a bowl and dip the Gelatin in the Chicken Stock (for about 5-7 minutes).
• Once the oil separates from the paste, add 1 tablespoon of Molasses in the Dutch oven.
• Next add the Goat meat. Stir to coat the pieces with the paste, shallots and molasses, stir for a few more minutes.
• Add the Wine, bring to a boil.
• Add the Chicken Stock, stir. You can judge the level of the stock by the level of the meat. You should be able to see the meat pieces just above the level of liquid (meaning they should not be dipped completely under the stock).
• Add the fresh Thyme on top.
• Preheat the oven to 300 F.
• Cover with the lid and let it cook for 3 hours.
• Once the baking is over, remove the Thyme leaves and the whole spices. (Tip: This stew tastes better the next day because the meat pieces get time to absorb the moisture which they lose while cooking).
• Before serving add Heavy Whipped Cream (depending on the consistency you want).
• Garnish with Cilantro and serve with a crusty bread.

What is Dry Brine?

Dry Brine or pre-salting means that you rub the salt, seasonings, and/or sugar directly onto the meat and skin. The meat is then transferred in the refrigerator (to rest) for a period of time before cooking. During the process of dry brining, the salt draws out the juices through osmosis. It helps inject flavor and moisture inside the thick cuts of meat. 

How to caramelize shallots?

You need to cook the shallots over medium heat until they begin to brown evenly, then turn the heat down to low and continue to cook until very soft, about 10 minutes. 

Sweet potatoes in stew?

We Bengalis love adding potatoes in all our meat dishes. It not only adds to the flavor but also cuts the extra heat of the spices. The sweet potatoes will almost dissolve in the stew after getting cooked making the liquid thicker and richer.

Love goat meat? Try these dishes as well:

• Goat Dhansak (Mutton with Red Lentils)
• Mughlai Mutton Stew
• Mutton Rezala (Bengali recipe: Tender Meat in Cashew Poppy Seed sauce)
• Mutton Gravy
• Kosha Mangsho (Bengali dish: Slow cooked aromatic Mutton gravy)
• Mangshor Jhol (Bengali Style Mutton Curry)
• Achari Mutton
• Awadhi Mutton Biryani
• Papa’s Kosha Mangsho (Grandpa’s Special Goat Curry)
• Keema Matar (Minced Goat meat/ Beef with dried Peas)
• Hariyali Ghosht - Herbed Goat Curry
• Kashmiri Rogan Josh (Slow cooked mutton in red curry)