Jamaican Curry Goat Recipe
My Jamaican curry goat recipe is an incredibly delicious slow-cooked stew full of fork-tender goat meat and spicy Jamaican flavor, all smothered in a creamy gravy! An absolutely must-make Jamaican recipe that takes out-of-the-ordinary into spicy deliciousness! Incredibly easy with minimal prep makes it even better.
We enjoy goat meat quite regularly in my beloved Cameroon. So when I tried curry goat in a Jamaican restaurant, it was like going home. Adding this recipe to my repertoire was only natural.
Ask anyone who loves Jamaican food to choose their favorite recipe, and curry goat will appear on the list. Although it has become increasingly popular in the States due to the influx of different cultures, it’s not celebrated nearly as it should be. While food choice is a personal matter, my personal opinion is that having an open mind leads to more joy.
Did you know that goat is the most consumed meat throughout the world? Plus, because goats and sheep are more likely to be free-range and pasture-fed, they’re better for us than commercially raised beef and chicken.
However, I love the flavor when properly cooked. I like it thick and creamy but sometimes adjust flavors and textures for the family. It would be a crime to miss out on trying this curry at least once in your life.
Jamaican Curry, the Perfect Spice Mix for Goat
The aromatic blend of garlic, ginger, thyme, onion, and hot pepper added to traditional curry spices takes center stage in Jamaican curry powder. Something about those spices marries well with the unique flavor of goat. For even more amazing results, make your own. You can use less of the homemade version because it doesn’t contain fillers, and fresh spices pack a bigger flavor punch.
How to Make Jamaican Curry Goat
- Season the meat with salt and pepper, and set aside.
- Sear: Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sear the goat meat, stirring frequently, scraping browned bits off the bottom of the pot. (Photo 1)
- Spice: Add the curry powder and stir for 1-2 minutes to bloom the flavors. Add the garlic, ginger, white pepper, onions, thyme, tomato paste, scallions (green onions), and scotch bonnet pepper and stir for another minute. (Photos 2-3)
- Simmer: Pour in just enough water to cover the meat, bring it to a boil, and simmer until tender. (It takes about 2 hours, depending on the cut and altitude.) Stir occasionally and add more water as needed. (Photo 4)
- Add the potatoes and bouillon powder about 20 minutes before removing the pot from the heat. Continue cooking until the potatoes are tender (for thicker stew, cook them until they start falling apart. (Photo 5)
- Serve: Adjust the stew’s thickness with water or stock. Remove from the heat and enjoy. (Photo 6)
Recipe Tips
- Goat meat is available at most international, halal, and Latin American markets. It’s comparable to beef shanks or briskets, so feel free to swap out beef if you can’t find it.
- Searing is optional but adds flavor. Sometimes, I skip that, assemble everything in a crockpot, and let it take care of itself when I’m short on time.
Batch Cooking and Storage
Making a double batch of stew and freezing it in serving or meal-size portions is a fantastic time-saver. It also helps me stay on a healthy diet without stressing.
Goat stew lasts 3-4 days in the fridge or 3-4 months in the freezer.
What to Serve With Jamaican Curry Goat
Rice and peas or beans and fried plantains are my favorite sides. You’ll be so happy you tried it. Enjoy!
More Mind-Blowing Goat Recipes to Try
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was originally published in April 2017 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video
Jamaican Curry Goat
Ingredients
- 3-3½ pounds (1.5-2k) goat meat (cut into chunks)
- ¼ cup (60ml) cooking oil
- 4-5 tablespoons (30-40g) Jamaican curry powder
- 2 teaspoons (10g) minced garlic
- 1-2 teaspoons (5-10g) minced ginger
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 teaspoon (2-3g) white pepper
- 1-2 teaspoons (1-2g) fresh thyme
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 1 tablespoon (15g) tomato paste
- water to cover
- 2-3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper (or any hot pepper; adjust to suit tastes)
- 1 tablespoon (10g) bouillon powder (optional)
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Season the goat meat with salt and pepper, and set aside.
- In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat until hot, then add the meat, stirring frequently and scraping browned bits off the bottom.
- When the meat has browned, add the curry powder and stir for 1-2 minutes.
- Then add the garlic, ginger, onion, white pepper, thyme, scallions (green onions), tomato paste, and scotch bonnet pepper, and stir for another minute.
- Pour in just enough water (or broth) to cover the meat, bring to a boil, and simmer until tender. The time will depend on the meat, altitude, and preference, but mine takes 2-3 hours. Stir occasionally and add more liquid as needed.
- Add the potatoes and bouillon powder 15-20 minutes before the stew is done. Continue cooking it until the potatoes are tender. For a thicker stew, cook the potatoes until they start falling apart. You can thin it with water or stock if it gets too thick.
Tips & Notes:
- Feel free to use a slow cooker or a pressure cooker for this recipe. You may want to reduce the water or broth for a thicker stew
- Yuca, true yams, and sweet potatoes make tasty substitutes for potatoes
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe
Hi! I’m so happy to have found this recipe and blog. I had goat the first time in Curacao about 10 years ago. Now I order it whenever I find it on a menu ( not too often in Rhode Island, unfortunately). I found a Latin market that will sometimes have goat meat frozen and am so happy I can cook it at home now. I followed your recipe but used chicken stock instead of water/bullion and sweet potato salad instead of white. DELICIOUS!! Oh- and I served it over black rice with pink beans, spiced up with garlic and epazote. Thank you for this!
Hi Julie! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. So happy to hear this recipe worked out well for you.
Hi this looks so delicious I can’t wait to make it! Just wondering how much of the homemade Jamaican curry powder to use? As you said to cut down on it, I’ve been saving so many of your recipes for well over an hour now so glad I stumbled across your page! Thanks!
Hi Lauren! So glad you are here. Use about 1/2 tablespoon less. It all depends on your tastebuds. So adjust to taste.
This sounds like a spicy version of Mbuzi Tumbukiza. Usually prepared on sunday, start by cutting up goat meat, throw it into a clay pot, layer on roughly cut onions, whole garlic, rough cut tomatoes, sprinkle salt on top, add a few pilipilis and then the Potatoes in large chunks. Cover with a tight lid or if you do not have a lid use a pan fitting the top and place a stone on top to press down…..place over a charcoal jiko(stove?). after roughly 2 hrs turn with a wooden spatula and serve.
You can add dhania to flavor at the end
Thanks for taking the time to share this with us.
Imma,
Cant wait to try your recipe, I was in Jamaica March/April and had Curry Goat delicious, and I loved the Escovitch Fish. Cant wait to go back.
This will certainly take you back to Jamaica . Do tell how it works for you. Thanks!
Enjoyed it tremendously!
AWESOME!!! Thanks for the feedback!
Yes What type of Bouillon powder should I use? I can hardly wait to try this recipe it looks so good.
I will let you know how it turns out.
Thanks
Great Website.
Thanks Daniel . I used chicken bouillon. Beef works as well.
Yum – I just got home from my mum’s little farmlet with two big juicy goat legs (I grew up in a very multicultural area of outback Australia so love eating goat). I normally go Greek style with my goat but this sounds too delicious not to try. I am going to make a giant batch of your curry for our State of Origin footy finals and will serve it from a cast iron camp oven that we will have simmering over a fire in a 44 gallon drum outside the shed. Just the thing for a cold winter night. The boys will think I am the goddess of footy food again 🙂 thank you. Bon
A farmlet? Serving this curry goat in a 44 gallon drum- WOW!!! So Jealous!! You are a GODDESS Bonita! It is going to be so much fun. Happy Cooking.
Hi I am wondering when you put the thyme in ? Am making now I keep re reading and not seeing it in the method . Thanks
It’s on line 4 together with garlic and onions
First time I ever cooked curry goat and it was delicious. The recipe was easy to follow and the step by step pictures really helped
You too! Thanks!
When do u add the fresh thyme- at the end to garnish or do u cook with it?
After browning the goat with onions and rest of the ingredients
Not sure if my original comment posted, but I felt compelled to let you know how amazing this recipe was. I followed the recipe exactly (instead of the scotch pepper I used a habanero) and it turned out better than I could have imagined. Everyone in the family gave rave reviews! I made this with your Caribbean rice recipe. Everything was a slam dunk! I just signed up for email alerts. You’ve got a fan for life 😉
WOO HOO! Super Excited! so glad you are here Rachael. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
Would coaconut milk enhance the flavor of the sauce?
It sure does.
How much coconut milk would you recommend?
About 1/2 cup. Although it can be adjusted with more to suit individual taste buds
Delicious! Couldn’t find my dear Jamaican friend’s recipe but yours sounded similar so tried it. Perfect! Only thing I added were 3 carrots, chopped up. Thank you, thank you. I will be back for more of your recipes.
AWESOME! Glad mine worked out just fine. Do let me know which ones you try. Thank you so much for taking the time to provide feedback. Really appreciate it.
Made this with the jamaican curry spice. Everyone loved it! I did add a little bit of sugar though because I was using wild/ feral goat meat and the meat is very…..well wild smelling haha. So for people using wild goat you might need to add sugar to cover up the heaviness of the meat if that makes sense. I also used a pressure cooker & it turned out wonderful!! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Hi Monica! I just learned something new today. Never new you could use sugar to cover the gamey taste. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
Hey to remove gamey taste from goat…..NOsugar needed.just wash the meat with Lime Juice.Let it soak 1/2 hour then rinse the meat.Season and cook. Tender and delicious Tee
Thanks for the tip Tee!!!
Let is soak in lime juice or let it soak in water .
Lime mixed with water but any other acid such as vinegar should do. Jamaicans love to wash this meat in some kind of acid such as vinegar or lime. Dateable acids like to the ones above only please,
You are definitely going to love this ! Can’t seem to get enough of it!
When simmering do you cover pot or leave open
I cover the pot.
Most people in Bangladeshi consume goat over any other red meat. I can’t wait to try out a Jamaican curry goat!
can you substitute the goat for beef?
Yes, you sure can. Beef Shank would do be great!
I had no idea that goat was the most consumed meat in the world. We eat so little of it in the U.S. This looks delicious. I’ll have to get adventurous and go find some goat!
Yes it is Steve! Saw it online and even on the Oprah show so it must be correct – right? And it is such a shame that we do not eat as much! And it is darn tasty!
Hi, I found your blog a few days ago looking for malva pudding and I have since been following you on flipboard. This is a recipe I would really love to try with goat meat as I had it in Jamaica and loved it. Since butchers don’t sell goat in my country and I have to source it directly from a farmer, do I ask for adult goat meat or kid? And what part of the goat do I ask for? Thanks.
Hi Rosanne! Yay! Am so happy you joined the party!!!
Now to answers your questions. Go with the Adult goat, that is the only one I use and that is what you probably had in Jamaica. Best cut of meat to use are shoulder, back or the front legs. However, the hind legs are meatier which are good but it tends to stick to your teeth.Happy Cooking!!!
Thanks 😉
Yum! You made curry goat? I love to hate you Imma. Seriously this looks SO darn good, I cannot remember the last time I ate curry goat because I find myself eating more of a vegan diet as of lately. Thank you for showcasing one of the many beautiful cuisines from my culture.
Aww thanks Charlene! How can you last that long? I always double up when I make it. It disappears quickly it my household.
Imma, I LOVE curry goat. I’m gonna make this. My issue is when ever I make a stew like this, the meat is always still tough, what’s your secret?
Hi Rob! Goat meat is best cooked Low and slow. At least 2 1/2 hours . Works like Magic!!! Hight heat might lead to toughest. Hope this helps out.
Hi Imm
I made this recipe for our new years meal but unfortunately there was no heat in it as would be expected of a curry. I followed the recipe accurately. What do you think I did wrong.
Hi Eileen.Did the scotch bonnet shred to pieces ? If so double the pepper next time .
I love making curry goat, I tend to brown the meat then cook it all in a slow cooker over 8 hours. When I get in from work the smell is fantastic, great recipe!
Thank you, Jim! I love goat meat. 😉
I’m making a vegan version right now. Use gardein vegan beef tips.