Cabrito Al Pastor

Chef Margot shares her Goat Al Pastor, perfect for a taco party!

Ingredients
1 small goat, 6-way cut, skinned, bone-in
2 fresh Maui Gold variety pineapples– 1 unpeeled, sliced thin in rounds, and 1 peeled and cored, chopped into small bits (about ¼”dice)
3 blocks (3.25 oz) achiote paste*
1 cup kosher salt
1 cup whole Mexican oregano, dry
4 heads fresh garlic, cut in half across the middle
Water to cover plus ice

Preparation
In a large cooler (unless you have a walk-in refrigerator) dissolve the achiote paste and salt in about 2 gallons of cool water. Add the sliced pineapple, the goat and the garlic. Add ice to the cooler to keep the goat meat below 40 degrees for the marinating time. (Your handy probe thermometer is great for this, put the probe end in the meat with the thermometer unit outside and the alarm set to 45F. If the alarm goes off, you add more ice so the meat stays safe and cold while marinating).

Let marinate for 3 days (ideal) or 48 hours (just enough). Drain goat well and pat dry. Discard all pineapple and garlic from marinade.

Directions-two ways to cook:
Method 1: Get the grill going and move the coal bed to one side of your grill. On the other side, away from direct heat, place the goat pieces, heavily wrapped in foil. Cook over low heat (265F) for 4 hours. Remove foil-wrapped pieces to a large tray and allow it to sit for 20 minutes. When cool enough to handle, strip off the foil, then strip the meat off the bones–it should fall right off.

Method 2: Preheat your oven to 300F. Wrap the dry goat pieces in heavy-duty foil, so that no part is exposed. Place foil-wrapped meat in a large roasting pan with a few cups of water in the pan. Slow-roast for 4 hours. Remove pan from oven and allow meat to rest, wrapped, for 20 minutes. When it’s cool enough to handle, peel off the foil, then strip the meat off the bones–it will fall right off. The bonus of this method is that you get some wonderful juice. Skim and strain it for stock, chili, soup or broth for noodles.

When you’ve got your wonderfully healthy, tender goat all shredded, use it for tacos with some of the diced pineapple, some cilantro and fresh white onion for an authentic treat. I guarantee you will love it– when we serve this in the restaurant our customers are always surprised by the rich, yet clean and lean flavor of goat. Everyone expects it to be gamy, like some lamb, but it’s a much milder flavor (much less expensive than lamb!) and packed with healthy omega-3’s, collagen and protein. You can use goat meat in any application where you might use lamb or beef.

*This makes enough for a party–so have one! If you’re concerned no one will eat goat–tell them it’s lamb–they’ll marvel at the clean flavor, leaner but more flavorful meat and pot-roast-like texture.

*You can purchase a goat (no more than 30#, dressed) from any local meat purveyor if you must have local product, or you can visit a Halal butcher shop–guaranteed fresh!