Goat meat recipe: How to make pepper soup with goat meat

Pepper soup is a savoury soup that can be eaten in all seasons, whether during cold or in hot season, this is one of the major dishes you will always come across in many restaurants or fast food corners. Even though pepper soup is not an everyday soup, it is usually prepared in many homes in Nigeria.

Its not every day we may like eating left over foods or start a new meal, some days we may just wake up one morning and feel like to walk down into an eatery and order for a plate of goat meat pepper soup or any other dish of your choice in order to satisfy your appetite. Once a while this usually happen to us, you might prefer to eat outside the house, due to tiredness or lack of passion to enter the kitchen to make new food; in this case, going to an eatery may be your first choice. But let me advise, you can make this at home because sold foods can be a little bit messy and expensive. Pepper soup actually, has a high demand in many eateries or restaurants; however, the price of pepper soup is usually very costly in such places. Therefore it is even reasonable to make this delicious soup at home and consume it 2-3 times rather than going to the restaurant to order for it.

Pepper soup is a savoury and flavourful soup prepared with proteins, different blended spices are usually added into it to give it delicious taste and flavour, it has a watery and light consistency. You can use fish beef, goat, shrimps, pork, chicken, dog and assorted meat for this. Each of this meat has it common name in which it is called. For instance:

• Goat meat pepper soup
• Cow meat or beef pepper soup
• Assorted meat pepper soup or cow intestine pepper soup
• Shrimps pepper soup
• Fresh fish pepper soup or catfish pepper soup.
• Pork pepper soup
• Chicken pepper soup
• Dog meat pepper soup
• Yam and fish pepper soup
• Goat head pepper soup (Isi enwu)

Why do people use goat meat

Raw goat meat

Goat meatis always known for its strong and delicious flavour, the male goat has more pungent smell, especially used in vegetable soups like afang soup, edikaikong, ogbono and atama soups, editan sup, Calabar white soup and in egusi soup, goat meat is often used to prepare stews, sauces and in in rice recipes. The matured female goat has less gamey flavour; the female goat tends to be a bit tougher and takes a longer time to cook while the male goat takes a lesser time to cook and it provides an additional in flavour in foods. Goats in general, have less cholesterol, and fat when compared to pork, sheep and beef even though they are classified as red meat. Goat meat has higher protein and iron content than beef, it gets cooked faster than beef and it is a bit bony than beef. Goat meat can be grilled, baked, fried, boiled, barbecued, stewed, curried and minced for sauces and sausages and it is a leaner and healthier choice of red meat compared to pork and beef.

Goat meat can be refrigerated for months in the freezer when there is a good source of power supply, and can be thawed in cold water when needed. When thawing goat meat, it is advisable to cook it immediately as the meat can go bad just like any other type of meat.

Goat meat pepper soup

Goat meat pepper soup is a common cuisine in Africa, specifically in Nigeria. Even though pepper soups can be prepared with other meat; goat meat pepper soup and catfish seems to be the most preferred by majority, because of their distinctive flavour and taste, especially when they are well prepared with the required spices. To get a tastier goat meat pepper soup, I advise you use a He-goat instead of using the She-goat, since He-goat cooks faster and the meat is tenderer compared to She- goat whose meat is tougher and requires many ingredients and time to cook. Additionally, when preparing goat meat pepper soup, native goats are more flavourful and they ooze well in various dishes if compared to the hybrid goats that are restricted in movement and in their feedings.

Goat meat pepper soup can be made into a very hot, mild hot and spicy savoury. This version is mostly prepared with yam for new nursing mothers or people who have loosed blood, and more water is usually added to the soup so that they can drink it as a beverage. To make goat meat pepper soup hot or mild you can either increase or reduce the amount spices and pepper added to it, and more vegetables can be used, assuming you like vegetables so well.

If you are using basil (nchawu to make goat meat pepper soup, you will have to use the leaf in little , amount as the leaf tend to make pepper soup bitter if added in excess amount.

Suggested servings with goat meat pepper soup

Goat meat pepper soup is often served alongside with boiled plantain, yam and rice, and also with agidi, cooked cassava and coleslaw. Also, it is mostly paired with palm wine and other soft drinks

Goat meat pepper is usually prepared with goat, pepper, basil (scent leaves or nchawu)and local nutmeg (ehu seeds which is often considered as the main spice in goat meat pepper soup), uziza seeds, garlic, ginger, pepper spices, among other spices. Uziza leaves or spring onions can also be used to make goat meat pepper soup in place of basil.

Additionally, there is another version of goat meat pepper soup which is often called goat head pepper soup (Isi enwu); however, a different method is required for it preparation, unlike the normal goat meat peppers that is light watery, Isi enwu, is mostly thickened with the goat brain and it is often prepared with a herbs, among other spices.

Goat meat pepper soup ingredients/spices

1. 1kg fresh goat meat
2. 4 Calabash nutmeg ( local nut meg, ehu or ariwo), grinded
3. A handful nchawu (basil or scent leaves, thinly chopped
4. Uziza seeds, grinded
5. teaspoon ginger powder(optional)
6. 1 bulb onion, chopped
7. 1 bush onion, grinded (optional)
8. 3 cloves garlic, minced
9. 3 seasoning cubes or goat meat spice, crushed
10. 1 teaspoon or habanero pepper( about 4 fruits)
11. Crayfish, grinded (optional)

Some ingredients for seasoning of goat meat

Procedures for cooking goat meat pepper soup

1. Wash your goat meat, season with salt, 2 goatseasoning cubes, pepper, onions and garlic and let the meat boil for 10 minutes on a medium heat without adding water to it until the seasonings start to incorporate.
2. After 10 minutes, add about 1 and cup of clean water to the meat and increase the heat
3. Add 1 seasoning cube, ground calabash nutmeg, bush onion, uziza seeds, crayfish and ginger powder if you are using crayfish and ginger and then then stir the soup.
4. Let the goat meat pepper soup cook for 20 minutes on a high heat. After 20 minutes, lower the heat and pick out one pieces of meat, taste to know if it is tender enough.
5. If the meat is still tough and the water has reduced, add more water and seasoning and spices to it, cook until it is fork tender.
6. Add your shredded scent leaves or uziza leaves and stir the content, leave it to simmer for 5 minutes more.
7. Your goat meat pepper soup is cooked, serve it while it still on a lower heat.

Steps on how to cook goat meat pepper soup

1. season gaot meat onions, garlic,2 cubes, pepper,and salt. Cook the meat for 10 minutes on a medium heat for the seasonings to incorporate.

Goat meat should be seasoned with onions, garlic, pepper, salt and cooked for few minutes before adding water

2. After 10 minutes, add about1 cup of clean water to the goat meat and let it boil on high heat.

This is how your goat meat will look like after 10 minute of simmering

3. After adding the water, add 1 seasoning cube, calabash nutmeg (ehu), bush onions, pepper, salt, and also crayfish and ginger if you are using them. Stir and let the soup simmer on a medium heat.

Water is being added to the meat to enable it cook properly

4. After 20 minutes of bubbling, taste to know if it is tender enough for eating; if not, add more water and some spices and cook until it is very soft.

Let the soup bubble on a medium to high heat until the meat is cooked

5. When you are sure the goat meat soft enough and ingredients are ok, add your shredded scent leaves (basil or nchawu), stir and let it cook for 5 minutes.

Scent leaf is being added to the pepper soup

6. After 5 minutes, reduce the heat to very low and let pepper soup simmer gently while you dish some out to serve; this will enable the pleasant flavour to diffuse more as it sits on a low heat.

Goat meat pepper soup is simmering on a low heat

Goat meat pepper soup served

Enjoy your goat meat pepper soup with boiled plantain or rice.