1-1/2 cups plain yogurt
1/2 English cucumber, grated
6 scallions, sliced
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
salt

1. Strain yogurt through cheesecloth overnight to thicken.
2. Season cucumber with a bit of salt and place in a sieve to drain. Pat dry with paper towel.
3. Combine the yogurt, cucumber and scallions in a bowl. Season with salt to taste.
4. Top with a few additional slices of cucumber and fresh cilantro. Refrigerate until serving.

Makes 4 servings

3 pounds goat meat, cubed
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Scotch bonnet pepper, seeded and minced
4 sprigs thyme
6 tablespoons Jamaican curry powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 whole allspice
salt and pepper
water and vinegar

1. Wash goat meat with 2:1 water and vinegar solution. Pat dry.
2. Combine onion, garlic, Scotch bonnet pepper, thyme and all but 1 tablespoon of the curry powder.
3. Place goat in a large bowl, rub with the seasoning, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.
4. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining curry powder to the oil.
5. Remove goat and brush off any excess seasoning or onions, saving for later. Brown the goat meat in batches in the hot oil.
6. Add enough water just to cover the meat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and add the onion and seasoning and allspice. Simmer covered until meat is tender, about an hour.
7. If the sauce is watery, add potatoes to thicken. Serve with pita bread.

Makes 8 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red chili pepper, seeded and halved
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon paprika
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1-1/2 cups chicken stock
3 scallions, chopped
1 cup dry couscous

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add the chili pepper and fry until well browned, then discard.
2. Stir the cumin, coriander and paprika into the oil, then add the garlic.
3. Add the chicken stock, stirring to combine, and bring to a boil.
4. Pour the couscous into the pot and stir. Remove from heat and cover until liquid has been absorbed.
5. Stir in scallions and serve.

Makes 6 servings

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup brown basmati rice
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
19 ounces canned red kidney beans
3/4 cup corn kernels
1/4 cup cashews, roasted
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

1. Boil vegetable stock and add rice and tomato. Cover and cook until rice is tender.
2. Meanwhile, in a separate skillet over medium heat, sauté onion and jalapeno until tender. Season with curry powder.
3. Add red pepper and corn to the skillet and continue to sauté until the pepper is tender.
4. When rice is cooked, add the beans to the skillet and stir to warm.
5. Spoon rice onto a platter and top with bean mixture. Garnish with roasted cashews and cilantro to serve.

Makes 6 servings

More planning went in to tonight's dinner than perhaps any other dinner I've done so far. A friend of mine had a childhood memory of a dish he had at a heritage festival in Edmonton and wanted to try and replicate it. After several conversations we determined that it was probably Jamaican Curried Goat. Finding a decent recipe was a little difficult, but we found one, and then had to go on the hunt for actual goat meat.

I asked the farmer's market and all of the butcher shops in town before getting a phone number to a couple that owns a farm and happens to raise them; occasionally taking them in for slaughter and packaging. Almost immediately after getting the number I find a package of goat meat at the supermarket amongst a bunch of other imported meats. It hadn't been there before, so I guess I totally lucked out.

Sort of. See, I was so excited about finding the meat that I didn't inspect it whatsoever. It was frozen and transferred from New Zealand and the quality of the meat was not so good. The meat was still on the bone and chiselled fragments of bone were present in the meat itself. Large chunks of gristle and fat were also packaged with it. Perhaps that is just how goat is sold. I wouldn't know since I have never bought it before. Anyhow, the cooking process did not go so well as the meat was not tenderizing so well and could not be easily removed from the bones.

The flavor of the curry was quite nice though and it stunk up my apartment very well for several days. I bought the smallest Scotch bonnet pepper - actually a habanero - that I could find, since we were out drinking the night before and I wasn't sure if any of us would be able to stomach the added heat. It was still fairly spicy considering that the pepper was maybe 1/3" square and added to 3 pounds of meat. I had to estimate the Jamaican curry powder myself since it is different than what I have, containing turmeric, fenugreek, coriander, cumin, anise, star anise, pepper, allspice and garlic. The slight baked goods flavor works better with the gamey meat, I guess. I expected that goat would taste similar to lamb, but since it was dredged in sauce there's really no way to tell. I had to thicken the curry with a slurry because the original recipe called for too much water, and that saved it quite well, I think.

The goat is supposed to be served with warmed pita bread and I made some Cucumber Raita in case it was too spicy. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of telling my company that I had strained the yogurt through a pair of my (clean!) underwear because I never have any cheesecloth and I think that deterred them from trying it. It was difficult eating the goat with the pita because of the bones, but I think that'd definitely be the way to go otherwise.

I served a simple Cumin Garlic Couscous along with this, which was probably prepared in under 10 minutes amongst doing other things. Everyone said they liked this dish, and it's hard not to like simply flavored couscous. I kind of wish I'd put a bit more heat into it, but it was good. I also made use of some leftover Corn on the Cob as part of a Bajan Beans dish. Shannon loved this dish especially, with a nice combination of crunchy cashews, crisp corn and starchy beans.