Goat (or Lamb) Kleftiko by Theo Michaels

Recently Theo Michaels joined us for a fabulous demonstration celebrating delicious Cypriot recipes from his latest cookbook Cypriana. Theo's original recipe uses kid goat shoulder, and he explains why goat meat is commonly used in Cypriot cooking below, but for the demonstration we used lamb shoulder. We will leave Theo's cookbook recipe as is for those who would like to use goat meat, but if lamb is your preference, follow the recipe just the same, but rather cook the lamb for 4 hours instead of the 3 hours you would cook the goat shoulder for. 

One thing that struck us about this dish as we were helping to prep it, was how incredible this would be as a centrepiece for New Years Eve dining. The Mediterranean flavours are a welcome change, post Christmas, while still being an impressive and warming dish sure to go down a storm with your guests. Serve family style in a beautiful roasting dish or cocotte along with the potato, onion, tomato and juices, or you can shred up and serve 'taco' or kebab style for a more informal affair.

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Goat meat has been part of our culture and cuisine since the Ancient Greeks and still deserves a place on our kitchen tables now, more than ever. Goat meat is incredibly healthy and lean (lower in fat and cholesterol than beef, lamb, pork and even chicken) and high in iron and protein. Still very popular in many continents, kid goat is very sustainable and puts to good use an animal that otherwise goes to waste. But I also love it because it tastes fabulous. Kid goat is packed with flavour and very versatile, it is lean so works well when slow cooked and this is the perfect recipe to get you started - Theo M.

Serves 6–8

Ingredients:

• 2 onions, thickly sliced 
• 1 garlic bulb, broken into cloves 
• 6 sprigs of fresh rosemary 
• 6 sprigs of fresh thyme 
• 2 large ripe tomatoes, thickly sliced 
• 1 tablespoon Greek dried oregano 
• 2-kg kid goat shoulder (whole) (or lamb shoulder) 
• 6 Cyprus potatoes, cut into quarters lengthways 
• freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon 
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika 
• 100 ml white wine 
• salt and freshly ground black pepper 
• olive oil, for drizzling  

 Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F) Gas 3. 
   
   
2. Drizzle a little olive oil into a roasting pan and scatter in the onions, garlic, half the rosemary, half the thyme and half the sliced tomatoes. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and half the oregano. 
   
   
3. Place the goat shoulder onto the onions. Arrange the potatoes around the edges. 
   
   
4. Drizzle a little olive oil over the whole pan along with the lemon juice. Season the meat and potatoes with the smoked paprika, the remaining oregano, thyme and rosemary, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Place the remaining tomato slices over the meat. 
   
   
5. Add the wine and 50 ml water into the pan (not over the goat) and cover with a piece of parchment paper, tucking the edges inside the roasting pan and then covering the whole pan with foil, ensuring it is tightly sealed around the edges (you may need to use a couple of sheets). 
   
   
6. Cook in the preheated oven for 3 hours. Once done, remove from the oven and rest for 15 minutes while still sealed. While resting, turn the oven up to 230°C (450°F) Gas 8. 
   
   LAMB NEEDS TO BE COOKED FOR 4 HOURS 
   
   
7. Once the oven is to temperature, remove the foil and baking parchment, baste the goat with some of the juices and put back in the oven for 5 minutes to help colour the meat.
    
8. To serve, decant the goat onto a platter along with the potatoes. Pour the cooking juices into a bowl and skim off the fat, then drizzle the juices over the goat.