Goat Meat Pepper Soup

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg bone-in goat meat, cut into 5 cm pieces
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 2 scotch bonnet peppers, stemmed
• 1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 4 tbsp ground pepper soup spice blend (ehuru, uziza seed and negro pepper)
• 3 tbsp ground crayfish
• 1 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger
• 2 stock cubes
• 1.5 litres water
• 500 g white yam, peeled and cut into 4 cm chunks
• 15 g utazi or scent leaves, finely shredded
• 1 1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste

Before you cook

• Rinse the goat meat in several changes of water and drain it in a colander.
• Blend the chopped onion, bell pepper and scotch bonnets with 100 ml of water to a smooth purée.
• Peel the yam, cut it into chunks and hold them in a bowl of cold water so they do not discolour.
• Shred the utazi leaves as finely as you can, since they are strongly bitter.

Steps

1. Put the goat meat in a heavy pot and pour the blended pepper purée over it.
2. Crumble in the stock cubes and add the salt.
3. Cover the pot and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes so the meat steams in its own juices.
4. Stir the meat once to coat every piece in the thickened purée.
5. Pour in the 1.5 litres of water and bring the pot to a boil.
6. Lower the heat and simmer covered for 45 minutes until the goat is tender but still clinging to the bone.
7. Stir in the pepper soup spice blend, the ground crayfish and the grated ginger.
8. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes so the aromatic spices bloom into the broth.
9. Drain the yam and slide the chunks into the pot.
10. Cook for 15 minutes until a knife slips easily into the yam.
11. Taste the broth and adjust with salt and more spice blend until it is hot enough to make your nose run.
12. Stir in the shredded utazi leaves and cook for 2 minutes only.
13. Ladle the soup into wide bowls, making sure each one gets meat, yam and plenty of broth.