Cabrito al Pastor

Ingredients

• 2.5 kg bone-in young goat, legs and shoulder, cut into 6 large pieces
• 3 litres cold water
• 60 g coarse sea salt
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 limes, juiced
• 2 kg mesquite lump charcoal
• 12 flour tortillas
• 6 spring onions, trimmed
• 2 ripe avocados
• 300 g raw tomato and serrano salsa
• 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

Before you cook

• Stir the coarse salt into the cold water in a large tub until it dissolves completely.
• Add the crushed garlic and the lime juice to the salted water.
• Submerge the goat pieces in the brine and leave them for 30 minutes.
• Lift the goat out of the brine and pat every surface completely dry.
• Pour 250 ml of the brine into a small bowl and keep it beside the grill for basting.
• Season the goat all over with the black pepper.

Steps

1. Light the mesquite charcoal and let it burn for 30 minutes, until the coals glow grey and no flames are left.
2. Rake all the coals into a bank along one side of the grill so that the other half sits empty.
3. Lay the goat pieces skin side up on the grate over the empty half, as far from the coals as they will fit.
4. Cover the grill and open the vents halfway, aiming for a steady 150C inside.
5. Roast the goat undisturbed for 1 hour.
6. Turn every piece over and brush the exposed meat generously with the reserved brine.
7. Roast for a further hour, brushing with brine every 20 minutes.
8. Add a good handful of fresh charcoal to the bank of coals to hold the heat.
9. Turn the goat skin side up again and slide the pieces a hand's width closer to the coals.
10. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes more, until the skin is deep gold and blistered and a knife slips into the thickest part of the leg without resistance.
11. Lift the goat onto a board and let it rest for 15 minutes.
12. Grill the spring onions directly over the coals for 4 minutes, turning once, until they are charred and floppy.
13. Warm the flour tortillas on the grate for 20 seconds a side.
14. Chop the rested goat into rough chunks, cutting straight through skin and bone.
15. Serve the goat with the charred onions, sliced avocado, salsa and warm tortillas.