Meet O’mar Grant, Assistant Manager, Kitchen Production here at Daily Bread Food Bank! He is in charge of producing our soups and casseroles for member agencies along with designing their menus and developing new recipes! O’mar has a passion for food and brought with him a degree in sociology, a background in social work, and 15 years experience in food service (some of those at restaurants owned by Master Chef Claudio Aprile at his Origin Restaurant and Michael Bonacini at his O&B bar and Grill!).

“I love cooking because it’s therapy. I’ve worked with some of the hardest chefs and working with different personalities in high intense environments has helped me remain calm under pressure. At Daily Bread I’ve had the chance to relearn my passion not only for what I eat and cook, but how I cook, and the value of following simple methods and steps to ensure the best possible result – not just for Daily Bread but for our community and the people they serve”

As part of our Black History Month Lunch Series, O’mar shared with us an old family recipe, which is a traditional Jamaican curry goat recipe but also adding Roti, which is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent. Made from stoneground whole wheat flour, it has South Asian origins brought over by indentured labourers and popularized in Trinidad.

See the recipe below to try and home and join us in our Black History Month celebrations!

Recipe:

• 3- 3 1/2 pounds goat meat (cut in chunks)
• ¼- ½ cup cooking oil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 -2 teaspoons minced ginger
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 4-5 Tablespoons Curry powder
• 1- teaspoon white pepper
• 1-2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• 2 green onions sliced
• 2-3 medium potatoes
• 1 scotch bonnet pepper (adjust to suit taste buds or replace with any hot pepper)
• Salt to taste

Cooking Instructions:

1. Season goat with, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat, until hot, and then add the goat meat sauté stirring, frequently, any browned bits off the bottom of the pot, until goat is brown.
3. Then add curry, stir for about 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the garlic, ginger, white pepper, onions, thyme, scallions (green onions) and scotch bonnet pepper stir for about a minute.
5. Then pour in just enough water to cover the goat and bring to a boil and let it simmer until tender (depending on the goat size and preference) about 2 hours or more, stirring the saucepan occasionally and adding more water as needed.
6. About 15-20 minutes before you remove from the stove add potatoes. Continue cooking until potatoes are tender, if you want really thick curry goat let the potatoes cook even more.
7. You may adjust thickness of soup with water or stock.