Asado de Chivito – Bolivian Roast Kid Goat

You’ve spent the morning high in southern Bolivia, climbing rocky ridges where the thin Andean air makes every step feel a little steeper. Below you, the valleys stretch toward the Argentine border in shades of dusty red, brown, and green, broken by patches of cultivated land and tiny settlements tucked between the hills.

By early afternoon, your legs are ready for a rest.

You come down into the countryside near Yuruma, a small community north of Villazón known locally for preserving the traditional foods of the region. A simple roadside restaurant looks like a good place to stop, and the smell coming from its kitchen makes the decision easy.

Inside, the cook is preparing asado de chivito.

He waves you over to the worktable, where pieces of young goat sit beside a bowl of deep-red chile paste. Dried ají rojo has been softened and ground with garlic, onion, cumin, black pepper, and bay leaf. A little oil and salt turn the mixture into a thick marinade, which he rubs thoroughly over the goat.

The seasoned meat goes into a roasting pan with a small amount of broth. The pan is tightly covered and put into the oven, where the goat will slowly roast and braise until the meat is tender. Only near the end is it uncovered, allowing the edges to brown while the chile-and-goat juices concentrate around the meat.

Nearby, potatoes and oca are roasting. Oca is a small Andean tuber, somewhat like a potato but with a slightly sweeter, earthier flavor. A fresh salad of tomato, onion, lettuce, and fiery locoto pepper waits on the counter.

After a morning spent climbing through the Bolivian highlands, a plate of tender red-chile roasted goat, potatoes, and oca feels like exactly the meal you earned.

Asado de Chivito

Bolivian Red-Chile Roast Kid Goat

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

• 3 pounds bone-in young goat, preferably shoulder, leg, ribs, or quartered goat

• 3–4 dried Bolivian red ají peppers (ají rojo or ají colorado), stems and seeds removed

• 3 cloves garlic

• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped

• ½ teaspoon ground cumin

• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 bay leaf, crumbled

• 1½ teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

• 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil

• ¾–1 cup goat broth, beef broth, or water

For Serving

• 1½ pounds small potatoes

• 1 pound oca, if available

• tomato, sliced

• onion, thinly sliced

• lettuce

• fresh locoto or another hot chile, optional

Finding the Red Ají

Look for dried ají rojo, ají colorado, or Bolivian red chile at a Bolivian, Peruvian, or other Andean grocery store. They are usually sold whole in clear plastic bags alongside other dried peppers and spices.

If you cannot find Bolivian ají, dried guajillo chiles from a Mexican grocery store make a practical substitute. They are mild to moderately hot and give the goat a similar deep-red, earthy chile flavor, although the taste will not be identical.

Prepare the Chiles

Remove the stems and most of the seeds from the dried ají peppers.

Place them in a bowl and cover with very hot water. Let them soak for about 20 minutes, or until soft.

Drain the peppers, reserving a little of the soaking water.

Make the Ají Paste

Place the softened peppers in a blender with the garlic, onion, cumin, black pepper, bay leaf, salt, oil, and about ¼ cup of the chile soaking water.

Blend until you have a smooth, thick red paste.

Add another spoonful of water if necessary to help the blender run, but keep the mixture fairly thick.

Season the Goat

Place the goat pieces in a roasting pan.

Pour the ají paste over the meat and use your hands or a spoon to coat every piece thoroughly.

For deeper flavor, cover and refrigerate the seasoned goat for several hours or overnight.

If you are short on time, it can be cooked immediately.

Add the Broth

Pour about ¾ cup goat broth, beef broth, or water around the goat.

The meat should not be submerged. The liquid is there to create steam and keep the goat moist while it slowly roasts.

Cover the roasting pan tightly with a lid or aluminum foil.

Slow-Roast the Goat

Roast the covered goat at about 375°F for approximately 2–2½ hours.

Check it after about 2 hours. The goat is ready for the final stage when a fork enters easily and the meat is beginning to pull away from the bone.

Older or larger goat pieces may need longer. If the pan becomes dry before the goat is tender, add another small splash of broth or water.

Brown the Goat

Once the goat is tender, remove the lid or foil.

Spoon some of the red cooking juices over the meat.

Return the pan to the oven uncovered for approximately 20–30 minutes, until the exposed edges of the goat become browned and the ají sauce reduces around the meat.

The finished dish should have tender meat with concentrated red-chile cooking juices rather than a large amount of thin broth.

Roast the Potatoes and Oca

During the final portion of cooking, toss the potatoes and oca with a little oil and salt.

Roast them until tender and lightly browned.

If you cannot find oca, simply use additional potatoes or another firm root vegetable.

Make the Salad

Combine sliced tomato, thinly sliced onion, and lettuce.

If you can find locoto, add a few very thin slices for heat. Locoto is an Andean chile with considerably more heat than the dried red ají used on the goat, so a little goes a long way.

To Serve

Place the roasted goat on a platter and spoon some of the reduced ají cooking juices over it.

Serve with the roasted potatoes and oca and the fresh tomato, onion, lettuce, and locoto salad alongside.