One day I was invited to a picnic over on Isle de Quatre, a small uninhabited Island close to Bequia. We would be going by boat of course, this time a newly-built vessel with an engine. Up until now I had only been at sea on sail-boats, one with an engine would be a new experience. Boat-building was something Bequians did well, and the vast majority of wooden vessels on the Island were hand-made.
We left Bequia from La Pompe, the boat laden with people, food and drink. We had a few scary moments getting out of the bay, waves were surging ashore and we had to get past them, kind of like reverse surfing. I was thoroughly soaked within the first five minutes of the trip but we got to Isle de Quatre in one piece, the engine getting us there a lot faster than those sailing across.
I had brought along my spear gun (I would rather fish than peel provision!) and was surprised to be told we would not be making boileen that day. The giant pot was there and the usual ground provisions and flour were being unpacked so I had assumed we would be eating my favorite fish soup. The ingredients were all there, what would be going in the pot instead of fish??
A sailboat arrived with the answer. Two men came ashore carrying a large, dripping box and dropped it beside the make-shift kitchen we had assembled. It was filled with fresh meat, and by the appearance of the bones I could tell it was not beef. That is when I found out we would be lunching on goat water!. It did not sound very appetizing, but I had come to learn that any food eaten on a beach by the sea tastes heavenly.
Everyone pitched in to season the meat with garlic, ticky thyme and salt. The pot was heating over the fire as the meat was dredged with a bit of flour and onions were chopped. The meat was thrown in the pot along with the onions, and while they were browning the ladies started the chore of peeling the eddoes, tannias, breadfruit and lacatan. Once the meat and onions had been browned water and flavor peppers were added, and I was told it would have to boil down for quite some time.
While the goat simmered I went fishing. The men had already gone out to the reefs so I knew we would be having fish for an appetizer! I caught my usual offering of Bleary Eye (those lovely-tasting red fish with bad eyesight) and added them to the pile being cleaned on the beach. The little fish were roasted whole over a fire and eaten from sea grape leaves with a squeeze of lime ….divine!
By now the goat water had boiled down enough that the peeled provisions and dumplings could be dropped in. The ladies had previously added something I had never seen before called callaloo. It is a local green vegetable not unlike spinach in taste and used primarily in soups.
The goat water took several hours from start to finish, it was not a “hurry up” meal but well worth the wait. The meat was tender and incredibly tasty and to this day goat water (if made properly) is one of my favorite local foods, although it tastes best on a beach!