Goats have been used for milk, meat, wool, and skins across much of the world. Milk from goats is often turned into cheese. In 2022, there were more than 1.1 billion goats living in the world, of which 150 million were in India.

Goats are among the earliest animals to have been domesticated by humans. A genetic analysis confirms the archaeological evidence that the wild bezoar ibex, found today in the Zagros Mountains, but formerly widespread in Anatolia, is the likely original ancestor of all or most domestic goats today.

Neolithic farmers began to herd wild goats primarily for easy access to milk and meat, as well as to their dung, which was used as fuel; and their bones, hair, and sinew were used for clothing, building, and tools. The earliest remnants of domesticated goats dating 10,000 years Before Present are found in Ganj Dareh in Iran. Goat remains have been found at archaeological sites in Jericho, Choga Mami, Djeitun, and Çayönü, dating the domestication of goats in Western Asia at between 8,000 and 9,000 years ago. DNA evidence suggests that goats were domesticated around 10,000 years ago. Historically, goat hide has been used for water and wine bottles in both traveling and transporting wine for sale, and to produce parchment.

Goats are ruminants. They have a four-chambered stomach consisting of the rumen, the reticulum, the omasum, and the abomasum. As with other mammal ruminants, they are even-toed ungulates. The females have an udder consisting of two teats, in contrast to cattle, which have four teats. An exception to this is the Boer goat, which sometimes may have up to eight teats. Goats are diploid with two sets of 30 chromosomes.

The Modern English word goat comes from Old English gāt "goat, she-goat", which in turn derives from Proto-Germanic *gaitaz (cf. Dutch/Frisian/Icelandic/Norwegian geit, German Geiß, and Gothic gaits), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰaidos meaning "young goat" (cf. Latin haedus "kid"). To refer to the male goat, Old English used bucca (cf. Dutch/Frisian bok, modern English buck) until ousted by hegote, hegoote ('he-goat') in the late 12th century. Nanny goat (adult female) originated in the 18th century, and billy goat (adult male) in the 19th century. Female goats, like other various animals, are also called does. Castrated males are called wethers. While the words hircine and caprine both refer to anything having a goat-like quality, hircine is used most often to emphasize the distinct smell of domestic goats.

Juvenile goats are called kids, a term derived from Old Norse kið, with the same meaning. It has been a slang term for human children since the 1590s, and established as an informal term since the 1840s.



Goat meat is the meat of the domestic goat (Capra hircus). The term 'goat meat' denotes meat of older animals, while meat from young goats is called 'kid meat'. In South Asian cuisine, goat meat is called mutton, along with sheep meat.

Goat meat is both a staple and a delicacy in the world's cuisines. The cuisines best known for their use of goat include African cuisine, Middle Eastern, Indian, Indonesian, Nepali, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Abruzzese, Mexican, Caribbean (Jamaica), Haitian cuisine, Dominican cuisine and Ecuadorian. Cabrito, which is baby goat, is a typical food of Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico; in Italy it is called "capretto". Goat meat can be prepared in a variety of ways, such as being stewed, curried, baked, grilled, barbecued, minced, canned, fried, or made into sausage. Goat jerky is another popular variety.

Goat has a reputation for having a strong, gamey flavour, but the taste can also be mild, depending on how it is raised and prepared. Caribbean cultures often prefer meat from mature goats, which tends to be more pungent (which is why the meat is first cleaned in a blend of lime juice and water there and it's pre-boiled with the initial boiling liquid discarded), while some other cultures prefer meat that comes from younger goats that are six to nine months old. Ribs, loins, and tenderloin goat meat are suitable for quick cooking, while other cuts are best for long braising. Despite being classified as red meat, goat is leaner and contains less cholesterol and fat than both lamb and beef, and less energy than beef and lamb; therefore, it requires low-heat, slow cooking to preserve tenderness and moisture.

Goat meat cuts tend to be very similar to lamb/sheep cuts (see image) and the cuts are often cooked in similar ways. Though there are some differences in the cuts between kid goats and older goats due to the respective sizes of the animals.

The alphabetical list of all the goat-based recipes on this site follows, (limited to 100 recipes per page). There are 205 recipes in total:

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Harira Mauritanienne (Mauritanian Harira)      Origin: Mauritania	Muamba de Cabara (Goat Meat Muamba)      Origin: Angola	Saba Curry Goat      Origin: Saba
Iecinera Haedina vel Agnina (Liver of Kid Goat or Lamb)      Origin: Roman	Muqmad (Djibouti Preserved Meat)      Origin: Djibouti	Saint Lucia Curried Goat      Origin: Saint Lucia
Igra Stobá (Liver Stew)      Origin: Bonaire	Mutton Masala      Origin: Sri Lanka	Saint Lucian Bouillon      Origin: Saint Lucia
Igra Stobá (Liver Stew)      Origin: Curacao	Mutton Paya      Origin: India	Saint Vincent Curry Goat      Origin: Saint Vincent
Jamaican Curried Goat      Origin: Jamaica	Mutton Roganjosh      Origin: India	Sala Cattabia Apiciana (Apician Potted Salads)      Origin: Roman
Jerked Leg of Goat      Origin: Jamaica	Mutton Saag      Origin: India	Salade Greque (Greek Salad, French Style)      Origin: France
Kabritu Stoba (Stewed Kid Goat)      Origin: Aruba	Mutton Sukha Curry      Origin: India	Sancocho de siete carnes (Seven meat stew)      Origin: Dominican Republic
Kabritu Stobá (Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Saba	Nalli Nihari (Mutton Shank Nihari)      Origin: India	Sancocho Dominicano (Dominican Stew)      Origin: Dominican Republic
Kabritu Stobá (Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Curacao	Nandji      Origin: Mali	Sanger Yena (Offal Sausages)      Origin: Aruba
Kansiyé      Origin: Guinea	Nigeria Challenge BIR Curry      Origin: Fusion	Sauce Koumrangan (Hibiscus Leaf Sauce)      Origin: Chad
Kari Kambing (Mutton or Goat Curry)      Origin: Indonesia	Nigerian Goat Stew      Origin: Nigeria	Sawge y farcet (Pork Meatballs with Sage Coating)      Origin: England
Kede in Bokenade (Kid Goat in Sauce)      Origin: England	Nigerian Meat Pie      Origin: Nigeria	Seco de Chivo (Dry-fried Goat Meat)      Origin: Ecuador
Khasi Ko Masu (Nepali Goat Meat Curry)      Origin: Nepal	Nyama yeMbudzi (Traditional Zimbabwean Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Zimbabwe	Shaiyah (Pan-fried Meat)      Origin: South Sudan
Khela Kalia (West Bengali Lamb Curry)      Origin: India	Ofellas Assas (Roast Morsels)      Origin: Roman	Sint Eustatian Goat Water      Origin: Sint Eustatius
Kid Goat Korma      Origin: Anglo-Indian	Ofellas Garatas (Braised Morsels)      Origin: Roman	Sopa de Boldroegas (Portuguese Common Purslane Soup)      Origin: Portugal
Kissuto Rombo (Baked Kid Goat)      Origin: Sao Tome	Ofellas Garaton (Morsels with Fish-sauce)      Origin: Roman	Sorrel Sarma      Origin: North Macedonia
Laal Maas (Rajasthani Red Mutton Curry)      Origin: India	Oodkac (Somali Preserved Meat)      Origin: Somalia	Soupe Kandja      Origin: Mali
Lamb Tarkari (Lamb Yoghurt Curry)      Origin: Nepal	Pakistani Seekh Kebab      Origin: Pakistan	St Helena Curry and Rice      Origin: St Helena
Lampara Curry      Origin: Sri Lanka	Peruvian Goat Stew      Origin: Peru	St Lucian Pepper Pot      Origin: Saint Lucia
Maafe (Meat Peanut Stew)      Origin: Mali	Potato and Broccoli Gratin with Goat's Cheese      Origin: Ireland	Stecen Gafr Gyda Rhosmari a Cwrens Cochion (Goat Steak with Rosemary and Red Currants)      Origin: Welsh
Malaysian Goat Rendang      Origin: Malaysia	Pourcelet farci (Stuffed Suckling Pig)      Origin: France	Streptikos Artos (Plaited Bread)      Origin: Roman
Mangsher Brown Stew (Mutton Brown Stew)      Origin: Anglo-Indian	Pre-cooked Goat      Origin: Britain	Swazi Babotie      Origin: eSwatini
Maraq Fahfah (Somali Soup)      Origin: Somalia	Pultes (Meat Pottage)      Origin: Roman	Tanzanian Meat Stew      Origin: Tanzania
Maraq Hilib Ari (Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Somalia	Pumpkin, Goat's Cheese and Kale Tart with Three-cornered Leeks (Pumpkin, Goat's Cheese and Kale Tart with Three-cornered Leeks)      Origin: Britain	Thorion ex Oryza (Goats' Cheese with Rice in Vine Leaves)      Origin: Roman
Marolaym      Origin: Mauritania	Pumpkin, Goat's Cheese and Kale Tart      Origin: British	Tiguadege Na      Origin: Mali
Maroumbo ya Nadzi (Tripe with Bananas)      Origin: Mayotte	Punjabi Mutton Curry      Origin: India	Traditional Mattar Keema Curry      Origin: India
Mattar Paneer Curry      Origin: India	Ragoût de Chévre au Riz (Goat Stew with Rice)      Origin: DR-Congo	Trini Meat Patties      Origin: Trinidad
Mbuzi ya masala (Goat Meat Dry Fry)      Origin: Mayotte	Ragoût de cabri créole (Creole Goat Stew)      Origin: Guadeloupe	Trinidadian Curried Goat      Origin: Trinidad
Methi Kalia (Spicy Fenugreek Meat)      Origin: Bangladesh	Red Oil Greens      Origin: Liberia	Trinidadian Curry Duck      Origin: Trinidad
Minchet Abish Wot      Origin: Ethiopia	Riz Gras du Burkinabé (Burkina Faso Fat Rice)      Origin: Burkina Faso	Vermicelles (Vermicelli)      Origin: Mauritania
Mini Goat's Cheese and Sunblush Tomato Muffins (Mini Goat's Cheese and Sunblush Tomato Muffins)      Origin: Britain	Roast Leg of Goat      Origin: Britain	Viande Nyembwe (Meat Nyembwe)      Origin: Gabon
Mirkapaya Mamsam Koora      Origin: India	Roast Shoulder of Goat      Origin: Britain	West African Meat Kebabs      Origin: West Africa
Miyan Kuka II (Baobab Leaf Soup II)      Origin: Nigeria	Rosemary Goat Curry      Origin: Zimbabwe
Montserratian Goat Water      Origin: Montserrat	Rwanda Goat Pelau      Origin: Rwanda

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