Aegean Island Katsiki sti Souvla (Κατσίκι στη Σούβλα)

Katsiki sti souvla belongs to the Aegean islands and to the mountain villages where goat was the animal that lived well on rock, scrub, thyme, and stubborn weather. Lamb may get the louder Easter song in many places, but goat has its own table: leaner, cleaner-tasting, a little wilder, with meat that needs fire and attention.

The one method that decides it is basting. Young goat has little fat compared with lamb, so you don't abandon it over the coals and hope for mercy. You turn it steadily and brush it often with lemon, oregano, garlic, wine, and olive oil until the skin bronzes and the joints loosen. Good olive oil, and patience.

I like the Aegean way plain: salt, pepper, oregano, garlic, lemon, nothing sweet, nothing clever. The region is the dish's surname, and here the surname is island and high pasture. The smoke, the lean meat, the bright lemon, and the slow turning are enough.