Mannish Water (also known as Goat Head Soup) is a traditional Jamaican soup recipe made with goat meat, tripe, and a variety of fresh vegetables. You will want to make this hearty and delicious soup recipe again and again.
This post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclaimer here.
Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the
recipe card at the bottom of the post.
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.
Mannish water, also known as goat head soup, is a Jamaican recipe that is a must at every big gathering. My family makes it at every celebration of life, and we served it as an appetizer at my wedding. All of our guests loved it!
With a traditional goat head soup, as the name suggests, you would use a goat head to flavor the soup. However, to make things easier, I use pieces of goat meat; you can use both bone-in and bone-less, as both work equally well.
For me, tripe is a must in mannish water soup; aside from being traditional, it adds an extra level of meaty flavor. However, if you can’t find tripe, leave it out. If you like authentic recipes using goat, you’ll love this curry goat recipe.
Why is it called Mannish water?
Mannish water is a soup that was most often prepared by men in the past, with parts of the male goat. It is thought to have aphrodisiac properties. It’s a healthy broth-based soup made with the goat that is meaty, intensely savory, and good for anyone.
Mannish Water ingredients
- Goat pieces – I use 2 lbs of goat pieces chopped, and cleaned with water, and vinegar.
- Tripe – Use 1/2 lb tripe chopped, cleaned with water and vinegar.
- Fresh thyme
- Garlic
- Allspice berries
- Water – There is so much flavor from the other ingredients, that you won’t need any meat-based broth. The goat itself will make the broth.
- Yams – A delicious starchy vegetable with a delicious earthy flavor.
- Taro root – A starchy root vegetable with a mild flavor that works well in this soup.
- Carrots
- White potatoes
- Green bananas
- Chayote – A fruit prepared like a vegetable with a flavor similar to cucumber or celery.
- Green onions
- Scotch bonnet pepper – I add two, but you can cut back or use a milder chili pepper if you prefer your food a little milder. Use habanero pepper if you can’t find scotch bonnet.
- Adobo seasoning – Store-bought adobo is okay and adds great flavor. For more depth and richness, try making your own homemade adobo seasoning! I use this instead of pre-made goat head soup seasonings.
- Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
- Jamaican Spinners/Dumplings – Spinners are Jamaican flour dumplings that I like to add to the goat’s head soup 15-20 minutes before the end of the cook.
Tools needed for this recipe
- 6-quart Pressure Cooker
- 12-quart Stock Pot
How to make this Mannish Water recipe
Add the goat, tripe, sliced garlic, two thyme sprigs, allspice berries, and 8 cups of water to a 6-quart pressure cooker. Cover and pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes. I do this to speed up the cooking time of the soup.
Once done, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then quickly release any remaining pressure. Meanwhile, bring the remaining 4 cups of water to a boil on the stovetop or in a kettle.
Once the goat in the pressure cooker is done and the pressure has been released, pour the contents into a 12-quart stock pot over medium heat. Carefully add the 4 cups of hot water to the stock pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer.
Add yams, taro root, carrots, white potato, green bananas, chayote, green onions, scotch bonnet peppers, two thyme sprigs, and adobo seasoning.
Let the soup simmer, partially covered, for about 15-20 minutes.
Prepare the spinners by adding all-purpose flour and salt to a bowl and stirring to combine. Add water and mix until a dough forms. Take small pieces of the dough and roll them between your hands to make small ‘spinners’ or dumplings.
Slowly add spinners to the pot and let the soup simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes, until the spinners are cooked through.
Taste the soup and season with salt and black pepper.
How to store Goat Head Soup
To refrigerate: Once cooked and cooled, this soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. In fact, like most soups and stewss, it will taste better the next day when the flavors will be more intense. When ready to enjoy, heat up in a pot on the stovetop until piping hot.
If serving the spinners too, I would only add them when you are ready to eat otherwise, they will break down and overcook.
To freeze: Once cooked and cooled, place the mannish water into a freezer-safe airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating to piping hot.
Mannish Water recipe variations
While this recipe is delicious as is, switch it up a bit with any of these ideas:
- Mutton would be a good substitution if you can’t find goat meat.
- Add other vegetables, like pumpkin, sweet potato, cassava, or plantain.
- I leave the Scotch bonnet peppers whole for a milder soup, but if you like your soup extra spicy, chop the peppers up.
What to serve with Mannish Water
This is a hearty and intensely meaty, savory soup that also contains spinners, so I tend to keep the sides simple. Add some sautéed greens, like my sautéed turnip greens, beet greens, or collard greens.
Notes
- You can use either bone-in or boneless cuts of goat meat in the soup; both will work equally well.
- I started this recipe in a pressure cooker to cook the goat and tripe to reduce the time needed to cook. You can skip the pressure cooking step and cook the goat on the stovetop in a large pot over medium-low heat until the goat becomes tender, about 1.5-2 hours.
- If you want to prepare the vegetables while the meat is cooking in the pressure cooker, cut the vegetables up and place them into a large bowl of salted water to stop them from oxidizing and turning brown.
- Add the scotch bonnet peppers to the pot whole. These will add flavor to the soup, but be careful not to burst them unless you want a spicy soup.
- Only add the spinners to the soup when you are ready to eat, otherwise, they will overcook and become tough.
- For the seasoning, I use my homemade adobo seasoning blend rather than store-bought seasonings for the soup. You could also use my all-purpose seasoning recipe. If you prefer to use store bought seasoning, try the Caribbean-flavored chicken soup mix or Ram goat soup mix instead of the adobo.
FAQ’s
Mannish water, also known as goat head soup, originates from the Island of Jamaica in the Caribbean.
I like to add whole Scotch bonnet peppers; you could also add habanero peppers. If you don’t like your food spicy, you can always leave the peppers out.
Yes, they are the same thing, both traditionally made with the head of a goat, the feet, tripe, and a selection of vegetables.
Yes, this is a healthy bowl of soup. Goat is a lean meat that is lower in calories and saturated fat than other proteins; it also contains high levels of iron. The soup is packed with healthy vegetables rich in vitamins and minerals.
Yes, absolutely. The only part of this dish that contains gluten is the Jamaican spinners (dumplings), so leave them off the dish entirely.
Looking for more traditional Jamaican recipes? Try these out:
- Jamaican Oxtails
- Brown Stew Chicken
- Brown Stew Fish
- Jamaican Curry Chicken
- Jamaican Jerk Chicken
- Jamaican Rice and Peas (Pressure Cooker Recipe)
- Sauteéd Jamaican Cabbage
If you have tried this recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Mannish Water
Ingredients
- 2 lbs goat pieces chopped, cleaned with water and vinegar and patted dry
- 1/2 lb tripe chopped, cleaned with water and vinegar and patted dry
- 4 sprigs thyme divided
- 6 cloves garlic sliced
- 1 tsp allspice berries
- 12 cups water divided
- 1/2 lb yams peeled and cubed
- 1/2 lb taro root peeled and cubed
- 2 carrots chopped
- 2 white potatoes largely chopped
- 2 green bananas unpeeled but rinsed, split, and chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 1 chayote cubed
- 4 green onions whole
- 2 Scotch bonnet pepper whole
- 1 tbsp adobo seasoning
- 1.5 tsp kosher salt or to taste
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
For Spinners
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Add the goat, tripe, sliced garlic, 2 thyme sprigs, allspice berries, and 8 cups of water to a 6-quart pressure cooker. Cover and pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes. Once done, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then quickly release any remaining pressure. Meanwhile, bring the remaining 4 cups of water to a boil on the stovetop or in a kettle.
- Once the goat in the pressure cooker is done, and the pressure has been released, pour the contents into a 12-quart stock pot over medium heat. Carefully add the 4 cups of hot water to the stock pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer.
- Add yams, taro root, carrots, white potato, green bananas, chayote, green onions, scotch bonnet peppers, 2 thyme sprigs, and adobo seasoning.
- Let the soup simmer, partially covered, for about 15-20 minutes.
- Prepare the spinners by adding all-purpose flour and salt to a bowl and stirring to combine. Add water and mix until a dough forms. Take small pieces of the dough and roll them between your hands to make small 'spinners' or dumplings. Slowly add spinners to the pot and let the soup simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes, until the spinners are cooked through.
- Taste the soup and season with salt and black pepper.
Suggested Tools
Notes
- I start this recipe in a pressure cooker to cook the goat and tripe to reduce the amount of time needed to cook. You can skip the pressure cooking step and cook the goat on the stovetop in a large pot, over medium-low heat, until the goat becomes tender, about 1.5-2 hours.
- Add the scotch bonnet peppers to the pot whole. These will add flavor to the soup, but be careful not to burst them unless you want a spicy soup.