How to Prepare Goose
Author:
Thomas Sixt is a chef, food photographer, cookbook author and blogger.
Here he shares recipes, answers cooking questions and helps with cooking.
I will show you how to prepare goose step by step. The article serves to get you in the mood and is intended as a cooking school for the perfect roast goose.
In the article you will find cooking tips and a cooking video series as well as matching recipes. Any questions? Feel free to contact me via the comment function.
1. Buy and Prepare the Goose
As a cooking professional, I recommend frozen goose. Firstly, most geese come thawed on the market and are often sold at a higher price; secondly, once frozen, the goose is more tender after preparation.
For thawing the goose, I recommend a deep baking tray and a grid. Place the grid in the baking tray and place the packed and frozen goose on it. Put a cloth over the goose and let it thaw for 12 hours.
2. Prepare the Goose for the Oven
Start by preparing the apple and onions for the filling. Cut the apple with the core into eighths, peel the onions or shallots and cut them into quarters or eighths.
Place the apple and onion pieces in a bowl and season generously with salt, pepper and marjoram. Optionally, you can use mugwort instead of marjoram.
Next, unpack the goose. Remove the giblets and collar from the abdominal cavity. Wash the goose under cold running water and lay it dry on a clean baking tray.
Fill the goose belly with the prepared apples and onions and either close with a skewer or leave open.
Pour a little water on the baking tray and place the giblets without the liver on the baking tray. If there are still pieces of apple and onion left over from the stuffing, you can spread them on the baking tray.
Place the baking tray in the oven and roast the goose at 175°C for approx. 90 minutes.
If you do not have a hot air level available, please turn the roast 3 times to achieve an even cooking result.
After about 45 minutes, you can baste the goose with the resulting gravy and carefully add a little more salt to the skin.
When is the goose ready? The time given is a guideline that varies slightly depending on the size of the roast poultry and the power of the oven.
Generally, the goose breast is fully cooked before the leg. Do a needle test: Prick the goose breast with a thin meat fork or needle and carefully feel the temperature on your finger.
If no more reddish juice comes out, the roast goose is almost done. Cook the goose for another 15 minutes. Then remove from the oven to cool.
3. Trigger Goose
It is relatively easy to remove the goose. Let the goose cool down to at least lukewarm and then cut into the legs, starting at the side of the wings.
These can then be folded over. The roast goose now remains stable and you can now remove the goose breasts, starting from the centre of the breastbone.
Cut along the bone and use a small, sharp knife. Once the breasts are detached, you can hold the goose body by the first leg, then cut off the leg and do the same with the second leg.
Cut off the wings at the joint and the rest of the meat with a knife. Place all the pieces of goose on a fresh baking tray.
See the video instructions under point 6.
This form of preparation promises absolute success. You can leave the pieces of goose covered in the kitchen for 2-3 hours before serving or refrigerate them.
Info for later: Before serving, season the skin again with salt, then cook in a hot air grill until crispy and serve with the side dishes.
Think about the sauce first!
4. Cooking Goose Sauce
Break the leftover roast and bones (cooks call these goose carcasses) into small pieces and put them into a pot. Pour in cold chicken stock and simmer gently for 2-4 hours.
Then strain the goose sauce through a fine sieve and reduce to the desired thickness.
Mix cornflour in cold water and thicken the boiling goose sauce as desired.
I usually let the sauce cool down again and remove some of the fat. That way I get a more digestible sauce.
5. Preparing Side Dishes for Roast Goose
The delicious roast still needs some side dishes, here are some recommendations:
Satiating Side Dishes
Napkin dumplings, potato pancakes, mashed potatoes, potato gratin, spaetzle
Vegetable Side Dishes
Brussels sprouts, parsnips, courgette vegetables, carrot vegetables, pumpkin in the oven, black salsify vegetables, savoy cabbage, ratatouille
Sweet Additions
Cranberry compote, apple compote, apricot roast
