After the cooking marathon that produced the Feast of the Seven Fishes, roasting a goose for Christmas was a breeze. When I told family and friends of my goose plans, some warned me against it. My mother last attempted a Christmas goose in the '70s, and it was not a success (I was there, but don't remember). My sister made a goose a few years ago, and she said that she barely got enough meat to feed two people. My father-in-law recalled the grease bomb that was his goose experience. I moved forward with my plans, undeterred.
I have roasted 5 or 6 ducks in the last few years, using the
amazing 5-hour duck recipe, and I was pretty sure that this method would translate well to cooking a goose. The bird roasted beautifully. The skin was brown and crispy, most of the fat rendered away while cooking (more than 2 cups of beautiful goose fat!), and the meat was tender and succulent. There's no white meat on a goose; the breast meat had a reddish tint and was delicious with a bit of crispy skin. The kitchen did get a little smoky in the last hour with all that goose fat spattering in the oven (I had to take down the smoke alarm and open the windows).
We kept the side dishes pretty simple. We made a bread stuffing with chestnuts and dried cherries. The potatoes roasted in goose fat were simply outstanding. My mother, the Queen of Roasted Potatoes, always parboils her potatoes before roasting, but I've had success starting with raw russets. I find that you need plenty of fat, and you need to turn the potatoes to prevent sticking. I use my thinnest-edged metal spatula. The potatoes are most likely to stick early on. Once they get a little brown, you should give the pan a shake to keep them free. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside -- outrageously good.
We also made creamed spinach that was good, but a little too wet. I made a bechamel sauce, boiled the spinach in salted water for 3 minutes and then added it to the sauce. I just dumped the spinach into a colander -- I should have squeezed out some of the water before adding the spinach to the bechamel. Minor mishap, but still a tasty side dish. I made a stock with the giblets and neck while the goose was roasting. I used the stock in the stuffing and in a dried cherry port sauce for the goose.
I have roasted 5 or 6 ducks in the last few years, using the
amazing 5-hour duck recipe, and I was pretty sure that this method would translate well to cooking a goose. The bird roasted beautifully. The skin was brown and crispy, most of the fat rendered away while cooking (more than 2 cups of beautiful goose fat!), and the meat was tender and succulent. There's no white meat on a goose; the breast meat had a reddish tint and was delicious with a bit of crispy skin. The kitchen did get a little smoky in the last hour with all that goose fat spattering in the oven (I had to take down the smoke alarm and open the windows).
We kept the side dishes pretty simple. We made a bread stuffing with chestnuts and dried cherries. The potatoes roasted in goose fat were simply outstanding. My mother, the Queen of Roasted Potatoes, always parboils her potatoes before roasting, but I've had success starting with raw russets. I find that you need plenty of fat, and you need to turn the potatoes to prevent sticking. I use my thinnest-edged metal spatula. The potatoes are most likely to stick early on. Once they get a little brown, you should give the pan a shake to keep them free. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside -- outrageously good.
We also made creamed spinach that was good, but a little too wet. I made a bechamel sauce, boiled the spinach in salted water for 3 minutes and then added it to the sauce. I just dumped the spinach into a colander -- I should have squeezed out some of the water before adding the spinach to the bechamel. Minor mishap, but still a tasty side dish. I made a stock with the giblets and neck while the goose was roasting. I used the stock in the stuffing and in a dried cherry port sauce for the goose.
1 comment:
Nice job on the use of Leftovers! :)
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