Goose for Xmas dinner?

[laurence]

Ah, sloth. The algae in it's fur adds a certain piquancy. Not to mention the thrill of playing botulism roulette....

Of course grebe is rather easier to get hold of than sloth.

rubbish, sloths are exactly where you last saw them, even if it was ten years ago.

yer grebe can swim underwater a very long distance and even fly away. plus that beak will leave a nasty wound.

most grebe sold in shops is disguised pigeon

 

[simon l& and a half]

I'm sorry if I've taken the shine of your anticipation. Perhaps I might partially redeem myself by declaring a deep dislike of turkey. This might allow you to put the whole thing down to epicurean over-delicacy.

Southend on Sea played host to foie gras protesters this afternoon. Sadly they couldn't direct me to a delicatessen that supplied foie gras.

 

[spandex]

Follow the excellent advice of Spandex. The only thing I would add is to prick the skin all over with a fork before roasting. This lets out the excess fat.

Bon appetit.

thanks for that i forgot to add it

 

[Brock]

Thanks for the tips chaps, I'll pass your wisdom and warnings on to the chef, I think she's probably capable as long as I maintain a discreet watch on the proceedings, from the sofa, with a glass of wine.

Interesting point about pheasants Patrick, pretty sure I could've found a partridge in a pear tree for the price of the goose too. I've enjoyed pheasant and partridge in the past though, while never coming across goose.. Had a lovely fat wood pigeon for the first time last summer, so I'm thinking peacock next Christmas, just to tick another box

 

[Cab]

I have goose every year, we both love it and our guests always come back for more!

We'll be taking the legs off to cook down as confit. I've got some rendered down fat bottled away sterile from last year, so after curing for a few days I'll cook the confit very, very slowly in that fat. I'll also make a forcemeat of the giblets to stuff into the neck, which will be cooked at the same time with the confit and served as a second course (after perhaps smoked salmon mousse, or maybe blewit pate, haven't decided).

The rest of the goose will be roasted, quite simply, on a rack raised above the tin to allow it to drain. If the skin is well seasoned then it is to die for.

Basically, the methods I use with goose are taken straight from 'River Cottage Year'.

 

[Cab]

Hmmm..........I tend to agree. I recall spending £22 on a goose that proved to be just about enough for two adults and two children, and was rather less tasty than the standard brace of pheasants for a fiver.

Really depends on the goose and how you cook it. I agree that there are some pretty bland flavoured birds out there. But you have to know how to handle a goose, its all in the seasoning and allowing the fat to drain out slowly during roasting, followed by really getting the oven hot to crisp up the skin.

 

[User482]

I've ordered a goose for xmas, which will be my first attempt at cooking xmas dinner, let alone goose! I intend to follow the Nigel Slater recipe in the kitchen diaries, which seems to be similar to the general advice here. One tip I've read is to put some olive oil and chinese five-spice over the skin - anyone tried this?

 

[Gerry Attrick]

I'm not sure why you need to rub olive oil on a bird already rich in its own fat. Seems excessive. If you like five spice, then go ahead, but a good quality goose has such a wonderful flavour of its own.

 

[Trembler49]

I can back up what Patrick said. Goose does not go far, a decent size goose will do 3 to 4 people at most.

 

[Brock]

Well we've got a 10lb bird and it's just the two of us, so I think it'll probably be enough even if most of it is fat and bone. Really rather looking forward to it.