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Cooking a skinned (oops!) goose?


Richard Kilgore

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A friend and his teenage soon returned from a goose hunt last week. It was the son's job to pluck the goose, but he decided the best way to get all those troublesome feathers off was simply to skin it. So I got a phone call pleading for an eGullet solution. What are his options? (For the goose, not the son.) My friend thought wrapping the breasts in bacon and roasting them may work as a way to keep the breasts intact. Anyone ever try that or have an opinion? Any other idea for cooking the breasts intact? Alternatively, any Christmasy ideas for a goose stew or casserole?

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If you have enough time and a local REAL butcher, ask if they have caul fat. It comes from a pig so is unsuitable if serving a meal to those who avoid pork products.

I've used it to wrap beef roasts, the leaner pork loin roasts, etc. you can brine the bird first, which will make it more tender, drain and dry it well, season the surface and inside then wrap with the caul fat.

Tent the goose for the first half of cooking time then remove the foil or parchment so the wrap can brown. It makes a beautiful finish and holds the moisture inside the meat.

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"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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I'd bard with bacon, myself. Over in the dinner thread (I think we're on part 6 now), Norm Matthews showed off a lovely method for this on a meatloaf - he used woven bacon, which would in your case both add back the fat that's been stripped off with the skin and hold the breasts together while roasting, and it would likely look stupendous when it came out. Same concept as the caul fat Andie mentions - season underneath, then wrap it up and roast away.

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I'd bard with bacon, myself. Over in the dinner thread (I think we're on part 6 now), Norm Matthews showed off a lovely method for this on a meatloaf - he used woven bacon, which would in your case both add back the fat that's been stripped off with the skin and hold the breasts together while roasting, and it would likely look stupendous when it came out. Same concept as the caul fat Andie mentions - season underneath, then wrap it up and roast away.

If using bacon, I would get a cured but not smoked or "flavored" bacon - pancetta would be my choice. I have tried the regular bacon on turkey and it ended up tasting like bacon throughout - not that it is a bad thing, but I want turkey to taste like turkey (or goose in this case).

There is no source near me that carries unsmoked bacon, except the pancetta at the Italian market/deli.

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"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Without the skin roasting or broiling is out.

I would cut it up and reserve the the breast for steaks. They'll freeze well.

The legs and wings can go into confit, if you wait two weeks for it, but I would go cassoulet: a crock of beans, goose, and chorizo.

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I had the same issue a few weeks ago; a friend gave me a bunch of goose and duck legs, skinned. I confited them using the sous-vide method. They were excellent. The friends were really happy as well - they struggle to find a use for the more gamey ducks, and the confit did the trick.

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