Goose dinner - need suggestions, info?

[Shiloh Acres]

Ok, so I got a goose! Actually I got a bunch of them out in the pasture, but this one was like 75 or 80% off at a Mexican market I visited yesterday.

I've never cooked one myself. I've read online (horror stories that make it sound awful LOL) so I guess I have an idea of times and temps and such, though open for suggestions.

I'm thinking it's a 12 pound young goose, frozen but thawing today. I wanna cook it tomorrow.

I'm not sure what goes with goose either? I'm seeing fruit based dressings (cranberry, apple, nuts) mentioned. I prefer that over vinegar/onion/greens I see also mentioned.

I'm not sure if I can shop either.

I have potatoes, a few apples, dried and canned cranberries, a few carrots I think, lotsa fresh oranges, canned pineapple, and orange marmalade. Spices, and plenty of basics like cornmeal, flour, and other baking stuff. And lots of pecans and a few walnuts.

Any suggestions for what goes well with it? Just one good complementary dish (and any good goose-roasting tips!) are all I need. I can fill out the meal with stuff I already know.

Thanks if anyone can help. This is meant to be an early experiment -- I've raised geese for years but I finally plan to start raising goslings for table this year (and truthfully I don't NEED them strictly as lawnmowers and guard dogs anymore at this place ... The pasture is needed and I have various alarm animals.).

Thanks if anyone can help!!!

 

[miss_thenorth]

this is my muscovy duck/goose instructions. Goose and scovy taste similar, and they both taste like roast beef, if that helps with what to go with it.

Place duck on a rack in a shallow pan, breast side up. Pour a small amount of water or stock in the pan, and check occasionally during the roasting time. Place duck in an oven preheated to 450F (230 C) for 5 minutes and then lower the temperature to 350F . Wrap legs with foil so they dont cook as quickly Loosely tent foil over top of the duck, Remove for the last 20 minutes if needed, to brown the skin.. Roast for 20 minutes per pound or until internal temperature reaches at least 165F . Let stand 15 minutes before carving.

You can stuff the cavity with apple and onions and celery if you feel like it, just add another 20 minutes on to the cook time if you stuff it.

 

[ORChick]

I've been roasting a goose at Christmas for the last several years, last week included. Goose is a popular holiday roast in Germany, and I got my instructions from my DH's cousin in Berlin.
I use a covered roaster (for turkey also), and like the results with that. Lacking such, aluminum foil is good.
For the stuffing I chop up some prunes, and let them soak in Madiera for several hours or overnight (other dried fruit, and other sweet wine, or apple (orange?) juice, would substitute nicely, I think). Then I saute some pearl onions in butter, seasoning with pepper, a bit of salt (to taste, and not much for me), and marjoram. I add in some peeled, cut into chunks cooking apple (2 or 3), and the soaked fruit and remaining liquid. That's it, as far as Berlin Cousin's instructions, but I also add some chestnuts if I have them (pecans would be nice), and this year I added stale bread cubes to help it go further. With the bread I added some stock for moistening, which was a good idea.
I roast the stuffed bird at 325* (on a rack in the roaster, covered) for 3 hours (some recipes recommend doing the first 1 1/2 hours breast side down, but I never bother), removing the rendered fat periodically (I don't add water - at this low temperature, and with the lid on, the fat doesn't burn). After 3 hours I take the lid off to let the bird brown and crisp.
Traditional German accompaniments are red cabbage and potato dumplings - the cabbage recipe should be easy to find, and the dumplings I only make if I don't have guests to impress, as they (as likely as not) will fall apart when I make them. Plain old boiled or mashed potatoes are easier.
Don't throw out the fat! I save any loose fat from the uncooked bird, and render it out when I have time; and I also save the fat removed from the roaster. It is great stuff for cooking with - mmmm roast potatoes!

 

[Shiloh Acres]

Thanks so much!!!

My covered roaster isn't QUITE big enough, unfortunately. I did run to town to get a few things thinking that I want to do this right since it might influence how I handle my flock. Wouldn't you know, no pearl onions (well, not entirely true, there was a specialty package but I refuse to spend nearly half as much on a few onions as I did for the goose!) and no marjoram. The two main things I went for LOL.

I'm going to soak dried orange-flavored cranberries in apple juice tonight, and set out a boule to dry a bit. I did get some green onions and I'm debating between basil and parsley to replace the marjoram. I'm going to stuff it with the bread, apples, cranberries (might add some dried cherries and mixed berries to the soak), pecans, and onions. Wow I'm hungry already LOL. Goose is still pretty frozen so I'm leaving it out tonight. Will just make potatoes of some sort to go with.

THANK YOU both so much! And for the reminder to save the fat too. I'm out of fat AND stock at the moment (how did THAT happen?) but I have almost a dozen chicken breasts and two big turkeys simmering down (the bones I mean) so I should have stock soon.

Thanks again! I think I just might make one last pumpkin pie to go with it ... I made it at Thanksgiving to take to my family but I don't think I ate any myself.

 

[ORChick]

That sounds like a luscious mix for the stuffing! I meant to add that, lacking pearl onions I would just use a regular onion cut in large dice. Those pearl onions are ridiculously expensive, aren't they? Actually, about the only thing harvestable in my garden right now is some small onions, so I forgot how expensive they are at the store. I put all the bones in my big crockpot, along with some carrots, celery, and some of the stuffing, and got a lot of stock to put in the freezer.

ETA: You should probably prick the skin on your goose too, to let the fat melt out better. Sorry, forgot to mention that before. Use a sharp knife and just prick the skin all over, but not into the meat if you can avoid it. And do it again a time or two while cooking.