Goose?

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I cooked a wild goose once and it was an absolute disaster. Tough, greasy, yuk.

This week Giant has domestic geese on sale for $3.49/lb. I would like to give it another try. Anyone here had success cooking geese? Tips?
 
Wild geese are hard to cook. I usually make sausage.
For a 10 pound batch.
5 tablespoons vinegar
5 lbs pork butt
2 pounds goose
.5 pounds beef tallow
2.5 pounds of bacon
2.5 cups water
5 tablespoons paprika
10 teaspoons garlic
10 teaspoons sugar
7.5 teaspoons salt
5 teaspoons cayenne pepper
5 teaspoons black pepper
1.25 teaspoons sage
1.25 teaspoons thyme
1.25 teaspoons savory
5 pinches allspice

Grind twice with coarse blade.
Can use as bulk or stuff in hog casings.
Makes great biscuits and gravy.
 
Posted my Canada goose roast earlier. Came out great. A friend brought me (day before Thanksgiving) a Canada he had bagged. It was too late for the holiday so it went into the fridge for later. Dry brined it for three days un-covered, skin up, and I thought I'd better get it done today before I lose it. Turned out the best goose I've ever done. Rubbed with domestic duck lard, seasoned with pepper, complete seasoning and garlic powder. Placed over Granny Smith apples, sage, rosemary and some basil. Poured a bottle of Youngling amber under it and into the oven at 400 for 2.5 hours. (Far more done than most officionados suggest, but it's my kind of done.)
Plated with yam/apple casserole, cranberry orange relish, wild rice mix and mixed vegetables.
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Al Czervik, Big George's BBQ, bowhnter, cr
 
Only had goose once and didn't know until after I'd eaten it. Some farm friends had created breakfast sausage out of the critter after it nipped my youngest son on the butt at their place the previous summer lol! Was pretty good.
 
Wild goose, domestic goose, two vastly different creatures, Lots of fat on the domestic, and they don't fly, none on the wild and fly like eagles, both are dark meat.

Whatever method you choose make sure it's for the right bird.
 
My wife cooked a domestic goose once. Proceeded to make gravy from the drippings, thought it was broth not grease, made about a gallon of gravy, lol.
My uncle gave me a Canada goose he bagged one year, I put it on the rotisserie on the gasser, came out great.
 
Alright... I went ahead and bought one. 10lbs ~$35. It is currently defrosting in the fridge.

Formulating a plan:
Option A: Smoke it
Option B: Roast it
Option C: Take it apart. Cure the breasts for Goose Pastrami, Carcass for stock, Legs and Thighs for Gumbo.
 
Alright... I went ahead and bought one. 10lbs ~$35. It is currently defrosting in the fridge.

Formulating a plan:
Option A: Smoke it
Option B: Roast it
Option C: Take it apart. Cure the breasts for Goose Pastrami, Carcass for stock, Legs and Thighs for Gumbo.
Either B or C, smoking will only dry it out IMHO.
 
I would consider roasting it on an elevated rack to keep out of the grease, save the pastrami method for wild goose breasts, even the avowed sky carp haters eat mine and beg for more....
 
We shoot them and give them to people that we really don’t like.
Just to make them think for a minute that we do like them.Then they cook the goose and the message resonates.Good luck.I did eat wild goose once that was edible.We shot a bunch in Olive Branch Illinois.A guy with us took them home after being processed.He brined them in some concoction and smoked them.Made a pretty good smoked goose sammich if you used enough salt,pepper and Duke’s Mayo.
 
I've been preaching for years how good wild goose breast pastrami is, since I discovered the recipe. I fill in with a goose hunting group and they did the same, give as much of that crap away as they can.
Now, They bring me geese to process into pastrami and they all love it. I turned down a wild game chef that does parties to make it for him, figured it's probably illegal to make any money on game., lol
I've cooked wild geese everyway possible to consistently get an edible product, some were better then others, but the pastrami is a winner.
 
I've been preaching for years how good wild goose breast pastrami is, since I discovered the recipe. I fill in with a goose hunting group and they did the same, give as much of that crap away as they can.
Now, They bring me geese to process into pastrami and they all love it. I turned down a wild game chef that does parties to make it for him, figured it's probably illegal to make any money on game., lol
I've cooked wild geese everyway possible to consistently get an edible product, some were better then others, but the pastrami is a winner.

@gcs - Would you be willing to share your recipe? Is it the same a regular pastrami?
 
Sure, it's so simple even I can do it...lol
but first, check out Hank Shaws site, thats where I got it from, of course I adapted it a little.

But, breast out your geese, weigh them, and add tenderquick cure depending on weight.
The cure penetrates 1/4" per day per side, so 3 days is plenty, put meat in zip lock and turn once a day, wash off excess cure, add your pastrami spices and smoke to about 145,150 degrees. eat warm with mustard, cold with mayo. :-D

Thats the basics, spices are black pepper, coriander, the salt and sugar is in the cure.
Tenderquick is easiest, but I use instacure #1 and make my own cure mix. If you do that make sure you get the ratio between meat and cure accurate. Other then b pepper and coriander, I'll sometimes add juniper berry, and garlic powder, actually pretty much any spice rub mix you like.
The breasts cook pretty fast so keep your smoker temps low to get the smoke profile you like, and don't overcook them as theres no fat .
 
Yes, skin off, theres no fat to speak of under the skin, now domestic goose would be a different story, I'd pluck and leave the skin on to keep the fat in place, cure might take a little longer to penetrate the skin though.
 
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