Nebraskaland Magazine
Hello all, Katie Stacey of Game and Parks in Omaha, NE here. It’s been quite some time since I’ve taken over Greg’s blog, but after I told him about my family’s Christmas dinner he told me I needed to share with you as well.
This year Greg generously gave me several Canada geese he’d harvested just in time for me to be able to prepare them for my family. In order to enjoy this treat to its fullest potential I decided to prepare small portions of meat several different ways, six in fact.
My sister, who is a cook, claimed one of the goose breasts to prepare her own way. The breast was salted and refrigerated the night before to draw out the moisture, thus allowing the lean goose meat to absorb added fat when cooked. She butterflied the meat, stuffed it with fresh thyme; and then literally drowned it in butter and heavy cream. She cooked it in a low oven (325) for two hours. The end result she served with a cream sauce and some risotto was absolutely fabulous. It was so tender she pulled it apart with a fork before serving.
The next preparation also used a full breast. Like the first it was salted overnight. This one I peppered then roasted with bacon atop. It’s a simple preparation, but one that’s hard to beat. The bacon adds a nice smoky flavor and the fat keeps the roasting goose from drying out. I cut it into strips after roasting to make it easier to share among the five of us.
Three of the variations were simply marinades, just to try more flavor combinations. I trimmed the goose into strips, and marinated each portion differently, but they were all broiled together until medium rare. All were served (optionally) with naan, goat cheese, and fresh spinach. On the meat pictured to the left I used a mixture of apple juice, balsamic vinegar, and dried apricots. The end result was delicious, but a little too strong as it overpowered the flavor of the goose. In the middle was goose marinated with garlic and rosemary. This one was the favorite of these three with my parents, sister, and husband; the rosemary complemented the goose’s natural flavors very well. The last batch I marinated with one of my favorite spice combinations, lemon pepper. It was my favorite of the marinades, but I’m a lemon fiend.
Last, and my over-all favorite, I made goose ravioli soup. I ground the meat that wasn’t large enough to turn into neat strips (leg, some thigh, and wing meat) and browned it with garlic and Italian seasonings, then added some parmesan cheese. I made pasta dough, and rolled it flat (I have a pasta roller, but a rolling pin works too). My mom and I filled the raviolis as a team. I don’t have a ravioli cutter, so they turned out looking a bit more like dumplings in the end. Once cooked these were added to the soup base I made using chicken stock, zucchini, yellow squash, Portobello mushrooms, spinach, and a little bit of butter.
What’s your favorite way to cook goose?
