The goose is distinguished by thick skin, heavy bones and a lot of fat. Therefore, the meat is either not baked, then it turns out dry and tough, then it acquires an unpleasant fatty aftertaste. But all these problems can be avoided.

How to choose a goose

For baking without filling, you should buy a very young, for example, three-month-old bird: it will cook much faster and be tender. For stuffing, a larger and more fragrant six-month-old goose is better suited.

A young goose can be recognized by yellow legs with soft membranes, flexible, like a chicken, sternum, white fat and fair skin. The old paws are reddish and rough, the sternum is hard, the fat is yellowish, and the skin is dark.

Give preference to chilled poultry. A good fresh goose has a pleasant smell, dry skin without spots, elastic meat, which, after pressing, returns to its previous shape.

If you can only find a frozen goose, choose a carcass without a thick ice crust and in transparent packaging: this will make it easier to assess the quality.

The weight of the goose must be selected based on the number of people you plan to feed, as well as the volume of the oven.

To calculate the cooking time for a bird, multiply its weight in kilograms by 40-60 minutes. The older and larger the goose, the longer it must be kept in the oven.

For baking, a goose weighing 2–4 kg is optimal, it is enough for 6–8 servings.

How to prepare a goose for roasting

First, if necessary, thaw the bird slowly in the refrigerator without removing it from the packaging. Then get rid of everything superfluous.

On the shelves of stores, any bird most often gets already plucked and gutted. Such a goose can simply be washed with cold water and dried. But it’s better to carefully examine the carcass and make sure that there are no feathers and entrails left on it.

Domestic or farm-bought goose usually requires more preparation. If necessary, gut it. To get rid of coarse bristles and get a crisp, scald the carcass. To do this, take it by the neck and dip in boiling water for one minute. Do the same, holding the goose by the paws.

Trim excess fat from the neck, belly and tail. Wrap with foil or cut off the extreme phalanges of the wings so that they do not burn.

How to marinate and stuff a goose

To make the goose meat really soft and tender, marinate it first. This can be done in many ways. For example:

1. Rub the carcass with salt (1 teaspoon per kilogram of weight) and your favorite spices inside and out. Wrap the bird in cling film and refrigerate for 8-10 hours.
2. Soak the carcass in water with apple cider vinegar or lemon juice (1 teaspoon per liter). Soak the goose in this solution in a cool place for 5-6 hours.
3. Rub the carcass with salt and pour white wine, sour fruit or berry juice, such as cranberry or orange. Keep 10-12 hours in the refrigerator.

Unfilled poultry is usually baked on a wire rack, under which a tray of water is placed to catch the dripping fat. For stuffed goose, use a deep brazier or baking sheet.

The bird should be stuffed immediately before being sent to the oven. Fill the carcass with minced meat about two-thirds (a densely stuffed bird will not bake well) and sew the belly with thread or fasten it with toothpicks.

There are many variations of the filling: geese are stuffed with vegetables, citrus, quince, buckwheat porridge with mushrooms, sauerkraut. Try one of these bird roast recipes.

How to cook goose with apples

Great option for a holiday table. The light sourness of the fruit perfectly emphasizes the taste of fragrant meat with a crispy honey crust.

Ingredients

• Goose weighing 2-3 kg;
• 3 teaspoons of salt;
• 3 teaspoons of black ground pepper;
• dried basil and thyme – to taste;
• 1 head of garlic;
• 50 ml of olive oil;
• 3 large sour apples;
• ½ lemon;
• 2 tablespoons of honey.

Cooking

Combine salt, pepper and herbs and rub the carcass thoroughly inside and out with the mixture. After 8-10 hours, brush the goose with garlic and olive oil passed through a press. Let the goose stand for another 30 minutes.

At this time, wash the apples, remove the core from them and cut into quarters. If desired, you can remove the peel.

Squeeze out the juice from the lemon. Drizzle the juice over the apples and stuff the goose with them. Sew the carcass with kitchen string and wrap it entirely in foil. Put the goose on a baking sheet and send it to the oven, heated to 200 ° C.

Do not put the goose in a cold oven: because of the slow heating, there will be a lot of fat, and the meat will turn out dry.

Roast the goose for one hour, then reduce the temperature to 180 ° C and cook for another hour and a half. Remove the baking sheet 30 minutes before the end of cooking and carefully open the foil. Lubricate the carcass with the released fat and honey.

Return the baking sheet to the oven, reduce the temperature to 160°C and bake the bird for another 25-30 minutes.

How to bake a goose with prunes in the sleeve

In the roasting sleeve, the goose turns out to be especially juicy, and the prunes give it a pleasant sweet and sour aftertaste.

Ingredients

• Goose weighing 3 kg;
• 3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar;
• 3 teaspoons of salt;

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