Roast Goose
Germany's classic Christmas bird, roasted until the skin turns to amber crackling, with apples and onions steaming gently inside. Goose asks for patience and a jar: catch the fat as it renders and keep it for the best roast potatoes of the year.
The whole recipe in 60 seconds
Roast Goose, in 5 ideas
- Dry skin is crisp skin. An uncovered night in the fridge dries the surface, and that, more than any trick of temperature, is what makes it shatter.
- Prick, do not score. Piercing the skin all over lets the fat escape and render, without cutting down into the meat and drying it.
- The fat is a harvest, not a waste. A goose gives you a jar of gold. Potatoes roasted in goose fat are crisp beyond reason, and the jar keeps for months.
- Apples and onions are the German way. They perfume the meat from inside and soak up the juices as they soften; serve them right alongside the bird.
- Rest it like you mean it. A big bird needs a full 20 to 30 minutes. The meat relaxes, the juices return, and the carving goes cleanly.
What you need
Ingredients
- 1 whole goose (10 to 12 lb), neck and giblets removed
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 apples, quartered
- 2 onions, quartered
- 1 tbsp dried marjoram
- 2 cups water or chicken stock
How to make it
Method
The day before, pull any loose fat from the cavity, rub the goose inside and out with the salt and pepper, and refrigerate it uncovered overnight so the skin dries.
An hour before roasting, take the goose out of the fridge. Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Prick the skin all over with a skewer or the tip of a knife, angled shallow so you pierce skin and fat but not meat, especially over the thighs and the fat end of the breast.
Season the cavity, then fill it with the apples, onions and marjoram. Tie the legs together, set the goose breast side up on a rack in a large roasting pan, and pour the water or stock into the pan.
Roast for 1 hour, then ladle or pour off all the fat that has collected in the pan into a heatproof jar. Return the goose to the oven and keep roasting, pouring off the fat every 45 minutes or so, until the thigh reads 165°F (74°C) and the juices run clear, about 3 to 3 1/4 hours in total.
For the last 20 minutes, raise the oven to 400°F (200°C) and brush the skin with a little cold salted water. The skin should turn deep amber and crisp all over.
Rest the goose, tented with foil, for 20 to 30 minutes. Strain the jarred fat through a fine sieve while it is still liquid and refrigerate it for roasting potatoes.
Carve by lifting each breast half off in one piece and slicing it across the grain, then take off the legs and thighs. Serve with the roasted apples and onions and a spoon of the strained pan juices.
Keep the pan from ever smoking: if the drippings darken too fast, add another cup of water. The liquid guards the juices, and your rendered fat will strain out pale and clean instead of burnt.