Goose for Christmas - any tips?

[nkf]

We are trying it for a change. I've looked up some recipes. Apples seems to be the way to go and use the fat for roast potatoes.

But, what about leftovers. To be honest, I like turkey for the sandwich the following day. And I understand that goose doesn't deliver much in the way of leftovers.

Also, is it actually nicer? Like noticeably nicer. My family is pushing for it and I've agreed.

[stargirl1701]

I am tempted with goose this year too.

[Whatevertheweather]

We had goose last year and the taste was amazing. Very expensive though and much much less than meat than Turkey. We bought one from local butcher for 15 and had no leftovers from 12 people eating, that could just be us though

It was also huge and we had to chop a bit off to fit it in the oven! Was a nice change and provided a few comedy moments but not sure we'll do it again

I did also buy an M&S turkey crown and gammon so we had leftovers

[ArtemisCake]

Ours produced vast quantities of fat and smoke, yes you do get lovely potatoes, but we only did it for one year. If you can get advice from goose experienced people on how to avoid the smoky fat hell oven take it

[Whatevertheweather]

Oooh yes ours smoked a lot too, I think because it was a bit too big for our oven (which is provably slightly larger than average)

[VanVleck]

We've had goose before. It was delicious and very different from turkey, similar to duck but richer I thought.
There weren't any leftovers from a family of five but that could be because we're a greedy bunch
I cooked mine the same as I cook duck, either healthily on a trivet or unhealthily on thick slices of potato.These can then be eaten whilst not thinking about how many gazillion calories they contain.

[VanVleck]

I would just like to point out our goose was not big enough to feed 15 We are not quite that greedy.
As for the smoking I found a small amount of water in the bottom of the tin helps to keep it down

[greensnail]

We had goose last year. It was perfect for us as we were only feeding two adults and two small children so still had plenty of leftovers to enjoy. Don't remember it being particularly smoky, and we got lots of lovely goose fat which I used for roasties for some time after Christmas. We're having it again this year :)

[nkf]

Oh good. Lots of answers. Do you stuff it? I was thinking of putting apples and onions in the cavity. And then making stuffing on the side. Not that it's stuffing then but you know what you mean. And piggies in blankets. But that's because I have to have them.

With regards to not much meat, should I just ignore the feeds 4 - 6 and buy the biggest one I can find.

[CrotchStitch]

They are long and thin rather than plump and short like a turkey so don't fit into the oven as you would imagine

[nkf]

I have a range oven. The one and a half size. I can't believe it won't fit in there. I had better measure them up. But is the consensus that it's worth it? It is nicer tasting and generally worth the extra faff. I can cook a turkey with my eyes closed and I would hate to make a duff Christmas dinner.

[TeaAddict235]

Do you stuff them with pork and apples? Should the meat be white or reddish at the end? Does the skin get nice a crispy?

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

I did read that you need to get a small whole loaf, cut the crusts off and put that in the cavity because they are so fatty.

Do your stuffing and sauces seperate?

[Oldraver]

I used to have goose from a local farm (I used to see the geese growing up and they would always come and see you if you stood at the field gate). We used to be given the goose, the bag of giblets etc and a bag of fat. The fat I used to freeze and use later in the year.

Yes lots of fat does come off and you will need to drain it a lot but this can alos be frozen. We have only ever once used leftovers in a Rissotto but wasn't very successful