Gänsebraten, Xmas recipe (Roasted Goose)

The goose is one of the first wild animals that man domesticated. There is strong evidence that the Egyptians around 3000 BC were the first to do so. It seems that roast goose was one of the supreme delicacies of the gastronomy of the country of the pharaohs, as reflected in many images drawn on their tombs.

Throughout the centuries the goose was also domesticated for other purposes. The Romans used them to guard their homes in the country.

They are very aggressive birds and do not hesitate to bite any bug or man that approaches them. But it was not only this aggressiveness that made the Romans sometimes prefer geese over guard dogs, if not the scandal, the deafening shouting that they organized when an intruder approached the town.

Geese were raised to obtain their eggs, their feathers, their meat and later the famous foie gras (although it seems that the first Egyptians already obtained a similar product). Geese eggs are equivalent to a large chicken egg, only the yolk is somewhat larger and denser. Its flavor is also very similar.

Feathers have had various uses. The shorter and softer ones have been used as padding for pillows and mattresses while the long ones were used for writing: the ancient Egyptians wrote on papyrus with feathers cut out of goose and this was done in Europe with parchment and paper until the invention of the pens. 

And the meat? Well, meat is a separate chapter. As succulent as the sight of a plump goose may seem, the reality is somewhat different. I say different, not worse.

Goose is one of the fattiest poultry, light years away from turkey or chicken and considerably more fat than duck. So when we cook it we must take this "detail" into account. And when I say fat, I say fat in spades. If you have read "Sinuhe the Egyptian" by Mika Waltari you will observe that in several places the roast goose is praised and how "delicious" is its fat, which is dipped with bread as if it were a delicacy.

Another important detail is that the meat is dark and fibrous, similar to that of the duck but even more rotund. That is, if you do not like duck, better not try the goose. It is important to note that although some geese can reach a weight of 10 kg (22 pounds), they are not the most suitable for celebrating a massive meal: if it were a ten kilos turkey, no problem, but a large goose has too tough meat. It is better that the piece to be roasted does not exceed 3-5 kg (6.6-11 pounds).

In Germany, roast goose is the star recipe of Christmas, in the same way that turkey is in America. Fillers are usually made although often the filling, consisting of nuts, apples, spices and aromatic herbs, is only used to give flavor, not to serve it to diners.

There are many recipes. This is one of the simplest since it does not even use the aforementioned aromatic filler.

INGREDIENTS (6/8 people):

•  1 goose between 3 and 5 Kg (6.6-11 pounds)
•  2 cloves of garlic
•  Salt
•  Pepper

Optional:

•  4 apples
•  4 tablespoons brown sugar

First of all, we are going to use a very deep source that can go into the oven and where, obviously, the goose can fit in it.

The mission of a deep source is that it can collect all the fat that the goose releases, which is really a lot.

Now we are going to clean and gut the goose thoroughly. Next, we will practice a series of cuts along the meat with the tip of a knife. It is simply a matter of nailing the tip to facilitate the fat comes out. A small to medium sized goose should contain at least two dozen of these small cuts. We cut the garlic cloves into slices and we introduce them in some of these cuts. We add salt and pepper by rubbing all the outside.

We preheat the oven to 180 degrees (356 F) and place the goose in the center for two and a half hours. The goose will begin to release fat abundantly.We use this fat to bathe the goose on the top every half hour, more or less, although it is likely that due to the amount that is generated you will have to remove a part or the baking dish will overflow . Do not throw this excess fat, we can use it later.

After the baking time, turn the goose over, keeping it for another half hour. If you have a thermometer, it is considered that the goose is done when sticking it in the breast the temperature reaches 80 degrees. Then it's ready to serve.

As served like this, it is a bit tasteless and is usually accompanied by caramelized fruits.

To caramelize the fruit, the fat that we had removed from the source is used. Peel and cut the apples into wedges, placing them in a pan. We use the fat of the bird as if it were oil. We add a pinch of salt and brown sugar over medium heat. In less than half an hour they will be caramelized (and well caramelized, since using fat it caramelizes much better).

It is cut on the table just as it is done with turkey, poularde or duck, serving a quantity of meat and some pieces of caramelised fruit to each diner. If you want to serve more fruit, no problem, double the number of apples. The goose has enough fat to caramelize that and more.