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Home » Recipes

Enjoy A Rich And Delicious Roasted Goose!

Jan 3, 2022Last Modified: December 18, 2022

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This page may contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my link. This post is about how to roast a goose so that you may enjoy its rich and delicious flavor!

Roasted Goose on a white serving tray with sage and onion stuffing and a poinsettia in the background.

Turkey is now the favored roast for holiday celebrations. However, please don't dismiss roasted goose for the holidays or days that aren't holidays! This showstopper is much easier to make than you might think!

Please read on to find out how to make an easy and delicious roasted goose, which will be an absolutely rewarding experience!

Jump to:
  • Why Try Roasted Goose?
  • 1,000 Foods To Eat Project
  • What Ingredients and Equipment Will I Need To Roast a Goose?
  • Here's How To Make A Roasted Goose
  • What To Serve With Roasted Goose
  • The Goose In Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol"
  • Some Other Recipes You May Enjoy!
  • Easy and Delicious Roasted Goose

Why Try Roasted Goose?

  • The flavor is so rich! It has a stronger taste than chicken or turkey, kind of gamey and more like beef
  • The skin will turn golden and crispy which is both beautiful and tasty!
  • You will be rewarded with "liguid gold". The goose is a very fatty bird so you will get lots of goose fat which you can use to make the most AMAZING roast potatoes!
  • The giblets can be used to make an INCREDIBLE giblet gravy!
  • The carcass can be used to make a very delicious stock

Roasted Goose With Sage and Onion Stuffing is also one of the 1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die!

1,000 Foods To Eat Project

I am working my way through the foods that are listed in the book 1,000 Foods to Eat Before You Die by Mimi Sheraton. This is called my 1,000 Foods to Eat Project. Roast Goose With Sage and Onion Stuffing is food #56 in my Project! Roasting goose and preparing it for my family for the first time has been a fantastic experience! It was the centerpiece of our recent Christmas dinner. We loved not only the taste of the roasted goose, but also using every part of the bird out of total respect for her.

1,000 Foods to Eat Before You Die Front Jacket
1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die

In this book, the author Mimi Sheraton lists her choice for the 1,000 Foods of the World that you MUST try. So let's get ready to make a Roasted Goose! 😃

What Ingredients and Equipment Will I Need To Roast a Goose?

Here's what you will need to make a roasted goose:

  • Oven for roasting
  • Large roasting tray - the goose can be a rather large bird (mine was 10 pounds)
  • Something to prick the skin of the goose with - I used the sharp end of my meat thermometer; you could also use a clean needle; the skin is pricked so that the fat can run through (you will get a LOT of goose fat!)
  • Goose for roasting
  • Baster - baste the goose every so often with the liquid gold (goose fat)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Ingredients to stuff the goose (optional) - I stuffed mine with a lemon, onion, garlic, sage, and thyme

The goose I used was from Whetstone Valley. Here are pictures of the front and back of the packaged goose, which was frozen when I bought it.

Goose from Whetstone Valley
Back of Whetstone Valley Goose With Cooking Directions

As you can see, it's a rather expensive bird! However, please be assured that you will get so much out of it!

Here's How To Make A Roasted Goose

I tweaked the directions on the back of the Whetstone Valley Goose package. If you follow these directions, you should get a roasted goose with a golden and crispy skin, with gloriously rich and tender meat.

  1. Thaw your goose if you buy it frozen. My 10 pound goose actually took over 2 days to thaw. Once thawed, remove the packaging. Remove the neck and giblets from inside the cavity, and also trim the excess fat from the neck and cavity. Set the neck and giblets aside for possible later use to make a divine gravy. Then rinse and dry the bird with paper towels. Now add a generous amount of salt to both the skin and inside the cavity. Allow the goose to sit uncovered in your fridge for at least 6 hrs or overnight.
Giblets from a goose and excess fat which has been removed and placed in a bowl with someone holding up the excess fat
goose whose skin has been salted

2. Remove the goose from your fridge around 1 hr - 1.5 hrs prior to roasting to allow the goose to come to room temperature.

3. Prepare your stuffing (if using). I halved my lemon and onion.

halved lemon and onion, thyme and sage, and some cloves of garlic on a wooden board

4. Preheat your oven to 325F. When the goose is at room temperature, be sure to prick the skin all over with the sharp end of your meat thermometer, or you can use a clean needle. Try not to pierce the skin. Season it with salt and pepper.

goose which was seasoned with salt and pepper and its skin being pricked  with a meat thermometer

5. Stuff the goose with your stuffing of choice.

closeup of a cavity of a goose which has been stuffed with herbs, lemon, and onion

6. Roast the goose (breast side up and set on a rack on a roasting tray) for approximately 2 hrs. During this time, baste it every 30 minutes or so. After the first 30-45 minutes I also turn it over and roast it underside up for around 30 minutes to get that side browned as well. I need to do this in my oven (it's older and quirky!) but if you are able to get the underside browned without turning over then all good! Please roast according to your oven's quirks (if any). 😊

goose on a rack in a roasting tray with golden skin and lots of fat underneath

Here you can see the skin getting nice and golden brown, and if you look underneath you can see pools of liquid gold (goose fat)! Be sure to save this goose fat for roasting potatoes and other vegetables!

7. Now turn the oven down to 275F and then continue roasting until a meat thermometer registers 165F in the center of the breast area. The time will vary according your oven but it should be around 20-30 minutes.

Allow the goose to cool for 15-20 minutes, and then carve and enjoy!

Roasted goose with bay leaf, thyme and sage on a white plate

What To Serve With Roasted Goose

The absolute perfect accompaniment to Roasted Goose is a divine giblet gravy and Sage and Onion Stuffing.

Roasted Goose With sage and onion stuffing on a white plate with a glass of wine and a poinsettia in the background

This is a dish that is PERFECT for the holidays, or any day that you want to celebrate!

The Goose In Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol"

To conclude, I would like to share with you a scene from Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol." It's such a delight to see the Cratchit family enjoying their goose for Christmas dinner. From "A Christmas Carol": "There never was such a goose...Its tenderness and flavor, size and cheapness were the themes of universal admiration." 

I hope that we may all enjoy a Roasted Goose dinner with such joy and gusto as the Cratchits. 😊

Some Other Recipes You May Enjoy!

Incredibly Delicious Brussels Sprouts

Pan Fried Brussels Sprouts

Roasted Broccoli With Parmesan

Roasted Broccoli With Parmesan on a plate with a fork

If you'd like to come along on this food journey with me, please sign up to get the latest recipes and inspiration for you to expand your food comfort zone! It's an incredible journey, please join me by signing up here. 😊

Cheers!

Grace

Roasted Goose on a white serving tray with sage and onion stuffing.

Easy and Delicious Roasted Goose

Grace
Roasted Goose makes for a very special holiday meal! Much easier to make than you think and so rewarding!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 2 hrs 30 mins
Thawing time 2 d
Total Time 2 d 2 hrs 50 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, English
Servings 6 people

Equipment

  • 1 large roasting tray with rack
  • 1 meat thermometer
  • 1 baster

Ingredients
  

  • 1 10 lb goose
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 each lemon for stuffing (halved)
  • 1 each onion for stuffing (halved)
  • 1 head garlic for stuffing
  • small handfull sage leaves for stuffing
  • few sprigs thyme for stuffing

Instructions
 

  • Thaw your goose if you buy it frozen. My 10 pound goose actually took over 2 days to thaw. Once thawed, remove the packaging. Remove the neck and giblets from inside the cavity, and also trim the excess fat from the neck and cavity. Set the neck and giblets aside for possible later use to make a divine gravy.
    Giblets from a goose and excess fat which has been removed and placed in a bowl with someone holding up the excess fat
  • Then rinse and dry the bird with paper towels. Now add a generous amount of salt to both the skin and inside the cavity. Allow the goose to sit uncovered in your fridge for at least 6 hrs or overnight. Remove the goose from your fridge around 1 hr - 1.5 hrs prior to roasting to allow the goose to come to room temperature.
    goose whose skin has been salted
  • Prepare your stuffing (if using). I halved my lemon and onion.
    halved lemon, halved onion, head of garlic, sage, and thyme on a wooden board
  • Preheat your oven to 325F. When the goose is at room temperature, be sure to prick the skin all over with the sharp end of your meat thermometer, or you can use a clean needle. Try not to pierce the skin. Season it with salt and pepper.
    goose which was seasoned with salt and pepper and its skin being pricked with a meat thermometer
  • Stuff the goose with your stuffing of choice.
    closeup of a cavity of a goose which has been stuffed with herbs, lemon, and onion
  • Roast the goose (breast side up and set on a rack on a roasting tray) for approximately 2 hrs. During this time, baste it every 30 minutes or so. After the first 30-45 minutes I also turn it over and roast it underside up for around 30 minutes to get that side browned as well. I need to do this in my oven (it's older and quirky!) but if you are able to get the underside browned without turning over then all good! Please roast according to your oven's quirks (if any).
    goose on a rack in a roasting tray with golden skin and lots of fat underneath
  • Now turn the oven down to 275F and then continue roasting until a meat thermometer registers 165F in the center of the breast area. The time will vary according your oven but it should be around 20-30 minutes. Allow the goose to cool for 15-20 minutes, and then carve and enjoy!
    Roasted goose with bay leaf, thyme and sage on a white plate

Notes

Be sure to save the goose fat for roasting potatoes and vegetables!  Goose fat is the GOLD STANDARD for roasting potatoes!
Be generous when you salt the skin and cavity before allowing it to sit in your fridge overnight.  The salt will help to crisp up the skin.
Save the neck and giblets to make a divine giblet gravy!
You can use the carcass to make a wonderful goose broth!
Lowering the temp from 325F to 275F helps to keep the meat from drying out too much.  
Enjoy Roasted Goose With Sage and Onion Dressing for the PERFECT holiday meal! 
Keyword christmas dinner, goose, holiday dinner, roast, roasted goose
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
« How To Make Delicious Sage and Onion Stuffing!
How To Make A Delicious Goose Giblet Gravy »

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About Me

Hi I’m Grace! I'm married and a mom to my fur baby, Toby, and food and travel are two of my greatest passions! Since our bank account does not allow us to travel or eat out as much as we'd like, I decided I would cook delicious meals that could give us a taste of all the places we'd like to go. My goal is to get you in the kitchen, and inspire you to cook and taste delightful meals that will transport you too. Let’s throw some actual travel in from time to time, all with an emphasis on keeping your wallet full and happy as well. Let’s get cooking and let’s start exploring!! I'm excited to be on this journey with you!!

By the way most of these recipes are Toby taste tested and Toby approved!!

Chief Taste Tester Toby

Toby Chief Taste Tester

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