Raymond Blanc’s Roast Goose recipe yields perfectly tender leg and breast meat and crisp, golden skin that’s just perfect for Christmas.
Prep time: 30 Mins
Cook time: 2 Hours 30 Mins
Effort: Medium
Image: Raymond Blanc
Ingredients
- 1 x 4.5 to 5kg free-range organic Goose, excess fat trimmed and discarded, legs removed, excess carcass removed and chopped
- 1 Bay leaf, chopped
- 2 sprigs thyme, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, sliced
- 3 pinch Coarse sea salt
- 2 pinch Black pepper
- 80g butter, unsalted
- A pinch Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp goose fat
- 100g onion, cut in to 3cm (1¼in) pieces
- 60g carrot, peeled, cut in to 3cm (1¼in) pieces
- 20g celery, cut in to 3cm (1¼in) pieces
- 300ml water, hot from the tap
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 200ml Port
- 100ml Madeira (optional)
Method
Preparing the goose
- Trim excess fat and discard.
- Remove wings, neck and legs and cut into 2cm pieces.
- Rub the flesh of the goose legs with the bay leaf, thyme, garlic, salt and pepper. Reserve.
- Brush the goose crown with the softened butter & season well with sea salt & freshly ground white pepper
Cooking the goose
- Pre-heat the oven to 150°C.
- In a large heavy-duty roasting pan, on a medium heat, colour the wings and neck in the oil for 5 minutes until lightly golden, add the vegetables and continue to brown for 3 minutes.
- Place the goose legs skin side up in the bottom of the roasting tray with the coloured bones, vegetables and excess fat and cover the tray tightly with foil.
- Roast in the oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and increase the temperature to 230°C.
- Remove the foil from the tray, sit the goose crown on top the legs and bones and roast in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Turn the oven down to 150°C, add the water, bay leaf and thyme to the roasting pan which will create your jus as it cooks.
- Continue to cook for 30 to 35 minutes or until the breast reaches 55°C, basting every 10 minutes with the roasting juices.
- Remove the crown from the oven and tightly wrap in foil. Rest for 30 minutes – continue to cook the goose legs during this time.
- Remove the goose legs from the oven and then place on to a tray to rest. Reserve in a warm place until needed.
Finishing the roasting juices
- Pour off the excess fat that has rendered from the goose and reserve it for your roast potatoes.
- Place the baking tray on a medium heat, bring to the boil and stir the bottom of the tray to incorporate the caramelised roasting juices. Taste and adjust the seasoning if required.
- Remember to pour the resting juices from the goose into the jus. Strain through a fine sieve into a warm sauceboat.
- The jus can be thickened with 2g of arrowroot diluted in 2g of water if necessary.
