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December
2008
Roast Goose with Apples and Vegetables
L'Oie Rôtie de Noël
photo by France Ruffenach
Roast
goose is a reason to celebrate and here’s a splendid Alsatian
recipe in which the bird is basted with beer so the skin darkens
and the gravy toasts to a deep caramel. Whole apples cooked in the
cavity add unexpected flavor and emerge tasty and hot, ready to
serve with the accompanying rutabagas and Brussels sprouts. I look
for a goose with creamy white skin and plump breast meat that
almost conceals the breast bone. Even then, a
10-pound/4.5-kilogram bird only serves 6 people. In compensation,
a goose renders quantities of superb fat for frying potatoes.
Serves 5 to 6
-
One 9- to 10-pound/4.5-kilogram goose
-
Salt and pepper
- 5
tart apples (about 2 pounds/900 grams total)
- 1
cup/250 milliliters/8 fluid ounces dark beer
- 1
1/2 pounds/675 grams rutabagas
- 1
1/2 pounds/675 grams Brussels sprouts
- 2
tablespoons/30 grams/1 ounce butter
Gravy
- 1
cup/250 milliliters/8 fluid ounces medium dry white wine
- 2
cups/500 milliliters/16 fluid ounces chicken broth
-
Thin string for trussing; large roasting pan
Heat
the oven to 450°F/230°C/Gas 8. Wipe the inside of the goose with
paper towels and season it inside and out with salt and pepper.
Peel and core the apples, leaving them whole, put them inside the
bird, and truss it. Put the goose on a rack in the roasting pan
and pour over the beer, rubbing it well into the skin.
Roast
the goose until it starts to brown, about 40 minutes. Prick the
skin to release the fat underneath it, then turn the bird breast
downwards and baste it. Lower the heat to 350°F/180°C/Gas 4 and
continue roasting about another hour, basting often. Generous
amounts of fat will accumulate in the bottom of the pan. Finally
turn the goose once more, breast up. Continue roasting and basting
until the bird is very brown, the meat pulls away from the
drumstick, and juices run clear when you prick the thigh with a
skewer, about 1 to 1 1/4 hours longer. A meat thermometer inserted
in the thigh should register 165°F/74°C. If the skin starts to
brown too much during cooking, cover the goose loosely with
aluminum foil.
Meanwhile, prepare the vegetable garnish. Peel the rutabagas and
cut them in 3/4-inch/2-centimeter chunks. Put them in cold salted
water, bring to a boil and simmer, covered, until tender but still
firm, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and set them aside. Trim the
Brussels sprouts and halve them if large. Cook them, uncovered, in
boiling salted water until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain,
rinse with cold water, and set them aside.
When
the goose is cooked, spread it with the butter and turn the oven
heat back up to 450°F/230°C/Gas 8. Set the bird on a piece of foil
on a baking sheet and put it back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes
to crisp the skin. Remove it, set it on a large platter, and cover
it loosely with foil. Set it aside while heating the vegetables
and making the gravy: Heat about 4 tablespoons/60 grams/2 ounces
reserved goose fat from the roasting pan in a large frying pan.
Add the vegetables with a little salt and pepper and sauté them
briskly over medium heat until lightly browned. Spoon them around
the goose and continue keeping it warm.
To
make gravy, pour all but 2 tablespoons fat from the roasting pan
(keep the fat for another use). Add the wine, bring it to a boil
on top of the stove and simmer, stirring constantly to dissolve
pan juices, until reduced by at least half. Add the broth, and
simmer the gravy until well-flavored and concentrated, 3 to 5
minutes. Taste it, adjust the seasoning, and strain it into a bowl
to serve separately from the goose. Carve the bird at the table,
spooning the apples from the inside like stuffing.
Excerpted from THE COUNTRY COOKING OF FRANCE
by Anne Willan, Chronicle Books, 2007.
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