Orange Five-Spice Roast Goose and Potatoes Recipe

 

Goose isn’t a bird you see all that often on tables in the US, but in China, it’s really popular, especially at Cantonese restaurants. In Southern China and Hong Kong, they really know how to cook this bird.

As a lowly human who can never hope to reach the heights of the Cantonese goose-cooking gods, I decided to do a somewhat traditional Western roast goose–something I imagine Tiny Tim was probably chowing down on after Ebinezer Scrooge left his “bah humbug” days behind.

Ingredients:

10 lb. goose

2 oranges

1 1/2 teaspoons salt (plus more for the cavity)

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons five spice powder

1 tablespoon shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

5 cloves garlic (minced)

3 slices ginger

2 scallions (cut into 4-inch lengths)

3 lbs. potatoes

herbs (for the potatoes; rosemary, thyme, sage, etc.)

Instructions:

Note: Your goose should be close to room temperature when you’re ready to put it in the oven. Starting with a partially frozen bird is majorly bad juju.

Get your goose ready for roasting by removing the giblets and neck from the cavity. Use a sharp knife to trim any large pads of fat from the inside. Give the goose a really thorough rinse (including the cavity), and pat dry. Do not remove the flap of skin at the neck, just tuck it underneath the goose to keep it sealed.

If the goose is trussed, remove the string and pull out the legs and wings slightly, which will help with more even cooking. Place the goose in a foil-lined roasting pan. You definitely want there to be a sizeable rim around the pan, as the goose will release a lot of fat as it cooks.

Zest the oranges and mix the zest with 1½ teaspoons salt, pepper, sugar, five spice powder, shaoxing wine (or sherry), and soy sauce. Set aside.

Season the goose cavity with salt, and rub the minced garlic all throughout the cavity as well. Stuff the ginger slices and scallions into the cavity, along with the zested oranges, cut into quarters.

Rub the orange zest and five-spice mixture all over the goose, and set it aside for 30 minutes (you can also marinate it overnight for optimum results). During this time, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

Place the goose in the oven and cook for 10 minutes at 450 degrees F/230 degrees C. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F (190 degrees C) and cook for another 10-12 minutes per pound (about 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours for a 10-pound goose. If your goose is larger, increase the cooking time accordingly). Feel free to adjust cooking times depending on your desired doneness, but don’t dry it out! When a meat thermometer in the thigh reads 165-170 degrees F, it’s done.

Every 30 minutes, baste the bird with the fat in the pan. About halfway through cooking, tent the breast loosely with foil and spoon out 3 tablespoons of goose fat.

Take this fat and toss it on a roasting pan with the potatoes, salt, pepper, and your choice of herbs—thyme, rosemary, whatever. Throw those into the oven with the goose in its last half hour and roast.

Once the goose is done roasting, take it out of the oven and cover with foil. Give the potatoes a stir and crank the heat up to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) to finish roasting. Let the goose rest for 20 minutes while the potatoes finish cooking.

Carve the goose and serve with the roasted potatoes. (Note: you can keep the rendered fat in a mason jar in the fridge and save it for roasted vegetables, beans, and stews).