Ok, Who has eaten a Goose?

[The goose girl]

So far, I've eaten all my geese (six of them). They were delicious, and they tasted even better knowing they'd had a good life.

For me, the eating part wasn't a problem. I had planned to eat them, I couldn't possibly keep them during the winter, and I knew they would be miserable as farm geese - where they would have been killed and eaten anyways.

The killing part was a lot worse. Before I got my first two geese, I thought I would take them to a butcher or something when it was time for slaughtering. But as I got to know them, I found out I would have to do it myself, so they wouldn't get upset or scared. I used an axe, and worried that I would miss or not hit hard enough. It turned out I did neither, and they never knew what hit them. As soon as they were dead they started looking like Christmas dinner to me.

They were slow-roasted in the oven for several hours at very low heat, so they had crispy skin and tender, juicy meat. And the gravy was fantastic!

My present goose Keld will probably outlive me. I now have arrangements made for the winter, so that's not an issue anymore. He is a pet and a person with capital P's, and right now he's sitting on my bed honking softly for me to come cuddle. I would miss him terribly if anything happened to him, and my friends would probably stop speaking to me if I ate him.

 

[marathonmultiplesmom]

Quote:
I understand people like to eat them but I don't plan to slaughter any in the future. I'll eat them if the same situation arises or if one has a serious injury perhaps but I think I will be keeping them as orchard cleaners and mowers (and they make fertilizer)

 

[floridaquilter]

I wouldn't think of slaughtering my geese but my mother raised Embdens yrs ago and I helped clean them. She gave us a goose for Christmas. It was delicious but I found it to be very greasy.
Goose Jerky

 

[Denninmi]

I've cooked both goose and duck a few times, both wild and domestic, and they were always gamy tasting. I knew they would be greasy and accounted for that by keeping them on a raised rack and regular removing the drippings, so that wasn't an issue. I found it a disappointing experience every time.

I read the one post about soaking it in orange juice to remove the gamy flavor. Any of you cooks out there know if it would help to do a long soak, like 24 hours, in an apple cider brine like in this link? Think that would do it?

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=701063

 

[LALASD4]

Goose taste good, but I have never raise one before, if I only have a farm.

 

[Ozgoose]

Being of Germanic background, goose for Christmas, YUMMY! But eating my own, I don't think I could, not even one killed by the dog. I guess I am not a true farmer.