Take a Gander at this Goose

I

n years past, we have offered suckling pig and duckling for our Yuletide recipes. This year we turn to the beloved goose. 

We Russians are almost as fond of goose-related proverbs and idioms as we are of roast goose with apples for Christmas. For instance, there is gus’ svin’ye ne tovarishch. Often translated as “oil and water don’t mix,” this saying literally means that “A goose is not a good companion for a sow.” The proverb means that people of different social backgrounds, characters, or habits do not easily mix.

On the other hand, if someone is imperturbable or just plain indifferent to life’s troubles, that person finds things “kak s gusya voda”, a saying best translated by the English idiom that uses a different waterfowl: “like water off the duck’s back.”

These days, the word “gus” in Russia refers not just to the tasty bird but also to a well-known oligarch—it is the nickname of Vladimir Gusinsky. But that is a bird of another feather, as we say, so enough of the linguistic exercises. After all, to quote another Russian proverb, “You don’t feed a nightingale with fables.” 

Roast goose with apples is a very traditional Russian holiday dish (even though Elena Molokhovets, in her famous cookbook,  A Gift to Young Housewives, called this method of preparing goose “in the Lithuanian style”). Here we offer a delightful twist on the traditional recipe: a sweet tangerine sauce with which to glaze the bird. Serve the goose with plenty of po-ta-toes and Russian-style salads. After you sample this recipe, you are sure to exclaim, like old Panikovsky in Ilf & Petrov’s The Golden Calf, “You can’t believe how I love the goose!”

INGREDIENTS

1 6-pound goose 

1⁄2 tsp caraway seed

1⁄2  tsp salt (plus more, to taste)

12 small apples, thinly sliced

1⁄4 cup mayonnaise

2 onions, thinly sliced 

1⁄4 cup chicken broth

6-8 large apples (for baking alongside the goose)

SAUCE

10 tangerines

1⁄2 cup dry red wine

3 tsp. sugar

2 tangerines for garnish

Preheat oven to 450oF.
Remove the extra fat from the goose and rub the goose inside and out with the caraway seed and salt. 

Mix the sliced apples with the mayonnaise and add salt to taste. Fill the cavity of the goose with this mixture. Place the sliced onions in the bottom of a roasting pan and set the goose on top, breast side up. Roast the goose for 15-20 minutes at 450o, basting with the chicken broth, then reduce the heat to 325o,and continue to cook, basting occasionally with the pan juices, until done, 18-20 minutes per pound.

One hour before the goose is done, place the large apples in the roasting pan to bake. Meanwhile, prepare the tangerine sauce: Peel the tangerines; slice the peels into julienne strips. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add the tangerine strips and boil for 2-3 minutes, then drain.  (This removes the bitterness from the peel.)  Cut the peeled tangerines in half and juice them.  Place the tangerine juice in a medium saucepan along with the red wine and sugar.  Bring to a boil, then stir in the drained tangerine peel. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until slightly reduced. 

Baste the goose with some of the sauce during the last 15 minutes of roasting, until it is nicely glazed. Serve the goose on a large platter with the remaining sauce, surrounded by the baked apples. Garnish with fresh tangerine segments.