Before heading out to our annual spring snow goose hunt this year, I was on the phone with a buddy telling him about the upcoming hunt. I described to him how I was going to cook the snows four different ways, to which he replied: “Four ways? I didn’t know there was one good way to cook a snow goose!”
I wasn’t rattled, because like most snow goose-haters, he’d never actually eaten one done right. We used the following four recipes on our recent trip and everyone agreed it was the best snow goose—in fact, the best waterfowl—they’d ever eaten.
The first step in making the following recipes is taking off the breast meat, the tenderloin strips and the leg/thigh pieces. These three kinds of meat have very different qualities and really need to be cooked separately to maximize their tastiness—trust me on this one.
Goose Chili
Goose breast meat can be tough and dry, especially on older birds. This recipe is a creative and easy way of making a pile of goose breasts taste great quickly. This is something you can do around hunting camp during the middle of the day.
Place in a large pot and cover with water:
Stir in:
- 2 packages of dry onion soup mix
Bring the water to a rolling boil, then turn down and cook for about two hours.
When the meat pulls apart easily, drain the liquid and let the meat cool while you chop up and sauté:
- 2 bell peppers
- 2 large onions
- 10 cloves of garlic
Crumble the meat and combine with the veggies. Pour in:
- 2 jars spaghetti sauce
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1 can brown beans in sauce
Start adding:
- chili powder
- hot sauce
- seasoning salt to taste
When you’re satisfied with the seasoning, put the top on and let it cook till supper. Longer the better and like all stews, soups and gumbos, it’s better the next day.
As it cooks, you may need to add liquid to keep the moisture level right. I prefer tomato juice or beer. Of course, if the shooting is done for the day, you’ll probably want to mix the tomato juice and beer and sample it first to make sure you’re not putting low quality beverages into your chili.
Tastes-Like-Ribs Barbequed Goose Legs
I think the legs and thighs are the best part of any waterfowl. The meat is juicy and tender and worth taking the time to remove. Remember, when your friends are taking the legs/thighs off the birds, you’ve got to pull the skin far enough back to get the whole “flap” of meat on either side of the thigh.
This is so easy and so good, you’ve just got to try it. It makes sense to do this recipe in concert with the goose chili because you also need to start the goose leg recipe by boiling the meat for a couple hours.
Start by boiling in a large pot of water:
- 20 goose legs and thighs, attached
Stir in:
- 2 packages of dry onion soup mix
Watch the meat closely as it boils because you don’t want the meat actually falling off the bones or they’ll fall apart on the barbeque. Once the meat is done simply pop them on the grill and slather lots of good barbeque sauce on them.
I promise that you cannot make enough of these. Leftovers, though uncommon, are great for in-the-field snacks the next day. Pop them in a Ziploc and put them in your blind bag for next morning’s hunt. You’ll be a hero.
Goose ‘Carpaccio’
This is one of the easiest and tastiest little appetizers you can do while the guys are busy cleaning your gun because you are nice enough to cook for them.
Simply take a few goose breasts and sprinkle liberal amounts of your favorite seasonings on them. If you have a special dry rub concoction that will do nicely. Otherwise, hit both sides of each breast with heaps of black pepper, garlic powder and salt or Cajun shake. Be creative and liberal about it.
Cook them inside if you don’t care about smoking up the place, or outside on the barbeque if you want to avoid the smoke alarm going off. Sear the meat quickly on high heat until the outside is dark but not burnt.
Now, simply slice it thin and serve hot. It is critical you serve it hot. You can pop the meat into the oven to cook it a little more if you desire, but please don’t. A nice extra is to provide soy sauce and even wasabi for dipping to put a sushi spin on this one, or you can do the Carpaccio spin and drizzle a little olive oil and lemon juice on the sliced meat with more seasonings.
Goose Fingers
You kept the tenderloins separate for good reason. You wouldn’t put your deer tenderloins in a chili would you?
Simply dust these strips in flour and fry. Serve them with your favorite dipping sauce. Sweet chili or plum and hot mustard is a terrific combination.