Roast Goose Recipe with Honey Orange Glaze

By Danielle on December 18, 2019, Updated January 23, 2021 120 Comments

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Salty, crispy skin, tender juicy meat, and rendered fat for days, this Roast Goose recipe is what you need to be making for that holiday dinner. Marinaded in a few simple ingredients, roasted to perfection, and glazed in the most amazing honey glaze, this roast goose is also super easy to make.

This recipe was originally published in December 2018. It has been updated with better content.

You're going to want to have this for Christmas dinner guys. Never cooked a goose? It's ok, it's not much different than a roasted chicken. It's easy.

And it's SO DELICIOUS. Especially with the honey orange glaze. It's to die for. You're going to love it so much.

We should probably talk about the goose fat too. If you like using bacon fat or duck fat to cook, you're going to LOVE the goose fat. And I'm not kidding. This stuff is like liquid gold.

So, DON'T THROW AWAY THE FAT. You're going to get about 2 cups of the stuff from this goose.

What Does Roast Goose Taste Like?

A properly cooked goose tastes more like beef than it does chicken. The meat is dark and rich from all the fat on the goose and is incredibly delicious.

**Don't forget to check out this recipe for Crispy Roasted Duck with Orange Sauce - it is also incredibly rich and delicious!**

The Ingredients

You're going to want to get a 8-10 pound goose for this recipe. The younger the goose, the better it tastes, so if you can try and get a young one.

It may be difficult to find at the grocery store, but you should be able to get one at a butcher shop. I bought mine at the Asian grocery store.

They usually have them, BUT it may come with the head still attached and all it's innards. Like mine. Let's just say I got a quick lesson on how to gut a goose....

If you do buy one that still need to be gutted, check out this video.

The marinade and glaze for the cooked goose calls for Shaoxing cooking wine, which is a Chinese style dry rice wine commonly used for Chinese cooking.

It adds a great flavor to Chinese dishes, and is highly recommended if you plan on cooking Chinese food (I have a number of Chinese recipes coming soon guys). You can also substitute a dry sherry in place of the Shaoxing wine.

You can buy the ingredients through the below Amazon links if you don't feel like searching up and down the grocery store aisles (affiliate links):

Step By Step Instructions

Combine all the marinade ingredients in bowl. Place the goose in a large roasting pan and stuff with the orange quarters.

Rub the marinade all over the goose massaging into the skin on both sides. Cover with the coarse sea salt and place in the fridge for 12-24 hours, uncovered.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. With a small sharp knife, poke holes in all the fatty areas of the goose (this helps the fats to render).

Place the goose on a roasting rack, breast side down, and roast for 1 hour.

Drain the excess fat from the pan and RESERVE it. Flip the goose over and roast another hour. Again, drain any additional excess fat and reserve.

Turn the heat up to 400 degrees and brush the goose with half of the orange honey glaze.

Cook for 15 minutes. Baste again with remaining honey mixture and cook another 15-20 minutes, or until the temperature of the goose reads 160 degrees.

To get the most accurate temperature reading I use a Thermapen MK4 thermometer. This thing is awesome and I totally recommend it to anyone that cooks meat, makes candy or bakes bread on a regular basis.

Remove and let rest for 15 minutes. Temperature will rise to 165 degrees while the goose is resting.

**NOTE: reserve the carcass to make goose stock or bone broth**

Orange Honey Glaze

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and heat until the honey is dissolved.

Expert Tips

It is important to let the goose sit in the fridge, salted and uncovered, for at least 12 hours (24 is better) to allow the moisture in the skin to evaporate. This helps the skin stay crispy;
If the goose starts to brown too much while roasting, cover the pan in aluminum foil;
Be sure to periodically spoon the rendered fat from the pan into a heat proof container. You'll want to reserve all this fat to use in cooking other dishes (scroll down for some ideas on using goose fat);
Don't skip poking holes in the duck - this allows the fat to render out;
The meat should technically be cooked to 165 degrees - it's ok if the meat is pink, as long as the temperature is 165 degrees;
You can substitute dry sherry for the Shaoxing wine.
For a stronger orange flavor, add ½ tsp. of orange zest to the honey glaze.
Flipping the goose while roasting keeps the breast meat from drying out.
Reserve the goose carcass to make goose stock or bone broth.

Frequently Asked Questions

What temperature should goose be cooked to? A whole goose should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees according to the FDA.
Do you cover a goose when cooking? If the outside of the goose starts to brown too much, cover it in foil.
Is it ok to eat pink goose meat? Unlike chicken and turkey, it is ok to eat goose if the meat is still pink. However, the internal temperature should be 165 degrees.
Can you freeze cooked goose? Carve the meat off the goose carcass and place in a freezer safe container or freezer bag. I use my trusty FoodSaver for this. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat in the microwave or place in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes until warmed through. Can also be reheated in a skillet over medium heat. Add a touch of reserved goose fat to the meat to prevent it from drying out too much.

How to Use Goose Fat

It's worth making this cooked goose just to get the fat. This goose produced about 2 cups of the liquid gold. Use it wherever you would use other fats like duck fat, butter, bacon grease or coconut oil. Check out some of these ideas:

Use it in place of the duck fat in these Smashed Potatoes;
Use it in place of the duck fat in these Truffle Fries;
Use it to make these Crispy Roast Potatoes - just substitute goose fat for butter;
Rub it on a turkey or chicken before roasting;
Use it in place of olive oil to saute vegetables and/or fish fillets;
Use goose fat in place of butter or shortening in biscuit recipes.

Serving Options

Make it a whole Christmas feast and serve it up with some of these amazing dishes:

Start with this warm and gooey Baked Brie;
Serve it with Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes and/or Mashed Sweet Potatoes;
Make sure you have a vegetable side like this Cheesy Cauliflower Bake, Oven Fried Squash or Roasted Parmesan Asparagus;
Easy Dinner Rolls from I Am Baker;
Every dinner needs a sweet treat like this Pistachio Baklava, Milk Chocolate Buttercrunch or Homemade Apple Crisp.

Did you make this roast goose recipe? Rate the recipe and leave me a comment to let me know how it turned out!