Snow Goose Done Four Ways

 

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:

  • 20 goose breasts

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.

Ross’ Goose

Latin: Chen rossii
Average length: M 25″, F 23″
Average weight: M 4.0 lbs., F 3.6 lbs.

Description: Ross’ geese are the smallest of the three varieties of white geese that breed in North America. The Ross’ goose is a small white goose with black primary feathers. The bill is a deep reddish-pink with a paler nail and a variably bluish warty area over the base of the basal area. The legs and feet are rose-pink and the iris is dark brown. The sexes are dimorphic, with the female being 6 percent smaller than the male. The Ross’ goose has a relatively short neck and lacks the black “grinning patch” that is typical of greater and lesser snow geese, for which it is often mistaken. Ross’ geese may be distinguished from snow geese by their smaller size, more rapid wing beat and higher-pitched call.

Breeding: Ross’ geese breed in the low arctic tundra, mainly near Queen Maud Gulf, southern Southampton Island, the western coast of Hudson Bay and the Sagavanirktok River delta in Alaska. They usually nest in colonies mixed with lesser snow geese, making their nests on the ground in sparsely vegetated areas. Female Ross’ geese lay an average of 3-4 eggs.

Migrating and Wintering: Ross’ geese are among the first to leave the breeding grounds in Canada. The California Central Valley is currently the main wintering area for Ross’ geese, but increasing numbers are wintering in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas and the north-central highlands of Mexico.

Food habits: Ross’ geese feed on grasses, sedges and small grains, particularly waste wheat and barley in the winter months.

Lesser Snow Goose

Latin: Anser caerulescens caerulescens
Average length: M 29″, F 28″
Average weight: M 6.1 lbs., F 5.5 lbs.

Description: Lesser snow geese have two color phases: a dark (blue) plumage and a white (snow) plumage. The two color phases are variations within the same race and do not indicate separate races. The sexes are similar in appearance in both phases, but the female is often smaller. Lesser snow geese can hybridize with Ross’ geese, which are similar in appearance. They have pinkish bills with black grinning patches, and the feet and legs are reddish-pink. In the dark phase they have white heads and upper necks, with bluish-gray bodies. In the white phase they are completely white except for black wing tips. The head can be stained rusty brown from minerals in the soil where they feed. They are very vocal and can often be heard from more than a mile away.

Breeding: Lesser snow geese breed along Queen Maud Gulf, Baffin Island, Banks Island and Victoria Island; in the Northwest Territories and on Hudson Bay. They nest on low, grassy tundra plains and broad, shallow rivers near the coast, and on islands within shallow inland lakes. Lesser snow geese nest in colonies and lay an average of 4-5 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Lesser snow geese historically migrated from their northern breeding grounds down the Pacific and Mississippi flyways, to winter in the Central Valley of California and the Gulf Coast of Texas, Louisiana and Mexico. There, the abundant emergent vegetation of the brackish and salt marshes provided both food and cover. Recently, they have expanded their winter range to interior agricultural lands in states such as Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas, where corn, rice and pasture grasses provide abundant food supplies.

Greater Snow Goose

 

Latin: Anser caerulescens atlantica
Average length: M 31″, F 30″
Average weight: M 7.4 lbs., F 6.1 lbs.

Description: The greater snow goose is a slightly larger edition of the white-phase lesser snow goose. No color dimorphism has been discovered in this race. In the field it is virtually impossible to tell these two races apart. In the hand, the larger size and longer bill of the greater snow goose distinguish it from its smaller counterpart. The sexes are similar in appearance, but the female is often smaller.

Breeding: Greater snow geese breed principally around Foxe Basin, northern Baffin, Bylot, Axel Heiberg and the Ellesmere Islands located in Nunavut, Canada, and in Greenland. They prefer to nest in colonies on well-drained westward slopes or vegetated hilltops, and females lay an average of 4 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Greater snow geese leave their arctic breeding grounds and migrate along a narrow corridor through eastern Canada and the northeastern United States to the mid-Atlantic coast (from New Jersey to North Carolina).
Feeding Habits: Greater snow geese are grubbers, feeding on roots, rhizomes and shoots of bulrushes and salt-marsh cordgrass. They also make extensive use of agricultural fields found adjacent to wintering areas.

Special Early Season Hunting – Missouri Spring Snow Goose Conservation Season – Opening February 1

The Missouri Conservation Action Season opens February 1, 2012 We have some openings for the beginning of the season.

Special Early Season Price

All hunts Feb. 1 – 15th will be $150.00 there are snow geese already in Missouri and the hunting should be fast and furious.

Nebraska Snow Geese Recipe

Pan-Seared Snow Goose with Wasabi Sweet and Sour Sauce

1. Rub skinned snow goose breasts with oil, salt and pepper and place in a hot skillet with sliced onions and peppers.

2. Brown on one side and then flip over.

3. Add to pan:

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon apricot preserves
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh or pickled ginger
  • 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon prepared wasabi paste (Japanese horseradish)

4. Remove snow geese when rare to medium rare.

5. Stir in diced mango.

6. Arrange snow goose breasts on black plate with rice.

7. Spoon sauce over breasts and garnish with cilantro and toasted sesame seeds.

 

Snow Goose in Port Wine Sauce

Each Fall, the snow goose makes its way from Siberia down to California’s Sacramento valley, and we were often lucky enough to shoot a few. Unlike other geese, the snow goose is a very lean bird, with very little fat around the breast and legs, hence not a very good candidate for roasting. Furthermore, the feathers are extremely difficult to pluck, an additional hindrance to anyone wanting to roast the goose in conventional style. We typically skinned the goose, and then separated the breast and upper legs from the bone. To cook this very lean and dry meat, we had to add a sauce. For many years, we used a dry red wine for snow goose stew, but then, quite by accident, we discovered that a heavy port wine made an even better sauce. This may be the tastiest of all the wild game dishes that we prepare.

Breasts and thighs of 3 snow geese, boned and cut into 1 1’2″ to 2″ cubes
1/2 cup, olive oil
1/2 cup, all purpose flour
2 cups, whole small boiling onions, peeled
2 cups, small (about 2″ to 3″) carrots, but not peeled
12 small red potatoes, washed, but not peeled, and halved
6 medium garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup, port wine
1/2 cup, dry red wine
1 cup, dried porcini mushrooms, soaked and coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon, dried thyme
1 teaspoon, dried tarragon
1 teaspoon, salt
1 teaspoon, black pepper, medium grind
2 tablespoons, all purpose flour, thoroughly dissolved in 1/2 cup cold water

  • Cut goose meat into cubes, and dry thoroughly.
  • Dredge goose meat in flour, and add to large skillet in sizzling hot olive oil.
  • Brown quickly on all sides, then reduce flame and cook for about 5 minutes more.
  • Remove goose meat with slotted spoon, and set aside.
  • Add onions, carrots, potatoes, and garlic.
  • Cook over medium flame until onion skins are translucent.
  • Mix port and dry red wine, then begin adding wine, a little bit at a time, de-glazing the skillet as you go.
  • Add mushrooms, spices, and salt and pepper. When the wine has cooked down by about about 1/2, add the goose meat back to the pot, reduce to low flame, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes.
  • Occasionally, give the skillet a vigorous shake to ensure that the meat is well-coated.
  • When meat is done, remove all ingredients to deep sided serving platter.
  • Add flour and water mixture to pan, durn up heat, and mix vigourously until a thick, deep brown gravy emerges.
  • Pour over goose on serving platter.

    Recipe serves 8.

    Note: We sometimes chopped the meat and vegetables a little more finely, and served the goose stew over slices of toasted French bread, as an appetizer. Don’t allow guests to eat too much, as they could easily become too full for the main course!

Sweet Sesame Duck or Goose Jerky

No special equipment required! Here’s a way to use up some of the inventory in the freeze, save money on store-bought jerky and, best of all, it tastes great.

  • 1 ½ cups DU Red Plum Toasted Sesame Sauce
  • 2 tablespoons DU Manitoba Wild Game Seasoning
  • ½ cup soy sauce
  • Plastic Wrap
  • Baking rack
  • Small Foil Ball (aluminum foil formed to 3 inch ball)
  • Skinless goose or Duck breasts

Slice goose breasts to desired strips width and length. Mix together DU Red Plum Toasted Sesame Sauce and soy sauce. Add sliced duck to bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 6 – 12 hours. Remove cover, pat dry and arrange on baking rack.

Sprinkle DU Manitoba Wild Game Seasoning over meat (be sure to have paper towel underneath to catch excess, then throw away.) Place in 175 degree preheated oven, crack oven door open by placing small foil ball in door. Meat will take 5 – 7 hours to dry completely. Refrigerate for seven to 10 days, or freeze in airtight, vacuum sealed container for up to one year.

Pan-Seared Snow Goose Breasts, Peppers and Onions

4 servings

  • 4 boneless snow goose breast halves, skin removed
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (Tabasco)
  • 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
  • 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup tomatoes, seeded and chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Slice goose breasts thinly across the “grain” of the meat. Combine half of the olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt, and hot pepper sauce in a glass bowl. Add sliced goose, cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. Heat remaining oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, peppers and garlic. Cook until onions are medium brown. Remove goose from marinade. Drain well and discard marinade. Add goose and stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes or until just cooked, but not past medium-rare. Stir in tomato and season to taste with salt, pepper and additional hot sauce. Serve over a bed of Cajun rice.

 

Snow Goose Hunting Outfitter and Guide – 855-473-2875