The Goose was much valued in antiquity as a delicate dish
by the Egyptians, and by the ancient Britons at the time
of the invasion of Julius Caesar. It was also surrounded
with a halo of sanctity, and used as an authority for the
authentication of an oath by Ehadamanthus and his Lycian
subjects. At Eome the goose was for a period not eaten, but
honoured as the saviour of the Capitol from the besieging
Gauls, but after Caesar’s conquest of Gaul, geese, particularly
those from Picardy in France, were largely imported into
and consumed at Eome. A Eoman consul, Metellus Scipio,
invented, according to Pliny, the art of fattening geese and
making their livers more delicate. The learned physician
Julius Caesar Scaliger had much humorous admiration for
these animals. It may be interesting to cooks to know that
the French chemist M6mery saw a goose which had been
trained by a cook to turn a spit. It seized the handle with
the beak, and by alternately extending and contracting the
neck it did the work of a turnspit.
Some humorous sayings about roast goose exhibit the
attractive quality of the flesh of the bird. A goose intended
for roasting should not be excessively fat, as it will lose
most of its grease during roasting. In trimming and trailing
the goose, the lungs, technically called soal (or soul), which
adhere to the chest-wall, are not i*emoved. It may receive
various kinds of stuffing, of which that made with sage and
onions has been very popular, although, owing to the.
494
THE SPIRIT OF COOKERY
essential oil of the sage, it is rather indigestible. The best
stuffing for a goose are small Dutch, or finger, potatoes,
sliced fine, salted and peppered, and mixed with the kidney
and caul fat from the interior of the goose, finely chopped,
or half their weight of suet or scraped bacon. The same
treatment is applicable to chestnuts when used to stuff a
goose. Some farce or sausage meat✪ Stuffed Goose may be mixed with
them to increase their taste. The practice of eating aj)j)le
sauce with goose has given rise to a particular kind of
stuffing, described by Soyer, in which the apples and the
sage and onions are blended with grated boiled potatoes,
A sharp sauce for roast goose, described by Ignotus and
Kitchiner, which was to be poured into the body of the
goose, called by the former ' a secret worth knowing,’ was
evidently appreciated by these authors.
A goose may be braised in the plain or stuffed condition ;
when well done it practically becomes roast goose, but
admits of being made more juicy. Steived Goose may be
immersed in an acidulous and savoury jelly or aspic. If the
meat be boned it adds to the convenience of the cook as well
as the consumer.
Page 311 · 1 recipe record on this page
Presented as published in 1895. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
The Goose was much valued in antiquity as a delicate dish by the Egyptians, and by the ancient Britons at the time of the invasion of Julius Caesar. It was also surrounded with a halo of sanctity, and used as an authority for the authentication of an oath by Rhadamanthus and his Lycian subjects. At Rome the goose was for a period not eaten, but honoured as the saviour of the Capitol from the besieging Gauls, but after Caesar's conquest of Gaul, geese, particularly those from Picardy in France, were largely imported into and consumed at Rome. A Roman consul, Metellus Scipio, invented, according to Pliny, the art of fattening geese and making their livers more delicate. The learned physician Julius Caesar Scaliger had much humorous admiration for these animals. It may be interesting to cooks to know that the French chemist M6mery saw a goose which had been trained by a cook to turn a spit. It seized the handle with the beak, and by alternately extending and contracting the neck it did the work of a turnspit.
Some humorous sayings about roast goose exhibit the attractive quality of the flesh of the bird. A goose intended for roasting should not be excessively fat, as it will lose most of its grease during roasting. In trimming and trailing the goose, the lungs, technically called soal (or soul), which adhere to the chest-wall, are not removed. It may receive various kinds of stuffing, of which that made with sage and onions has been very popular, although, owing to the
essential oil of the sage, it is rather indigestible. The best stuffing for a goose are small Dutch, or finger, potatoes, sliced fine, salted and peppered, and mixed with the kidney and caul fat from the interior of the goose, finely chopped, or half their weight of suet or scraped bacon. The same treatment is applicable to chestnuts when used to stuff a goose. Some farce or sausage meat may be mixed with them to increase their taste. The practice of eating apple sauce with goose has given rise to a particular kind of stuffing, described by Soyer, in which the apples and the sage and onions are blended with grated boiled potatoes, A sharp sauce for roast goose, described by Ignotus and Kitchiner, which was to be poured into the body of the goose, called by the former ' a secret worth knowing,’ was evidently appreciated by these authors.
A goose may be braised in the plain or stuffed condition ; when well done it practically becomes roast goose, but admits of being made more juicy. Steived Goose may be immersed in an acidulous and savoury jelly or aspic. If the meat be boned it adds to the convenience of the cook as well as the consumer.
Records on this page
Stuffed Goose