Baked Duck or Goose and Sauerkraut

This recipe was written for wild duck which it works great for, but we have also used it for domestic duck and guinea fowl and also for wild pheasant.  We found the original version of this recipe in Wild Game Cooking Made Easy by John Schumacher, the Executive Chef at a restaurant in New Prague, MN.  Also check out our favorite duck recipe at:  http://couleeviewfarmcsa.blogspot.com/2010/12/baked-goose-or-duck-in-mushroom-wild.html

We have adapted it to the crock pot which works well for us as it can cook while we are working on the farm.  Here it is:

• Fowl.  Two medium sized wild ducks, or one wild goose, or one cut up domestic duck, or a couple pheasant (wild or domestic), or a couple guinea fowl, or a half of a domestic goose.
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chicken stock -- see our recipe included here  http://couleeviewfarmcsa.blogspot.com/2010/12/baked-goose-or-duck-in-mushroom-wild.html
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tsp caraway seed
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 4 cups sauerkraut (we used home-made canned if we have it, otherwise Frank's works fine.  When serving, try adding some uncooked naturally fermented kraut, like Fizzeology to add more kraut flavor)

Clean and cut fowl into quarters.  Trim off excess fat and skin.  Dredge in flour.  Heat oil in a deep pan or Dutch oven and brown fowl on all sides.  Add onion and cook until tender.  Add remaining flour and stir to combine.  Add wine, chicken stock, brown sugar and spices.  Stir with a wooden spoon.  Be sure to stir in the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. 

Rinse kraut to remove salt, drain and add to mixture.  Cover and bake at 350 for 2 hours or on low in a crock pot until the meat is tender (6 - 8 hours).

Baked Goose or Duck in Mushroom Wild Rice

Ingredients:

• 2 wild ducks or 1 tame duck, cut into quarters (or 1 pheasant or 1 guinea fowl)
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cans cream of celery soup
• 2 cups halved fresh mushrooms
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice
• 1 cup diced red onion
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Prep:
Clean and cut birds into quarters. In a large Dutch oven, place all ingredients. Cover and bake at 325 degrees for 3 hours, until rice and meat are tender.  We usually place in a cockpot and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours until the meat is tender and rice is done.  Remove bay leaves.
Adapted from Wild Game Cooking Made Easy
Ingredients for Basic Chicken Stock:

• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 3 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
• 2 carrots, scraped and cut into large pieces
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 4 quarts water
• 1 leftover chicken carcass and pan drippings or stewing hen or necks and backs

Prep:
Place all ingredients in a large stockpot. Allow everything to sit, with the heat off, for 30 minutes. Turn the heat on high, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer the broth for a minimum of 6 hours-the longer the broth simmers, the richer it will be.
Strain the liquid, discarding the vegetables but reserving the carcass. Place broth in a container, cover tightly, and refrigerate. When it is chilled, skim the fat from the surface.
Pick off the remaining meat from the carcass, and either return the meat to the broth for chicken soup or use it to make something else( such as Chicken and rice).
Adapted from The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook

Roast Goose with Sherry Oranges

Ingredients:

• 1 goose, roughly 8 to 10 pounds
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 goose neck
• 3 shallots, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups dry sherry
• 4 oranges, quartered
• 1 quart chicken broth
• 1 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Prep:

Using a metal skewer, prick the goose skin all over, but avoid piercing the meat. Submerge as much of the goose as possible in a large pot of boiling water. Hold it there for 1 minute. Remove the bird, return the water to a boil, then submerge the other part. Hold it for 1 minute longer. Drain the bird, and thoroughly dry it inside and out with paper towels. Lay it on a rack in a roasting pan, and refrigerate for 24 hours. Do not cover. The intent is to dry it out as much as possible.

Preheat oven to 325 F degrees.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Brown the goose neck, about 2 1/2 minutes per side. Add the sliced shallots, and saute' until translucent. Pour in 3/4 cup of the sherry, and add 1 of the quartered oranges. Simmer until the liquid is reduced by 1/4, scraping up any browned bits. Pour in the chicken broth and the orange juice, and simmer until the sauce is reduced to 2 cups. Strain out the shallots and orange quarters. Remove the neck, and when cool, pull off the meat, shred it, and return it to the sauce.

While the sauce is simmering, place the goose, breast side down, in an oven rack in a large roasting pan. Roast for 1 hour Remove the bird from the oven, and spoon off the fat from the bottom of the pan, being careful to leave behind any browned bits. Turn the bird over, breast side up, and roast for 1 hour longer, or until the skin is puffy and the meat inside the drumstick is fork-tender (the meat is adequately cooked when it reaches 170 F in the thigh, but for it to tender, it needs to cook longer). A slice at the base of the thigh should reveal no pink juices whatsoever.

Remove the goose to a large baking pan, increase oven temperature to 400 F, and continue roasting until the skin is deep brown and crisp, about 15 minutes longer. Meanwhile, add 1/2 cup of the sherry to the original roasting pan. Heat it on the stove top over low heat, scraping up any browned bits. Pour in the sauce made from chicken broth and orange juice. Simmer for 2 minutes. Dissolve the cornstarch in the remaining 1/4 cup of sherry, stirring until smooth. Whisk this mixture into the sauce, and boil until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the honey and lemon juice, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Remove the goose from the oven and let rest for 30 minutes, uncovered, before serving. Carve the goose, garnish with remaining orange quarters, and pass the sauce separately.

Adapted from The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook