If frozen defrost over a few days in the refrigerator
Brine the Goose overnight
Lift the skin away from the meat aggressively and prick the skin with a sharp knife
Dry inside and out
Rub the skin with the lemon juice, allspice, salt and pepper
Insert the lemon and thyme into the cavity
Tie up the legs and wings
Set on a rack in a large baking dish breast side up
Add 2 litres of hot water
Tent tightly with foil and set across 2 hotplates
Boil gently for 35 mins to steam out the excess fat
Remove to the bench still on the rack and cool
Collect all the fat from the water
Brush with orange glaze and set uncovered in the refrigerator overnight
Allow at least 1 hour to come to room temperature. Brush with orange glaze
Heat the oven to 220°
Set the goose on the rack breast side down in a large baking dish in a 220°  oven
Brush the goose with goose fat and cook for 10 minutes
Turn the oven down to 180° and cook for 40 minutes longer. Baste with orange glaze regularly.
Remove to bench and check temp is more than 65°. If not return to the oven.
Rest 1 hour or more. Coat with orange Glaze while resting.

Cumberland sauce is a bit like a sweet worcestershire sauce and works with Goose. It is also good with eggs and ham, cold meats and chicken. However I cook up another batch of orange glaze and serve with this. Even better.

It may seem that the goose has been cooked upside down in comparison to a Chicken or Turkey but this is correct. The fat will render down through the breast and its just delicious, fatty and moist.

1 x 3kg Goose
2 Lemons juiced
7g table Salt and pepper
3g Allspice powder
3 Thyme sprigs

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Orange Glaze
1/2 cup Orange marmalade
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup Lambrusco wine

Boil till reduced to a third. 30 minutes
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Cumberland sauce
1 cup Port
1 cup Red wine vinegar
1 Cup orange juice
1 Cup red currant jelly
1 dash Tabasco
1/2 Tbs ground black pepper
3 Shallots

Boil 40 minutes or till reduced by at least two thirds. Strain and serve cold.

Roast Goose is a great variation on the Sunday or Christmas roast. The meat is more like pig than chicken. In fact it is very similar in taste and texture to suckling pig. Not the same but similar. Lots of flavour. Moist and juicy and fairly fatty. Slides down the gullet with ease. Another great advantage is it is very easy to get right. Overcooked is better than undercooked. And this is always a good trait for a failsafe roast.

But the real bonus is the goose fat. Forget tricks and par boiling. Goose fat solves all the issues. From a 3kg goose I got 300ml of goose fat. Simply brush the peeled vegetables with the fat and bake at 200° for an 90 minutes or so. Half way through cooking brush with more goose fat. The other advantage is all the prep is done the day before. On the day just stick it in the oven, baste with glaze a few times and its done. Like all of these specialty meats a goose can be hard to get. And getting a big enough one is a real issue. You need about 750g of goose per person. 3kg is just enough for 4 people or 8 smaller portions in a Christmas banguet