SMOKED GOOSE BREAST

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If you're looking for the best easy smoked goose breast recipe, then you've come to the right place. For this one, I used the breast from a Canada goose, but you can use any goose that you have available.

I started this one off with a quick cure of powdered sugar and fine sea salt (you can use any fine-grain salt that you like). And when I say quick cured, we're only talking about between 1 and 2 hours. It's nothing like my 2 week cured Canada goose breast recipe (aka prosciutto) that doesn't involve any cooking. But not to worry, I'll be taking you through my method.

Leaving the Skin on or Taking the Skin Off

With this recipe, you have the option of smoking the goose breast with the skin on or skin off. If you're planning on keeping the skin on, I highly recommend crisping the skin up in a pan set to medium-low heat after the smoking process is finished. I'll cover crisping a bit more down below. After you've figured out whether you are going to leave the skin on or not, it's time to rub the breast with the cure.

Quick Curing the Goose Breast

The main purpose of the quick cure is to add extra flavor and color to the meat. I use fine sea salt and powdered sugar in place of standard table sugar, being that it absorbs well and is a lot less likely to burn from my experience. After I rub this salt and sugar mixture all over the meat, I let the breasts rest at room temperature for a minimum of 1 hour and upwards of 2 hours. You'll notice right away that the cure is pulling some of the surface moisture from the meat. But don't worry, this is not going to dry out the delicious smoked meat that awaits you. Before smoking, gently pat the excess moisture dry with a clean paper towel, being sure that you are wiping off the cure.

Resting the Meat Before Smoking

Whether you decide to cure your breasts or not, it is a good idea to let the meat rest at room temperature before smoking. This will take some of the chill off of the meat and allow for more even cooking. This isn't a make-or-break step, so if you're pressed for time, you can skip it.

Temperatures for Smoking Goose Breasts

The best piece of advice that I can give for smoking a wild goose breast is to go low and slow. I smoke them between 170 degrees F and 180 degrees F. This lower temperature will give your meat more time in the smoke before it hits your desired internal temperature. And more time in your smoker equals more smoky flavor. If you are unable to get your smoker to those recommended temperatures, try and keep the temperature at 200 degrees F or below.

Optional Step for Extra Flavor and Color

One of the best ways to elevate the flavor and looks of your smoked meats is to get a little char on them. With larger cuts of meat, you can simply throw them onto a super hot bbq or under your oven's broiler. But with goose breasts being so small you can easily run into the problem of overcooking them by using the methods mentioned above. To get around this you can carefully use a blowtorch to char the meat a bit on the outside until you've reached the color you're after with very little chance of overcooking the goose.

Final Internal Cooking Temperatures and Relaxing the Meat

One of the most important factors in having a juicy piece of goose meat on your plate is the internal temperature in which you cook it. I like to remove the breasts from the smoker between 125 degrees and 130 degrees F internal temperature using an instant-read thermometer. Anything above 135 degrees F, starts leaning towards the side of drying out. Once you've reached your desired internal temperature, it's a great idea to let the meat relax for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing into it. This will give the meat a chance to relax and prevent a lot of the juices from pouring from your meat and onto your cutting board.

Crisping the Skin

If you decide to leave the skin on your goose breast and want to crisp it, I recommend waiting to do so at the end of the cooking process. And if you're doing the blow torch method for charing the meat, this can be done before or after crisping the skin. Being that the breast was smoked first, some of the fat has already started to render, which means it will take less time to achieve crispy skin. Place the breast skin side down in a pan over medium heat. Cook until the skin is a nice brown color and has a hard texture to the touch.

Looking for other Canada Goose recipes? These are some of my favorites:

Goose Okonomikayi

Cured Canada Goose Ham

If you make this easy Smoked Goose Breast, be sure to leave a rating and a comment below! Also, tag me on Instagram with some of your creations. I thoroughly enjoy hearing feedback and checking out the photos of recipes that you've made.

SMOKED GOOSE BREAST

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Optional Curing Time: 1 to 2 hours

Cooking Time: Around 2 hours

Author: Larry White

INGREDIENTS

2 to 4 Goose Breasts (Canada goose, snow goose, or domestic)
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fine-grained salt
wood chips
Optional: blow torch

INSTRUCTIONS

In a small bowl mix together the salt and powdered sugar. If you need more, simply make another batch. Any extra will keep well if stored in an air-tight container.
Place the goose breasts onto a baking tray or large plate. Completely coat the breasts with the salt and sugar mixture.
Let the meat rest at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
Pat the excess moisture from the meat with paper towels while ensuring that you don't remove the salt and sugar mixture from the meat.
Heat your smoker between 170 degrees and 180 degrees F. If you can't get your smoker that low, 200 degrees F will work.
Smoke the breast until you reach your desired internal temperature. For waterfowl, I like to cook the breast to an internal temperature of around 128 degrees F. You can cook them to a higher temperature, but I recommend not going any higher than 135 degrees F. I also recommend removing the breasts from the smoker a few degrees shy of your final temperature if you plan on crisping the skin.
To crisp the skin, cook the breasts skin side down over medium heat until nicely browned and firm.
Optional Step: As mentioned in the notes section, you can use a blow torch to add a nice char to the meat without overcooking it. I don't recommend using the torch on the skin because you run the risk of burning it.
Let the meat rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes. Slice and season with salt and black pepper.