Easy Goose Curry

This Easy Goose Curry Recipe is a mild Indian curry with tender goose meat simmered in a rich and creamy tomato sauce that will be on your table in less than 30 minutes.

Mild Indian Curry is a Family Favorite

The first time I made this goose curry recipe, the smell alone pulled my family into the kitchen long before dinner hit the table. Warm curry spices drifted through the house while the sauce bubbled away in the Dutch oven, rich with tomatoes, coconut milk, garlic, and roasted red peppers. By the time I carried the pot to the table, my wife Melissa already had warm naan ready, and our 11-year-old daughter Lucia was asking if there would be enough sauce left for seconds tonight and lunch tomorrow.

That's because we love Indian food, and especially a family-friendly mild Indian curry. Our favorite is my Golden Pheasant Curry, but this goose version is a close second.

Why I Created This Easy Goose Recipe

For a lot of Americans like me, Indian food scratches an itch that few other cuisines can. We love the way warm spices unfold one after another. There is also something deeply generous about Indian food, meant for passing, scooping, and gathering around together. Yet takeout has become expensive enough that ordering curry for a family can quickly add up. That reality pushed me toward developing a goose curry recipe like this one.

You can use store-bought or farm-raised goose for this recipe. However, as an avid waterfowl hunter who harvests quite a few ducks and geese each fall, I tested this recipe multiple times using both Canada geese and snow geese to make sure I got it just right.

The biggest key to success is properly tenderizing the meat.

Because this goose curry recipe cooks relatively quickly, I strongly recommend using a Jaccard meat tenderizer before cubing the goose. Those tiny blades break down muscle fibers and help keep the meat tender during the shorter cook time.

If you don't own a Jaccard tenderizer and have extra time, you can still achieve tender meat by allowing the goose to simmer gently in the sauce for an extra 30 minutes to an hour.

Either way, once the curry hits a bowl of rice and warm garlic naan starts swiping through the sauce, you want everyone raving about how tender the goose meat is.

Why You'll Love This Goose Curry Recipe

This goose curry recipe works especially well for busy families because it delivers big flavor without making dinner feel like a project.

Here’s why this recipe works so well:

• Quick enough for weeknights
• Excellent use for goose breasts or boneless thighs
• Rich, creamy curry sauce without feeling overly heavy
• Mild spice level that works for families with kids
• Wonderful leftovers for lunch the next day
• A great introduction to Indian-inspired wild game cooking

In addition, the coconut milk softens the acidity of the tomatoes while helping carry all those warm spices throughout the sauce. Meanwhile, roasted red peppers add a subtle sweetness that balances the goose beautifully.

Ingredients You'll Need For Goose Curry

• 1 pound boneless, skinless goose breasts or thighs
• kosher salt
• black pepper
• 1 Tablespoon avocado or olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup roasted red peppers, chopped
• 1 29-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 Tablespoons mild curry powder
• 1 Tablespoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
• 3 cups cooked rice, for serving
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, optional
• warm naan or pita brad, for serving

How to Make This Mild Indian Curry

Step 1: Tenderize the Goose

Place goose breasts or thighs onto a cutting board and tenderize using a Jaccard meat tenderizer. This step matters because goose is naturally lean, especially late-season wild birds. Since this goose curry recipe cooks quickly, tenderizing helps prevent chewy meat. After tenderizing, cut the goose into 1 to 1½-inch cubes.

Next, pat the meat dry with paper towels and toss it with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper.

If you do not own a Jaccard and have more time, you can skip tenderizing and instead let the goose simmer gently in the finished sauce for 1 to 2 hours until tender.

Step 2: Brown the Goose

Add 2 Tablespoons oil to a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Once the oil shimmers, add the goose meat and sauté until the outside is no longer pink, about 3 minutes. You are not trying to fully cook the goose at this point. Instead, you simply want to begin building flavor.

Transfer the goose to a plate and set aside.

At this point, the pan should smell deeply savory, with little browned bits forming along the bottom. Those bits help build flavor into the finished curry.

Step 3: Build the Curry Base

To the same Dutch oven, add the onion and sauté for about 2 minutes over medium heat.

Next, add the butter and minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Stir often so the garlic softens and sweetens instead of browning too aggressively.

Then add the roasted red peppers and sauté for another minute.

The kitchen should already smell rich and inviting, with butter, onion, and garlic mingling beneath warm spice notes waiting in the wings.

Step 4: Add the Tomatoes and Spices

Stir in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, curry powder, coriander, cumin, ginger, paprika, sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.

Allow the sauce to simmer for 5 minutes.

Somewhere around this point, someone in your family will wander into the kitchen and ask, “What smells so good?”

Step 5: Finish the Curry

Add the coconut milk and reserved goose meat and simmer for another 5 minutes, stirring often.

The sauce softens almost immediately into something creamy and comforting. The coconut milk rounds out the spices while adding richness without making the curry feel too heavy.

Taste and season with more salt and pepper if desired.

Serve over cooked rice with a sprinkle of fresh cilantro and warm naan on the side for soaking up every last bit of sauce.

And trust me, you will want bread for the sauce.

At our house, Melissa and Lucia used torn pieces of warm garlic naan to scrape their bowls nearly clean. By the end of dinner, the only thing left was the quiet clink of spoons chasing the final streaks of curry around the plate.

More Family Favorite Goose Recipes

If you are looking for more great goose recipes, check these out that have all been tested and approved by my wife and our 11-year-old daughter:

• Goose Tacos
• Goose Pastrami Sliders
• Goose Flautas
• BBQ Goose
• Pineapple Pulled Goose Sandwich
• Wiener Schnitzel
• Greek Nachos
• Goose Fettuccini Alfredo

Come Goose Hunting in North Dakota

If you are headed our way for North Dakota waterfowl season, check out the North Dakota Game & Fish Department website. And if you want me to come along with you as your camp cook, photographer, or butcher, you can find out more details here.

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