Canada Geese; lets be clear here, they are completely edible but they don’t quite scream ‘delicious’ or ‘tender’ to most waterfowlers, but now that doesn’t mean they can’t be. With a little help from some seasoning, thoughtful and deliberate cooking, and a few hungry friends after a good goose hunt, you’re sure to find this honker recipe one worthy of saving for later.
This recipe is for what we call a four-way-foldup quesadilla and boasts roasted southwestern-style veggies, thin-cut peppery seasoned Canada goose strips, and cheese. At the end, you’ll have a delicious loaded quesadilla with an easy and fun presentation.
Ingredients (you can vary for seasoning and loaded veggies/toppings to your taste!)
- Canada Goose Breasts
- Seasoning Blend
- Paprika
- Onion Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- Cumin
- Tortillas
- Cheese
- Sour Cream
- Tomatoes
- Black Beans
- Sweet Corn
- Peppers
Step by Step
I like to start by slicing the Canada goose breasts thin and seasoning them before I get to work on the veggies, this gives the seasoning a little time to penetrate the goose meat before cooking. For the record, one large Canada goose (two large goose breasts) serves the meat portion for about six of these foldups.
Begin by blending the seasonings in your ingredient list. I like to use about 1 TBS of each seasoning mentioned. Liberally coat both sides of the thinly sliced goose with the blend and let sit in the fridge for a short bit while you spend time on the veggies and other quarters of this four-way-foldup.
Now you’ll want to chop and combine all veggies into a bowl with a very light amount of oil and roast them on medium to medium-high heat. I like a little char, some like a little firmer, so cook to yours and your audiences liking!
The next thing you’re going to do is cook the seasoned goose strips, and you’ll want to do this on medium heat, and for just long enough to cook the strips without overcooking them. It’s going to take just a couple of minutes once the pan has reached temperature. Remove from heat as soon as the goose begins to firm up- we never want to overcook waterfowl.
The final step is to assemble and enjoy! For the four-way-foldup style quesadilla, you are going to cut a radius into the quesadilla- that is a single cut from the center to an edge. This is going to allow you to fold three times. Once that is done, simply add to each quarter and fold the ‘dilla up one quarter at a time! My favorite quarters look like this: cheese/sour cream (easy to fold first!), then our goose meat, followed by fire-roasted vegetables, and rounded out with some hearty black beans! A good few seconds in a hot pat on each side to crisp the tortilla doesn’t hurt before you serve it.
And there you have it, the Split Reed four-way-foldup Canada goose loaded quesadilla! Give it a try the next time you’re staring at a goose wondering what you’re going to do with it, or a duck, a crane, a speck, etc.. This recipe it just flat out going to be good!
