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There are two types of goose fat: brown and blonde.

Brown fat is the fat that you get while roasting a goose; it renders off the goose as a by-product of the roasting.

Blonde (actually more white) fat is rendered in a saucepan.

Either kind is spreadable like butter, and has a smoke point of 375 F / 190 C.

In some parts of France, everyday cooking is still based on goose fat in the way that other parts of Europe rely on butter or oil. It is particularly popular in the Aquitaine, Gascony and Périgord areas of France. In France, it is sold in tins or jars (jars aremore flexible for daily use as they can be re-sealed.)

The perception, though, in the UK and in North America is that fats such as goose fats are for lower-end cooks, and that better cooks use oil. However, some English-speaking foodies are slowly discovering goosefat: in the UK, it has been imported from France since 1998, and is being sold in grocery stores such as Sainsbury's.

Jews in northern Europe would use goose fat instead of pork lard; it used to be traditional to cook latkes in goose fat.

Goose Cracklings -- some people like to also include small pieces of skin in with the fat, and cook them until dark brown and crispy and eat as a snack.

Cooking Tips
Goose fat can be used as a spread on bread. Many people swear by goose fat for making roast potatoes with.

To render blonde goose fat: Remove loose fat from the raw goose. Put the fat in a small pot with an equal amount of water, and render over low heat. When it begins to sputter, remove the pan from the heat, pour the liquid into a bowl and let stand to cool. The water will separate off, leaving behind very white goose fat.

Substitutes
Duck fat, schmaltz, or another cooking fat or oil.

Nutrition
Goose fat is 57% monounsaturated fat, 28% saturated fat, 11% polyunsaturated.

Per tablespoon, 11mg cholesterol.

Storage
Refrigerate in a sealed container for up to several months.

Also called:

See Also:

Schmaltz

Other entries for:

Fat
Caul, Chicken Fat, Copha, Dripping, Goose Fat, Oil, Palmin, Puff Pastry Fat, Schmaltz, Shortening, Suet, Unsaturated Fat