Why it works: Peas and apple work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 192 recipes. Both carry 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells green bell pepper, earthy. The science ↓
Roast Goose
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Select a young goose, ideally killed before the end of August.
Truss the goose as you would a duck, removing the feet and keeping them with the giblets.
Roast and serve
Stuff the goose if desired, then roast it in front of the fire, basting regularly.
Serve with plenty of young green peas and apple sauce if desired.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Peas + appletop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together192 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
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Peas + saucetop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,109 recipes
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Apple + saucetop 31% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together965 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Goose
- Is the main protein; its fat renders during roasting, keeping the meat moist and flavourful.
- Young green peas
- Add sweetness and a fresh, tender texture that contrasts with the rich meat.
The step that matters
Basting regularly while roasting. Goose is fatty, but its lean meat can dry out over a long roast. Regular basting moistens the surface and helps the skin brown and crisp evenly.
Swap the apple
The recipe marks apple as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (peas, sauce):
- Pumpkinfits better
- Coconutfits better
- Avocadofits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against peas, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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