BRAISED GOOSE WITH CARAMELISED RED CABBAGE AND GLAZED CHESTNUTS

Recipe by Stefan Hermann, bean&beluga restaurant, Dresden, Germany (serves 4)

FOR THE GOOSE

1 goose with giblets (approx. 6kg) 400g onions, peeled

4 apples, peeled and cored

100g butter

400g shallots

100ml red wine vinegar

marjoram, thyme, mugwort salt, white pepper

METHOD

– Chop the onions and apples finely and sauté in a little butter.

– Season with salt and pepper. Add the marjoram and thyme.

– Salt and pepper the goose well inside and out. Stuff the goose with the apple and onion stuffing and the mugwort and close with a toothpick or kitchen string.

– Pour some water into a suitable roasting tin, add the finely chopped wings and neck bones and place the goose on top of the chopped meat, breast-side down

– Braise at 120°C (250°F) for three to four hours. Remove from the oven, leave to cool and cut into serving portions.

– Also chill the gravy and gently skim off the fat once cool enough

– Pour the degreased gravy onto a baking tray, place the goose pieces on top and add more salt if necessary. Now roast at 200°C (400°F) top heat until the skin is golden brown and crispy.

– Brush with a little goose fat.

– Sweat the finely chopped shallots and marjoram in a little butter, deglaze with some of the goose stock and simmer to reduce.

FOR THE RED CABBAGE

1 red cabbage

25g brown sugar

250ml orange juice

250ml red Port wine

50g goose fat/fat rendered from the roast goose during cooking

salt, white peppercorns, bay leaf, clove, juniper berries (combine all the spices in a small muslin bag)

METHOD

– Caramelise the sugar in a saucepan, deglaze with orange juice and Port wine, add the spice bag and simmer.

– Remove the red cabbage from the stalk, chop, put into a bowl and pour over the hot marinade, salt a little and leave to marinate for 24 hours.

– Drain the red cabbage well in a sieve.

– Put the goose fat in a saucepan and sauté the red cabbage in it.

– Pour in the marinade and braise in a preheated oven at 200°C (400°F) for about an hour until tender.

– Season with a little salt and, if necessary, thicken with a grated potato.

FOR THE GLAZED CHESTNUTS

50g butter

250g chestnuts, peeled and cooked 25g sugar

METHOD

– In a small sauté pan, caramelise the butter, sugar and a little water. Add the peeled, cooked chestnuts and glaze, stirring constantly.

STEFAN HERMANN

A true highflyer: in 2007 Stefan Hermann opened the restaurant bean&beluga in Dresden and immediately received a Michelin star for his balanced, unfussy cooking. In his adopted home of Dresden, the top chef has also built up a small "gourmet empire" in recent years. This includes sharing his professional tricks and kitchen hacks in his cookery school or offering homemade specialities in his own delicatessen. He also caters at the famous Semperoper where opera lovers can enjoy his exquisite finger food alongside the musical delights. Hermann made a seamless transition from top chef to entrepreneur – and his success did not come by chance. In the course of his career, the Swabian-born chef has worked in the best establishments across the world – including Harald Wohlfahrt's Schwarzwaldstube in Germany's Black Forest, the Sonnora restaurant, the Caroussel restaurant at the Bülow-Residenz hotel in Dresden and the Regent Hotel London.