Canada geese are on the Fish and Game schedule, so you will need a gamebird license to hunt them; each region has their own season and bag limits, so please check them out.
In our opinion Canada geese are the most underrated game bird for the table. A higher fat content makes them easier to cook and the taste is outstanding. To prepare we simply let the bird hang for 24 hours in a cool place, then pluck and gut the birds, washing them thoroughly inside and out. I have read that hunters will let them hang for up to ten days (guts and all) to tenderize the meat and for fullness of flavour. In England I have prepared and eaten pheasant that was left for a similar amount of time — you need a strong stomach to gut and pluck them as they are very ripe, but believe it or not the meat did taste good.
If you want to get rid of the gamey taste altogether, you can soak either the whole bird or the breasts and legs overnight in a mixture of water and a cup of salt. This will blanch the meat and get rid of most of the taste. Alternatively, put it in a good red-wine or sherry marinade in the fridge overnight and this will tenderize the meat and take away the gamey taste of an older bird.
is an ideal weapon to do this job thoroughly and there are filleting knives available specifically for trout that have a spoon attached to the end of the handle for just this purpose.
There is no need to skin trout before cooking. The skin adds to the flavour, especially when the trout’s cooked on a barbecue or fried in a pan. Like all fish, it pays to take care of your catch wherever possible by putting it on ice, where practical, or burying it in the cool sand or gravel of the riverbank until you head home.