Cooking Suggestion: Calculate the cooking time (see tips below).

1. Using the tip of a sharp knife, lightly score the breast and leg skin in a crisscross pattern. This helps the fat melt more quickly during roasting.
2. Grate the zest from the lemons and limes. Mix with 2 tsp fine sea salt, the five-spice powder and pepper to taste. Season the cavity of the goose generously with salt, then rub the citrus mix well into the skin and sprinkle some inside the cavity.
3. Stuff the zested fruit and herb sprigs inside the bird and set aside for at least 15 minutes. You can do this up to a day in advance and keep it refrigerated.
4. Heat oven to 240C/fan 220C/gas
5. To give the bird a nice golden skin, brown it in a large frying pan (or a heavy-based roasting tin) with a couple of tablespoons of oil. Hold the bird by the legs (you may like to use an oven glove) and press it down on the breasts to brown.
6. Once browned, place the bird in the roasting tin. Drizzle with the honey and sprinkle with thyme leaves. Roast for the calculated time, turning the heat down after 10 mins to 190C/fan 170C/gas
7. Cover the goose with foil if it browns too much.
8. Every 30 minutes or so, baste the bird with the pan juices, then pour off the fat through a sieve into a large heatproof bowl.

Save this for the potatoes and other vegetables; you will have at least a litre of luscious fat. At the end of the cooking time, cover the bird loosely with foil and leave it to rest for at least 30 minutes. The bird will not go cold but will be moist and much easier to carve.

Roasting times: Cook for 10 minutes at 240C/fan 220C/gas 9, then reduce to 190C/fan 170C/gas five and cook for 20 minutes per kg for medium-rare, 32 minutes per kg for more well-done, and 30 minutes resting.