Cookin' Duck

[gmantwo]

4 times Every year my employer pays for 3 days at an amazing hunting lodge in western KY. Last year we limited out on ducks by 9:45 on the second morning, and there were 4 of us in the blind. My problem is that I HATE the taste of liver. I'd like to know if anyone has a recipe that will get the liver taste out. I almost did, but not quite. I soaked the breasts in salt water for 4 days, changing the water twice a day. Then I cooked them in a pan of dressing. I think if I had boiled them before putting them in the dressing, that might have done it. Any other suggestions?

[Jim Rusert]

What kind of duck?

If they're puddle ducks, we usually bake them in orange juice with a few sliced oranges on top.

Or, I marinate the duck in Tabasco and Worcesteshire sauce for an hour and then put them on the grill for just a minute.

Duck is my favorite game to eat.

Yummy!

[Coolduckboy]

Try me, I dare ya.

[Paul Santiago]

I'm going tohave to keep an eye on this thread since i just found a mallard nesting outside my front door in the flower bed. I guess I have peeps/quackers soon?

[ima45dv8]

Preheat oven to 325.

In a large (1 gallon) zip-top freezer bag, combine:

1-1/2 cups orange juice, 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar, 1/4 c. sliced green onions, 1 tbsp. Allspice, 1/2 tbsp. crushed red pepper flakes, 1/2 tbsp. kosher salt (the courser grind makes it preferable), 1/2 tbsp. minced fresh garlic, 1/2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 tbsp. fresh ground black pepper, 3 whole cloves, dash of ground cayenne pepper, dash of bitters, and 1 bay leaf.

Add 1-1/2 to 2 lbs. split Duck breasts. Rest on ice or in refrigerator for 1-2 hours, turning bag occasionally for even treatment of breasts.

Place a wire rack over a cast iron skillet with 1/4-1/2" of salt (absorbs excess juices and reduces smoking). Place cedar shingles (the kind used for cooking salmon) on rack and lay out breasts evenly. Top breasts with orange slices (thin). Sprinkle with dark brown sugar. Bake for 25 minutes, then move to broiler for 5-8 minutes to caramelize sugar. Remove and allow to cool.

Discard the breasts and eat the shingles.

[downlow411]

Sauerkraut and juniper berries, bake with breast side down in the kraut.

[HSMITH]

For puddle ducks try grilling and eating them medium to medium rare. I know I know, everyone says don't eat birds rare, but it doesn't apply to ducks. You won't get salmonella. Cooking them well done RUINS the meat unless you pluck them and cook them skin on in a baking bag with stuffing like a turkey. My favorite is to breast them out, then leg and thighs come off in one piece. Shake garlic salt liberally on all sides, same with pepper, then wrap with thin cut bacon and pin the bacon with toothpicks. Grill the breasts medium rare to medium, legs and thighs to medium. It is tough to do without burning the bacon but if you do it right and don't like it you aren't going to like eating ducks. The other last resort is a half dozen ducks breasted and leg/thighs boned out in a crock pot, add one bottle of KC Masterpiece if you can't get Sweet Baby Ray's and a can of cola or a can of beer to cover. Cook it ALL day on low. Remove meat and shred/chop, replace, stir and eat like pulled pork. This works great with geese too if you don't have the patience to make goose jerky....

For diving ducks, if you don't like puddle ducks you won't ever find a way to eat diving ducks. I soak them in milk for a couple hours then bacon wrap and grill.

I hunted ducks and geese 50+ days a year for many years, I have tried every conceivable way to cook them short of eating the shingles Mark mentioned and the real key for me is to either not overcook them or overcook the hell out of them and mask any flavor with something you like the flavor of....

[TwoShot]

I parboil the birds with onion celery garlic salt and pepper. Cook until tender and bone out the meat. I make a wicked baked dressing with mushroom soup and wild rice. Mix up the dressing of your choice, put half in the baking pan, cover it with the cooked duck pieces and then top it off with the remaining dressing and bake. I feed about 30 people at the house every year on New Years day with this, yes, they know what I'm serving and they still show up. Howard is right about the divers, they are an acquired taste!

[gmantwo]

Most of what we shoot are mallards, although we did manage to kill 3 Canvasbacks out of a group of about 8 that came in. Made for nice mounts. The guides clean the ducks, so all we get are the breasts. I take home 2-3 ziplock bags with maybe 6-8 breasts each. Making bar-b-que out of them sounds interesting.

LOL, thanks Mark, that sounds tastey!

[ebg3]

I think McCormacks(sp?) makes a marinade called Black Peppercorn Marinade, it comes dry in a pack-just add water. Marinade filleted duck breasts over night, cut in cubes and wrap with 1/2 strip bacon and secure with toothpicks. Grill over charcoal, but only cook to medium rare. Very Good! It really helps to let duck or goose age for 2-3 days in the fridge before cooking. To clean the meat, wipe with a wet cloth.

The only soaking I ever do is with a marinade and never more than over night.

EG