Well ok, this is the first time I’m doing it my self … my last 2 times ended up with someone else making it and screwing it up …
Now the one I bought this time comes with premade orange sauce … Yay or nay?
And since its fatty do you recommend stuffing it? I know its usually done with rice of some type …Also in the directions, it says you may season it your self … with normal poultry seasoning or are there better ones?
And lastly does one put potatoes and veggies around it as you can with chicken? I know potatoes in duck fat are supposed to be godly so I thought id ask
Duck leaks mountains of duck fat, so you need to cook the duck on a grill rack, suspended above the roasting tray unless you want duck confit…
And because of this, you shouldn’t cook the veg/potatoes around the meat - there’s just way too much of it. You can, instead, spoon some of the duck fat into another roasting tray and do the veggies in there.
If the duck is tied up, untruss it - the meat will cook more evenly. Prick the skin all over to allow the juices to flow out when it’s cooking. Baste regularly during cooking.
Toss the orange sauce, it will likely be sickly and horrible.
‘Seasoning’ is salt and pepper - don’t use some horrible ‘chicken seasoning’ - it tastes artificial.
If there’s giblets, use these to make a lovely gravy.
I always use potatoes as the rack for my duck. I can’t imagine a duck that has so much fat that it would overwhelm the potatoes. Of course I cook wild duck not farm raised.
I like to brine my duck in a soy sauce and bourbon marinade. Then coat it in peanut oil, garlic salt, pepper, and cayenne. I’ll cut some slits in the breast to let the fat out and roast it breast down on a bed of potatoes at 325 F and 15 min per pound.
I’m doing duck 3 ways here in two weeks. It’ll be a beer butt grilled, roasted and stuffed shells.
spatchcock it, score the skin all over the breast, then dry brine it- heavily salt both sides of it and keep it in the refrigerator until the skin appears dry all over. then roast. and yes, roast it on a rack over something deep like a broiler pan because a lot of fat will render out.
Yeah, I go with San Vito as well. I differ slightly in that I wouldn’t baste it. (It’s full of fat anyway; and in my view, duck should be crispy so I want to cook all that fat out. Personal preference I guess)
If you want orange sauce just buy some marmalade. Warm it until soupy and add soy sauce to taste. You may also want to add fresh herbs depending upon how you are doing the rest. Roast an onion and some garlic under the duck and slice/mush them into it when they are browned through.
For stuffing, I prefer to do it separately (“Dressing”) in a casserole. Inside the duck it gets too greasy and stays too wet. I like a mixture of brown rice, wild rice, and split green peas. Just boil it all in a big pot like spaghetti, and drain it when everything is soft. Then toss it in a casserole with whatever seasonings and herbs, and a couple tablespoons of fat from the dusk roast. Mix and bake until the top looks golden. Fresh parsley goes nicely in this, and gives a nice contrast to the fatty duck. Whatever you use, toss some of it into the marmalade mixture.
Most cooking sites suggest never stuffing a duck. I cooked one recently - first time in years- and it was suggested they make it cook unevenly. Trouble with ducks is they have rather little meat on them.
well I’m informed of a change in plans …the aunt informed me were having it along the turkey and ham for thanksgiving…so ill let ya know how it turned out …there’s some good ideas tho
how long can you keep duck fat? i want to cook French fries in it at least once …
Is the duck currently frozen? Or are y’all buying one closer to Thanksgiving?
Covered, the fat should keep in the fridge for several weeks at least. I guess you could freeze some of it for later use, if you’re worried about spoiling.