Backyard Poultry Forum

Hi There to one and all
I have recently dressed an excess of drakes ranging from a bad line of Black East Indies to some Mallard Pekin crosses.
(YES! I advertised them for homes first but everyone wants everything for nothing...)

The BEI's were brined for 24 hours and smoked... YUM...
I have just done another two larger boys and one is a slightly older Mallard...
I like the darker meat but I am concerned as to how to cook these two so they are not the texture of a Soccer Ball
I was just going through a search on cooking duck in a Grand Marnier or Orange sauce, but it was not very specific about basting, roasting, braising or whichever.
It did say 15 minutes for a bird but that too me seemed insanely quick...

Should I oven baste it on high for say 30 minutes then reduce the heat for 10...
They weigh just over a kilo and that 30 minutes may be way too long and I would sit the meat covered in foil for about 10 minutes before serving...
Surprizingly the BEI's were good flavoursome meat but obviously not much on them....
Any suggestions would be appreciated, we can't afford waste in our home and would like to try the "Duck in Orange sauce"
I know I cooked it years ago and it was divine but there are so many different theories.
Thanks in advance

Many chef-type recipes produce duck that is quite rare, which I loath. So generally I cook them long and slow for the older ones.

If you're concerned about toughness, you can brine them for roasting too.

I've not had it for years, but my mother used to cook duck-a-la-orange just by using a baste of fresh orange juice whilst roasting & cut up whole orange (ie skin-on) shoved in the cavity. It worked great as I recall. The sugars in the orange juice kind-of caramelise, so you get that sweet-orange-sticky thing happening on the skin which is great. You then make a light gravy from the pan juices after tipping off the fat.

With old ducks I cook them long and slow basted in a bit of soy sauce. then pull all the meat off by hand and throw it all in a red curry.

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-Tony
Oriental Gamefowl, Turkeys and Ducks

I used to do duck every year at Christmas

Ide cook it on the webber, took about 1 1/2 hours.

Stuffing- stuffing mix, chopped dried apricots, orange juice and brandy to moisten.
Baste - orange marmalade, red currant jelly - about 2 heaped tablespoons of each , juice of 2 oranges , a smidgin of soy sauce and brandy - melted together in a saucepan first.
Method...
- pour yourself a glass of champers and stuff the duck
- put the duck onto the webber, baste well , cover with the lid and have a sip of champers.
- baste every 20 minutes, have more champers (duck is a celebration after all ) and watch it turn a lovely rich deep colour, the bits of peel in the marmalade caramelize as it cooks.
- take duck off when cooked, cover in foil and rest for 10 minutes before carving.
- enjoy !

Hi There
Thanks so much everyone...
We have a budget here on one wage and any excess boys are used....
Better for us than factory birds anyway...

SOOO! A trip to the supermarket, thinking there is a nice amount of fat on them,,, (well fed slopers) in pursuit of some extra duck fat...
Zero to be had....
You would think Woolies would have that
Next step very good butter... A bottle of good Orange Juice, zip down to the bottle shop.
No small bottles of Grand Marnier,
Next step, a small bottle of brandy.
Off to IGA A bottle of garlic infused Cobram pure Virgin Olive oil...

So between you my freind's sharing your thoughts and after talking to a freind of mine whose hubby is a top poultry breeder and expert on cooking of birdies.

I come up with basting, some stuffing, from the similar suggestion above.
Cook in a moderate oven with the orange in the cavity, some Orange and Brandy baste and see what we produce.
Thanks again
Oh by the way "AngleCake" I think by the time I had a glass of champers everytime I basted the duck I probably would
go "stuff the duck" and fall to sleep on a chair somewhere.LOL
Can't do champers, makes my legs go funny....

Let us know how it goes Sounds pretty good!!

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Cheerio, Rach
Blue Swedish Ducks

Good luck cooking your duck , yes please let us know how it goes

I like to use the Cobram extra virgin oil as well....probably cos i grew up in Cobram , and it tastes nice

cheers.

Yummo, sounds great!



Me too Heather

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Erika

Hi Again
sooo!
This is my pre prep "ahh laa Quacker" formula.
Two said ducks (and they are not that young) One Mallard and one Mallard Pekin Cross.
I have decided to brine them for 24 hours the same as I usually do....
In this brine of which I have a standard brine of enough water to cover the meat completely.

To this I add enough honey to colour the water, 1 generous cup of white wine (might put in an extra glass for AngleCake ) enough salt for it to taste a tad less saltier than sea water, fresh garlic (about 4 large cloves as I am aiming for Duck in Orange Brandy sauce) and to this brine I have added half a tube of the Fresh THAI SEASONING.

Ensure the salt is dissolved properly of course, "Stuff the Ducks" into the brine in a plastic container put a firm lid on it
Of course you have to ensure that all the air is released from the cavity so the brine gets into the inside of your bird.
I am now going to thick slice some lovely ripe Naval Oranges and they are going to be soaked in Brandy untill tomorrow when the "quackers' are ready to go into the oven...
I will put some extra Orange Juice with the orange slice and Brandy and use that as a basting sauce...

"Sounds like a Plan for me"
Hope it doesn't taste like candied leather....
Gott run
I will be in touch...

does brining tenderise the duck?

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"When you let go of what you are, you become what you might be."
Lao Tzu

Brining helps stop them drying out. So it's useful for older or lean birds. Generally duck has plenty of fat so being dry is less of a problem.

Oh My Goodness "AngelCake"
You must have ESP
I was after garlic infused olive oil in Woolies, went to IGA and got YUP! You guessed it a bottle of "Cobram's Garlic Infused Olive Oil" grabbed it and ran for the kitchen.

We went to Cobram to pick up our "pinball machine" for our car shed (Yep getting off topic a tad )
BUT we loved Cobram the minute we got there, went to the "Strawberry factory" discovered all of Cobram's delights, and discovered their wines, their oils and everything cullinary and had an amazing lunch... and of course went home with a Pinball Machine on the back of the courier.
Best trip we have made, best investment we have made, best fun we have had since we bought a "Pinball Machine" YEAHHHH!

SOO here is hoping that a peice of "Duck" in one hand and game of Pinball may be the end result of my "Recipe Request" LOL

Coles up here carries duck fat but not Woolies. Not that I've ever purchased any. If going decadent we'll use Danish butter.

Hi There
Thank's "Andrew's Chooks"
Haven't discovered that one at this stage..
My 17 year old is heavily into cooking so may "Do the homework on that one"
Sound's fantastic.
I have to say that
"Regaurdless of the fat content of some peoples diet I have to say that everything in "Moderation still applies"
If you work hard (physically as I and Hubby do) you can then have the baked dinners and the bits in between but "Work it off"
My Granma Hargrave made us eat the fat off the loin chop's (in fact the fat off everything but we did a hard day's work and I think that compensates)
"Everything in Balance".
I will let everyone know how the duck's go..
I know some find this a struggle but when one is bought up on the land and having to supplement in some form this is how it is.

The Big Strawberry is just down the road from where we used to live

Hope your duck was a hit, and tastes as good as it promises to be - sounds like you collect some interesting things too

cheers