First Duck

[rwc101]

How should I cook it? I'm thinking it's a black duck or younger female Mallard.

 

[DouglasR]

If I ever get one I’m doing this.

https://www.realtree.com/the-duck-blog-with-joe-balog/essential-waterfowl-recipes-rendered-breasts

 

[jrabq]

Did you pluck it or breast it out?

If you shot in Wyoming it's very unlikely to be a black duck. While wing bars above and below speculum would rule out Black duck.

 

[rwc101]

Did you pluck it or breast it out?

Still sitting in my fridge now. Was thinking about plucking whole or breasting out with skin still on.

 

[wihunter12]

We shot some Mallards in SD last week, picked and breasted out. Pan fried a few last night with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Sear meat side and cook on skin side until about 130 degrees pull and let rest for a few minutes. Really good!

 

[Southern Elk]

I would breast it out and grill it. I season mine the same way I season steak. It can't go past rare or it will be tough.

 

[Irrelevant]

How to cook a duck breast perfectly.

Step by step instructions on how to cook duck breasts perfectly every time.

honest-food.net

But save the legs, after you get a few then you can make any of these:

You searched for duck legs - Hunter Angler Gardener Cook

honest-food.net

 

[JShane]

what neffa said

 

[JShane]

@rwc if you care too scroll through the plate em up thread I have a bunch of duck breast pictures in there all simple cooking method.

 

[SO7mm]

For one mallard I would pluck it and roast it whole wither in the oven or indirect on the weber. Hot and fast, not more than 130 as mentioned above. I've done a lot of them with the recipe below.

Family duck recipe

With duck season either here or coming soon I thought I'd share a recipe my great uncle taught me a while ago now. Roast the ducks however you prefer at high temperature. He used the oven but my favorite method is on the a Weber Kettle. I put 35 or so briquets and cook them indirect as hot as...

www.hunttalk.com

 

[rwc101]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to shoot a few more to test everything out. Plenty of coots out there...

 

[JShane]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to shoot a few more to test everything out. Plenty of coots out there...

brine the breast, cut the fat off, make kebobs

 

[mdeerjunkie]

I just cooked one up last night in a pan with butter. It was really good. Or bacon wrap the breasts.

 

[rwc101]

Didn't get that crispy skin that drove me to buy a duck stamp, but it was still damn good.

 

[Bigjay73]

Puck flucking a bird. That juice ain't worth the squeeze

 

[Nick87]

Puck flucking a bird. That juice ain't worth the squeeze

I don't pluck em all, but still worth doing on as many as I can.

 

[rwc101]

Puck flucking a bird. That juice ain't worth the squeeze

Wasn't too bad. Way better than the grouse I've attempted to pluck without tearing the skin to shreds.

 

[Nick87]

Pluck it, stuff with cherries or pineapple. I prefer cherries. Dump remaining juice from said fruit in Dutch oven with breast down. Add two sticks of butter and minced garlic. Put in oven at around 200 to 225. Baste every 45 min to an hour until you push on it and it almost falls off the bone. Usually around 5 to 6 hours on mallards.

Kill more ducks and repeat.

 

[JShane]

Didn't get that crispy skin that drove me to buy a duck stamp, but it was still damn good.

After you pluck the bird and breast it out, put the breast on a cooling rack in the fridge skin side up. Let the skin get dry, like over night dry. Then when prepping your breasts score the skin season place skin side down in a screaming hot cast iron pan. Two thirds of the cooking time is skin side down.

 

[MarvB]

Lots of good advice here, can’t go wrong following any of it! Congrats and enjoy that crispy duck skin…yum!