DUCK,

DUCK,
GOOS
E

Contents
1

Introduction
Basics

6
12
22

From Market to Table: Breeds, Buying, Breaking Down, and Storing

From Marsh to Table: Wild Species, Field Care, Hanging, and Processing
Cooking with Duck: Flavors and Wine and Beer Pairings

Whole Birds
Pieces
58
106

Breasts
Legs and Wings

Extras
152
172
203
211

Giblets
Charcuterie
Duck Fat
Duck Eggs

Stock, glace, and consomm

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230

Selected Bibliography

231

Acknowledgments

232

index

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Smoked Duck with Lentils

This is an elegant way to serve slices of smoked duck. Chanterelles are a winter mushroom
on the West Coast, so it is a natural pairing here. In other parts of the country, Id suggest
shiitake mushrooms, which are available year-round. Regular button mushrooms will
do in a pinch.
Beluga lentils, which are tiny and black, are my favorite: they are prettier, firmer, and
nuttier than regular green lentils. You can substitute green lentils if you like, but yellow
or red lentils will dissolve.

3 cups Basic Duck Stock (page 222) or chicken stock

Kosher salt
1 cup beluga lentils
8 ounces chanterelle mushrooms, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons duck fat or olive oil
1 Smoked Duck (page 41), carved
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
cup Duck Glace de Viande (page 226), or 1 cup
Basic Duck Stock (page 222) reduced to cup
1 teaspoon prepared mustard

Difficulty:
Serves 4
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes

pan for 2 to 3 minutes, until they give off their water,

then sprinkle with salt. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 to
5 minutes, until most of the water evaporates. Add
2 tablespoons of the duck fat and toss to coat the mushrooms. Sear until they begin to brown, then remove
with a slotted spoon.
Add the remaining 1 tablespoon duck fat to the pan and
lay the smoked duck pieces, skin side down, in the hot
pan. Sear until the skin crisps, about 3 minutes. Transfer
the duck, skin side up, to a cutting board.

Minced fresh chives, for garnish

Add the garlic to the pan and saut for 1 minute. Mix
in the vinegar, glace de viande, mustard, and Worcestershire
sauce and boil down by half. Turn off the heat.

In a saucepan, bring the stock to a simmer and taste for

salt. If you are using store-bought chicken stock, you
wont need to add salt. Add the lentils and adjust the
temperature so the stock is just steaming, not simmering.
Cover the pan and let the lentils cook for about 30 minutes, until they are tender but still hold their shape.

Drain the lentils and put them in a bowl. Mix in the

chanterelles to half of the sauce in the saut pan. Spoon
some lentils onto each plate, arrange some of the duck
pieces on the lentils, then top with the chives. Drizzle
the remaining sauce around everything and serve.

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Meanwhile, place a large saut pan over medium-high

heat. When it is hot, add the chanterelles, shaking the
pan as they go in. Let the mushrooms sear in the dry

44

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Laotian Duck Salad

This is larb, one of the most famous dishes of Southeast Asia. It is a spectacular hot-weather
salad, normally served with beef, chicken, or seafood. Duck larb does exist, however, in
Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. The list of ingredients is long, but the hardest part about
making this recipe is chopping the herbs and vegetables. Its really that easy.

2 tablespoons short-grain white rice

1 to 2 pounds skinless duck breasts
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons duck fat or vegetable oil
1 cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup loosely packed chopped fresh mint
1 lemongrass stalk, white bulblike part only,
trimmed, outer leaves discarded, and minced
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
3 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 4 small fresh hot chiles, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
Grated zest and juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon fish sauce or soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Difficulty:
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes

In a small, dry saut pan over medium-high heat, toast

the rice, shaking the pan often, for 4 to 5 minutes, until
it browns. Pour onto a plate to cool, then grind coarsely
in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Ready the
remaining ingredients.
Pat the duck breasts dry with paper towels. In a large
saut pan, heat the duck fat over medium-high heat for
1 minute. Add the breasts skinned side down and sear
for 3 minutes. Flip and finish cooking according to your
liking, using the finger test for doneness (see page 61)
and salting to taste. Transfer the duck to a cutting board
and let rest for 15 minutes.
While the duck rests, in a bowl, combine the ground
rice, cilantro, mint, lemongrass, shallots, green onions,
garlic, chiles to taste, ginger, lime zest and juice, fish
sauce, sugar, and sesame oil and mix well.
When the duck is ready, you can either slice or mince
it; mincing is more traditional. Add the duck, plus any
accumulated juices, to the bowl holding the rest of
the salad and mix well. Serve with an ice-cold lager
or pilsner.

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Basic Duck Stock

This is my standard duck or goose stock. It is the stock that I call for in the recipes in
this book. In other words, you need to make lots. Every time you get a carcass, save it for
stock. If you dont have a lot of ducks around at one time, save them up for future rounds
of stock making. You can chop up the carcasses before freezing, so they take up less space.
Make this stock when you have a day off, as it takes all day. The good news is that you
will be rewarded with 4 quarts or more of rich stock that is a perfect base for stews,
soups, or wintertime risottos or polentaor even eaten on its own as a clear soup.

Carcasses of 4 to 6 wild ducks, 2 to 3 wild geese,

or 1 to 2 domestic ducks or geese, including wing tips,
neck, and innards (not the liver), if possible
Vegetable oil, for coating
Kosher salt
1 pigs foot or 20 duck or chicken feet (optional)
1 large yellow or white onion, chopped
1 large carrot, sliced
2 celery stalks, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
ounce (about 1 handful) dried mushrooms (any kind)
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon juniper berries (optional)
3 bay leaves
1 large sprig rosemary
Tops from 1 fennel bulb (optional)
Stems from 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
10 fresh sage leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon dried or fresh thyme

222

Difficulty:
Makes about 6 quarts
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours

Coat the carcasses and various bird bits with oil. Salt
them well and put in a large roasting pan. Put in the
oven, turn on the oven to 400F, and roast for about
1 hour, until well browned.
Meanwhile, score the pigs foot all over, or chop the duck
feet with a cleaver or other heavy knife, to break the skin
and expose the joints and bones. There is collagen in the
feet that will seep into the water and give the finished
stock more body.
When the carcasses are ready, remove them from the
oven and chop them into large pieces with heavy kitchen
shears or a cleaver. This will make it possible to fit them
all into your stockpot. Transfer them to a large stockpot
and add the feet. Pour in cold water to cover everything
by about 1 inch. Turn the heat to medium, bring to a
bare simmer, and cook very gently for 2 to 8 hours. Do
not let this boil.
Meanwhile, put the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic in
the roasting pan and stir to coat with the fat that has
rendered from the duck bits. If you are using domestic
ducks or fatty wild ones, you may have too much fat: if
you have a pool of fat at the bottom of the roasting pan,
drain off all but about 3 tablespoons. You can strain the
fat and reuse it (its great for roasting potatoes). Put the
vegetables in the oven and roast for about 45 minutes,
until browned.

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Smoked Duck
Those who know their way around a smoker know that fat is a critical element in this
process. Fat absorbs the flavor of the smoke better than the meat itself. This is why you
see lots of recipes for smoked pork and salmon; both are fatty animals. So are waterfowl.
You need to decide whether to brine or not. Both methods work. Brining a duck,
especially if you use curing salt (a mixture of salt and sodium nitrite), will help preserve
the bird longer in the fridge and will let you smoke it longer and cooler without drying
out the meat. If you are skipping the brine, simply salt the duck or goose well, let it rest
at room temperature for a few hours before smoking, and pat it dry before you put it in
the smoker. Its vital that you start with a room-temperature duck.
As for flavors, I am in love with the combination of smoke, duck, salt, and maple. I
need no other flavors in my life, but honey would be good, as would a Cajun rub, something vaguely Indian, chiles, French quatre pices, and so on. Use your imagination. As for
wood, I am a big fan of fruit or nut woods, like apple, pecan, hickory, or walnut. Oak and
beech are fine, but mesquite is too strong for duck.
If you have a smoker, just follow the directions that came with it to set it up and
smoke your duck. If you have only a kettle grill, you can turn it into a smoker following
a handful of relatively simple steps (page 43).
Thinly sliced on the diagonal, smoked duck is fantastic as part of an appetizer plate or
in a sandwich. You can also carve a whole breast, sear the skin side in a frying pan until
it crisps again, and serve it with polenta or lentils (page 44).
Beware: If you are buying a domestic duck, read the package. Some are plumped with a salt
solution of up to 12 percent, so they are essentially prebrined. Do not brine these birds a second time.
Prebrined domestic birds also need longer drying time.

1 domesticated duck or wild goose, or 2 fat wild ducks

Brine
cup kosher salt
1 teaspoon Insta Cure No. 1 (see page 196), optional
4 cups water
1 cup maple syrup

If you are using a domesticated duck or goose, remove as

much of the fat from inside the body cavity and around
the neck as possible. Set the fat aside to use later. Whether
using a domesticated duck or fatty wild ducks, pierce
the skin all over with a clean needle or the tip of a sharp
knife, positioning the tool at an angle so that you are
piercing just the skin and not the meat. This helps the

Difficulty:
Serves 4
Prep Time: 6 to 14 hours,
primarily brining and
drying time
Cook Time: 4 to 7 hours

rendered fat to escape. Cut off the neck skin about 1 inch
from the breast meat.
To make the brine, in a container just large enough to
hold the duck, stir together the kosher salt, curing salt,
and water until the salts dissolve. Place the duck in the
brine, cover the container, and brine in the refrigerator
for 4 to 12 hours. You may need to top it with a weight
to keep it submerged.
Remove the duck from the brine, pat it dry with paper
towels, and set it on a cooling rack under a fan or in a
cool, breezy place. Let the duck air-dry for 2 to 3 hours.
Dont skip this step, or the smoke will not adhere to the
duck well.
continued

whole birds

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continued from previous page

While the bird is air-drying, pour the maple syrup into

a small, heavy saucepan, place over medium-high heat,
bring to a boil, and boil until reduced by half. This
should take about 8 to 12 minutes. Let cool to room
temperature.
When the duck is dry, paint the exterior of the bird with
some of the maple syrup. Set the remainder of the syrup
aside to use later. Set up your smoker with a drip pan,
then set the bird in the smoker with the drip pan beneath
it. Put the excess fat from the body cavity into the drip
pan. This will render as you smoke the duck, yielding
smoked duck fat mixed with maple drippings, which
may just be the greatest substance known to man.
Smoke the duck between 200F and 275F for 4 to
7 hours, depending on how smoky you want your bird.
Baste the duck with the maple syrup every 45 minutes
to an hour. If you smoke at the low end of the spectrum,
the skin will not be crispy but the meat will be more
tender; you can crisp the skin in a saut pan before serving. You will know the duck is done when a thermometer stuck in the thigh reads 170F to 175F, or when
the leg meat begins to come away from the bone.
Allow the duck to cool before carving (see page 32).

42

Tips for Smoking Wild Birds

Any domestic duck can be smoked with success.
If you are using wild birds, here are some guidelines:
Dont smoke sea ducks, divers, or shovelers you
think might be fishy. Smoking will not help you.
Skin these birds and do something else with them.
Avoid smoking snow geese or any other wild
bird that is ber-lean. You need some fat to
make smoking work. Even a little is okay.
Never smoke a skinned duck. Remember, the
smoky flavor lingers in skin and fat far more than
it does in meat. If you smoke a skinned duck, it
will be more like jerky and less like a proper
smoked duck.
Smoking whole birds gives you better results
than pieces, so I generally smoke only whole
birds; goose legs are an exception. You can
carve whole birds afterward.
Big ducks smoke better than small ducks, although
there is no reason you cant smoke a teal.

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For Hollymy duck hunting buddy, photographer,

guinea pig, and most of all, my best friend.

Some of the recipes in this book include raw eggs. When eggs are consumed
raw, there is always the risk that bacteria, which is killed by proper cooking,
may be present. For this reason, always buy certified salmonella-free eggs
from a reliable grocer, storing them in the refrigerator until they are served.
Because of the health risks associated with the consumption of bacteria that
can be present in raw eggs, they should not be consumed by infants, small
children, pregnant women, the elderly, or any persons who may be immunocompromised. The author and publisher expressly disclaim responsibility for
any adverse effects that may result from the use or application of the recipes
and information contained in this book.
Copyright 2013 by Hank Shaw
Photographs copyright 2013 by Holly A. Heyser
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of
the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com
Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are
registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Shaw, Hank, 1970Duck, duck, goose : recipes and techniques for cooking ducks and geese,
both wild and domesticated / Hank Shaw.
pages cm
1. Cooking (Duck) 2. Cooking (Goose) 3. Cooking (Game) I. Title.
TX750.5.D82S53 2013
641.691dc23
2012046940
Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-60774-529-7
eBook ISBN: 978-1-60774-530-3
Printed in China
Design by Sarah Adelman
Food and prop styling by Hank Shaw and Holly A. Heyser
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First Edition

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DUCK,
DUCK,
GOOS
E