Duck question…

WineAndSwine

Hi all - Looking for some opinions as to how to address a cook I recently did.  I was roasting whole duck and while it tasted great, didn't have great texture.  I cooked it pretty low at first (in an attempt to render the fat).  It was around 250-275 for over an hour.  Then, increased the temperature to 450 or so to crisp up the skin - this probably lasted 15 min.

The meat was absolutely delicious, but it was a bit rubbery.  The skin was really tough and the fat wasn't well rendered.  Should I do it in reverse next time to render more fat?  I'm a duck amateur, so could have made many errors along the way…

Thanks!

Darby_Crenshaw

no need to raise temps to get crisp skin.


prick the thing all over, and go low and slow until done. you improve chances if you dry the skin a day or two uncovered in the fridge.  peking duck is dried this way

if i didn't plan ahead, and have un-dried duck, i have also quartered it, pricked the skin, and given it a fifteen minute steam in a collander inside a covered pot (with a half inch of water under it).  then remove from the stemaer and cook as you want.

the fat in the pot can be saved and used for potatoes and other cooking

you can  brick it too, on some cast iron

WineAndSwine

Thank you!  I may try several iterations.  I'll try quartering for my next version.  Looks beautiful!    

Chubbs

Also, what type of duck was it? Mallard? Teal? Ring neck? Some are more tender than others

saluki2007

Agree with chubbs. Was it a wild duck or farm?  Most wild wont have the same fat content like farm. I usually score the skin to help render the fat and crisp up the skin. 

SGH

Above Darby mentioned steaming. I have never tried steaming, but I have blanched them. I'm sure the results are similar. Just a different means to reach the same end. I'm going to share two other methods that work very well in helping to produce extra crispy skin. Chances are, most folks reading this has probably never heard of them. Also most probably do not have the means of doing it. Nonetheless I will share them for the few that do. First is to freeze them to at least -25 below zero. -40 if you have the horsepower. Sadly, most non commercial home units will not get down (and maintain) these subzero temps. Thus you will need access to a commercial or improvised freezer running off of anhydrous ammonia. Or access to liquid nitrogen. Due to the extreme hazards of messing with liquid nitrogen, I will elaborate no farther on the subject. Just wanted to mention it for the sake of clarity and thoroughness. One other trick is to use compressed air to seperate the skin from the underlying fat layer. In a nutshell, blow it up like a ballon in essence seperating the skin from the fat layer. We use the compressed air trick when cleaning gophers and turtles. Not to get crispy skin, but to make cleaning them a breeze. Not a world changer, but two unique methods that I thought I would share if for nothing else, entertainment value. 

Spaightlabs

@SGH need a separate post re turtles and gophers please.

SGH

Spaightlabs said:

@SGH need a separate post re turtles and gophers please.

In the spring, I will gladly post how to clean turtles using compressed air my friend. It's quite easy actually and takes a lot of the work out of it. 

SciAggie

SGH said:

Spaightlabs said:

@SGH need a separate post re turtles and gophers please.

In the spring, I will gladly post how to clean turtles using compressed air my friend. It's quite easy actually and takes a lot of the work out of it. 

Now that's a YouTube I want to watch...

fishlessman

225 for 5 hours plus minus gets great crispy skin and you want to cook it raised direct. dont worry about all the fat and the smoke, at those temps it doesnt seem to stick to the birds. i like duck cooked this way with a strong berry sauce/relish