# Help with duck



## kungpao (Nov 12, 2013)

The last three years for thanksgiving I have prepared a whole duck. The guests seem to think it was awesome, I feel like there was a bit to desire. I'm looking for something more simple than the traditional peking style preparation of inflating, scalding, drying, and roasting. Any input or suggestions are very welcome.


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## ChuckTheButcher (Nov 13, 2013)

Do you definitely want to keep it whole? Whole duck can be tricking if you want medium breasts and well legs.


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## marc4pt0 (Nov 13, 2013)

I taught one of me regulars a fun ballotine method which consists of de-boning the entire duck but still leaving it whole. Used chicken forcemeat to stuff it with, trussed it and roasted the whole bird. The hat trick is it looks like and is still shaped like a whole roasted duck, but when guests slice into it there are no bones and a whole lotta meat. 
I've even thrown in mushrooms to give the forcemeat some cool appearance and texture. Nuts and or dried fruits can be fun also.


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## ChuckTheButcher (Nov 13, 2013)

That is old school. I love it. More people need to dishes like that.


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## kungpao (Nov 13, 2013)

marc4pt0 said:


> I taught one of me regulars a fun ballotine method which consists of de-boning the entire duck but still leaving it whole. Used chicken forcemeat to stuff it with, trussed it and roasted the whole bird. The hat trick is it looks like and is still shaped like a whole roasted duck, but when guests slice into it there are no bones and a whole lotta meat.
> I've even thrown in mushrooms to give the forcemeat some cool appearance and texture. Nuts and or dried fruits can be fun also.



A member PMed me with a stellar duck ballotine recipe that I think I'm going to give a shot. Do you have any tips as to how to present the duck as a whole roasted bird?


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## DeepCSweede (Nov 13, 2013)

Marc - Share the recipe / pics (if you have them) - Would love to try that out although I might substitute pheasant for the chicken.


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## quantumcloud509 (Nov 18, 2013)

Kungpao feel free to share the recipe here


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## scotchef38 (Nov 19, 2013)

Bend your knees,cover your head and avoid the oncoming projectile.
But seriously -Stuff an orange and season the cavity.Rub with salt,ground pepper and a little ground star anise.Tie legs together.Oil lightlywith sesame oil,put on a trivet in a deep tray.Put in an oven at around 70c and cook overnight.Next day you will have moist and tasty duck and it will be well done which avoids the cooking point issues involved when cooking for the masses. your tray will have a good amount of duck fat in it to fry or roast some potatoes.


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## boomchakabowwow (Nov 19, 2013)

kungpao said:


> ....................... traditional peking style preparation of inflating, scalding, drying, and roasting. ....



you out-ranked me in duck points at ^^^ this point in the thread. damn!


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## daveb (Nov 20, 2013)

1st you need a 12 ga.


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## kungpao (Nov 22, 2013)

Sorry for the late reply guys, I suppose a trip to the grocery store is all I can do until I quit buying knives and save for a 12 ga. Otherwise Mano shared an awesome ballotine recipe with me, I hope its not poor form to post it here but I figure he was kind enough to pass it on to me so why not everyone else?

duck ballotine with duck pate stuffing and blackberry sauce
Kungpao,
This is a combination of several recipes with some of my own process thrown in so I'm hoping the directions are accurate. I'm a home cook and this always gets rave reviews.

Duck Ballotine with Duck Pate Stuffing with optional Blackberry Sauce

Ingredients:

2 Whole Ducks or 1 duck + 2 breasts. One duck will be stuffed and the other to be used for breasts and liver

Duck Pâté 
2 duck breasts trimmed of skin and fat
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp. orange liqueur
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 fresh or 1 dried bay leaves
1 lb. boneless pork shoulder, chilled
1/4 lb. fatback, or pork belly fat or bacon chilled
livers from both ducks or 1&#8260;4 lb. chicken livers 
1 egg
1 tbsp. chopped thyme leaves plus 8 sprigs
1&#8260;2 tsp. ground cloves (be careful of adding too much which will over power the dish)
1&#8260;2 tsp. ground ginger
1&#8260;4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1&#8260;4 tsp. paprika or piment d'Espelette
4 1&#8260;2 tsp. kosher salt
optional: 1&#8260;3 cup shelled pistachios or equal amount dried cherries (this is to add some color and texture)
optional: 3 tbsp. dried green peppercorns 

Preparation

Debone ducks as per Jacques Pepin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=kAekQ5fzfGM


One duck will be stuffed and the other to be used for breasts and liver

Take the breasts off one duck and trim skin and fat
Use the bones for duck stock

Cut the duck breasts into 1&#8260;2" cubes. 
In a bowl combine duck breasts, 1 minced clove garlic, orange liqueur, 1 tbsp. of the olive oil and bay leaves 
Stir to coat the duck pieces. 
Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 day and up to 3 days, to allow the flavors to come together. 

Finely chop and combine pork shoulder, fatback/bacon, the remaining garlic and livers, 
Add eggs, chopped thyme, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, piment d'Espelette/paprika, and salt.. Mix well and chill.

Remove bay leaves and mince/food process the duck breast misture and fold it into the pork mixture. Taste test a bit of the mixture for seasoning by heating remaining olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat and adjust seasoning accordingly. Cover bowl and refrigerate.

Add whole pistachios or dried cherries and/or pepper corns and mix in before stuffing the duck.

Stuff duck and tie as per Pepin

NOTE: Duck bones are longer and stronger than chicken, and there is less meat, so deboning is a bit more difficult. Breaking the ends of leg bones requires more force.

Blackberry Sauce
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar
1 1/4 cups frozen blackberries, thawed
1 1/4 cups beef or duck stock or beef broth
1/2 cup chicken stock or broth
2 tablespoons Cognac or brandy
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
Note: Reducing is a long PITA process, so you can add some blackberry preserves or jelly 

Preparation

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. 

Add sugar; stir until sugar dissolves and mixture turns deep amber color, about 5 minutes. 

Add wine, orange juice and vinegar (mixture will bubble vigorously) and bring to boil, stirring to dissolve caramel. 

Add 1 1/4 cups berries and both stocks and boil until sauce thickens and is reduced to about 1 cup, stirring occasionally. (This is where you can add the blackberry preserves or jelly)

Add water to dilute if sauce is too strong.

Strain sauce through sieve into small saucepan, pressing on berries with back of spoon. 

Mix in Cognac and maple syrup. 

Set sauce aside. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
.
Before serving bring sauce to simmer, add 1 tablespoon butter and whisk just until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spoon sauce onto plates. Slice duck and place atop sauce. Garnish with additional berries, if desired, and serve.


EDIT- I'm not sure if this is 'easier' than the traditional peking method but its definitely what I'll be doing this Tday.


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## Mucho Bocho (Nov 22, 2013)

Thanks for the recipe Kung, How do you cook the duck?


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## kungpao (Nov 23, 2013)

I'm going to cook on the big green egg with indirect heat at about 400F, I'll also probably score the skin and occasionally poke with a knife to let some of the rendered fat drip out.


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## EdipisReks (Nov 23, 2013)

I do duck fairly often, and I'm going to do one for Thanksgiving this year. I usually do French preparations, but this year I'm going to try an April Bloomfield recipe (along with the roasted vegetables).


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