Pekin Duck

Order your Pekin duck here

We raise two small batches of Pekin ducks (also known as Long Island duckling) here on our Blacksburg farm. We rotate them through fall cover crops so they have plenty of fresh greenery and supplement with certified organic, non-GMO feed.

Here are some recipes and tips, some easy and some more elaborate, for preparing duck.

When roasting in the oven, it helps to have a small bit of water in the roasting pan (not touching the duck if the duck is on a rack) to prevent smoking. Also be sure to remove any loose fat from the cavity prior to roasting.

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Tips from local chef Ashton Carter

For preparing duck breast and confit duck legs (separately)

Classic Sear and Rest Duck Breast

• Remove the breasts as you would for a chicken, trying to keep as much fat covering as possible.
• Place on a rack or dish in the fridge overnight for up to 24 hrs uncovered.
• Remove when ready to cook. Using a very sharp blade, score the fat either in long successional slits or cross hatch. Be extremely careful to only go through the fat/skin. Cutting through to the meat will make it more likely to overcook the breast.
• In a cold heavy bottom or cast iron skillet place duck fat side down on low medium heat.
• Leave to render until skin is crisp, flip and increase heat to sear flesh for 2-3 min, depending on desired doneness, however duck is best served Medium Rare.
• Be sure to let meat rest tented with foil for 5-10 min before slicing and accompanying your preferred sides like a fruit glaze or chutney.

Duck Leg Confit

• Cure the following mixture for two leg/thigh  quarters:

• Cut out legs keeping as much of the oyster meat as possible (the oyster is the upper knob of the leg that rests on the backbone).
• Place on drip rack over a sheet pan skin side down, heavily cover flesh side with cure mixture (use it all) and leave uncovered in fridge for 2-5 days.
• When you reach your desired curing level, remove and rinse quarters. Pat dry.
• Place skin side down in a cold heavy bottom pan, turn on medium low and render fat till skin starts to brown and crisp.
• Remove from pan and place in a baking dish with enough space to cover quarters with preferably duck fat (you can trim the skin when breaking down the duck for cooking breast and render to increase amount of duck fat) but a quality olive oil/ grapeseed oil or ghee will work.
• Place flesh side down, arrange a cut half head of garlic, a few sprigs fresh thyme, two bay leaves and four or five peppercorns around the leg quarters cover with fat/oil by a 1/4”.
• Place parchment paper over dish, top with foil and place into a 225 degree oven for about 4-6 hours, checking every couple hours to see that the legs aren’t frying. If you notice bubbling lower oven to 200 and increase cooking time slightly.
• When the meat feels like it will pull from the bone, cool to room temp if you’d like yo pull the meat and use it for a composed dish or salad or chill in the fat and remove for a whole application such as cassoulet.

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Easy Roast Duck by Mark Bittman

“Duck is so difficult to roast badly that all experienced cooks seem to claim their procedure is the best. Having tried many methods, I can say that the results are all about the same. So I chose the one presented here, which is the easiest way to guarantee a succulent but beautifully browned bird.”

INGREDIENTS

• one 4- to 5-pound duck
• Freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup soy sauce, more or less

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove giblets and neck from duck cavity and discard or reserve for another use. Cut off excess fat from duck cavity.
2. Place duck, breast side down (wings up), on a rack in a roasting pan; add water to come just below the rack. Sprinkle duck with pepper and brush with a little soy sauce.
3. Roast 30 minutes, undisturbed. Prick the back all over with point of a sharp knife, then flip bird onto its back. Sprinkle with pepper and brush with soy sauce again. Add a little more water to the pan if the juices are spattering (carefully–you don’t want to get water on the duck).
4. Roast 20 minutes, then prick the breast all over , and brush with soy sauce. Roast 10 minutes; brush with soy sauce. Roast 5 or 10 minutes more if necessary, or until duck is a glorious brown all over and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh measures at least 155 degrees. Let rest 5 minutes before carving and serving.

Tips

• There are four challenges to roasting a duck by the simple method given here. The first is spattering. All that fat can make a mess of your oven. But the solution is simple: keep a thin layer of water in the roasting pan. The fat drips into it and stays there. (You’ll need a rack to elevate the duck, but you should be using one for a crisp bird anyway.) The second challenge is to achieve a uniformly brown color. I cheat a little bit here and brush the roasting duck with soy sauce, which works like a charm. The third challenge lies in the carving; a duck is a little more complicated than a chicken. The best way is to cut on either side of the rib cage to remove the two breast halves, then cut the legs off the carcass. The rest is for picking. Finally, there’s the basic challenge of having enough to go around, for a roast duck can easily be finished by two people. If you want to serve four, roast two, or plan on a lot of side dishes.

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Crisp Roast Duck by Melissa Clark

“A golden-skinned roasted duck is a festive main course for any special meal. In this recipe, the bird is doused with boiling water before being scored all over. The boiling water helps pull the skin taut, making it easier to score in a crosshatch pattern. That, in turn, allows the fat to render out as everything roasts. The result is a perfectly cooked duck with pink, juicy meat and burnished, crunchy skin. Serve the bird as is, or with some kind of sauce — either sweet or pungent — such as cranberry sauce, salsa verde or a spicy soy dipping sauce. And save the duck fat at the bottom of the pan. It will keep for at least three months in the refrigerator and is excellent on roasted vegetables, especially potatoes.”

INGREDIENTS

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 (5- to 6-pound) whole duck
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely grated, passed through a garlic press or finely minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped thyme or rosemary leaves, or a combination, plus more sprigs for the cavity
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon or orange zest, or a combination
• 1½ teaspoons ground coriander or a spice mix, such as garam masala or baharat (optional)

PREPARATION

1. Bring a full kettle or medium pot of water to a boil (at least 2 quarts).
2. Meanwhile, remove giblets and neck from the duck cavity and reserve for another use. Trim any excess fat from around the duck cavity and the neck. Place duck, breast side up, on a rack in the sink. Pour half of the boiling water all over the top of the duck to tighten the skin. Flip the bird and pour remaining boiling water over the back.
3. Once the duck is cool enough to handle, using the tip of a very sharp paring knife, prick duck skin all over to help release the fat, especially where the skin is thickest, and be careful not to pierce the meat. It can be helpful to hold the knife nearly parallel to the bird. After piercing the skin, use the knife blade to score the duck breast in a crosshatch pattern (making deep cuts into the skin only, and not into the breast meat). Flip the bird and score the back as well (you don’t need to prick the back). You may need to sharpen your knife along the way, as it’s much easier to make clean cuts into the skin with a sharp knife. Using a clean kitchen towel or paper towels, thoroughly pat duck dry, including inside the cavity.
4. Season the duck all over, including cavity, with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine garlic, chopped herbs, citrus zest and coriander, if using, and make a paste. Rub garlic paste all over duck, inside and out. Place duck, breast side up, on rack in a roasting pan, stuff cavity with herb sprigs, and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.
5. When it’s time to cook the bird, heat the oven to 450 degrees. Roast for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully prick duck skin all over the top of the bird using a sharp paring knife. (You don’t need to prick the back of the duck.) Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue roasting until skin is golden brown and crispy, and the internal temperature at thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 1 hour to 1 hour 45 minutes longer. Using tongs, gently tip duck to drain any liquid from the cavity. Transfer bird to cutting board to rest for at least 10 minutes. Carve and serve.

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Orange Sauce to Serve with Roast Duck

INGREDIENTS

• ⅓ cup sugar
• ⅓ cup fresh orange juice (from 1 to 2 oranges)
• 2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 2 to 4 tablespoons duck or chicken stock or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon fine julienne of fresh orange zest, removed with a vegetable peeler

PREPARATION

While duck roasts, cook sugar in a dry 1-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, undisturbed, until it begins to melt. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until sugar melts into a deep golden caramel. Add orange juice, vinegar, and salt (use caution; mixture will bubble and steam vigorously) and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until caramel is dissolved. Remove syrup from heat. Pour pan juices from roast duck through a fine-mesh sieve into a 1-quart glass measure or bowl, then skim off and discard fat. Add enough stock to pan juices to total 1 cup liquid.

Stir together butter and flour to form a beurre manié (kneaded butter). Bring pan juices to a simmer in a 1- to 2-quart heavy saucepan, then add beurre manié, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Add orange syrup and zest and simmer, whisking occasionally, until sauce is thickened slightly and zest is tender, about 5 minutes. Serve with duck.

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Duck Stock by Hank Shaw

“I make a variety of duck stocks, broths and consommés, and this is the one I make the most. You roast the duck or goose bones, and roast the veggies, too. Make this broth when you have a day off, as it takes all day. The good news is you will be rewarded with a gallon or more of rich stock that is a perfect base for stews, soups or wintertime risottos or polenta.”

INGREDIENTS

• 3 to 5 pounds duck or goose carcasses, include wingtips, neck, and hearts if possible
• Salt
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 fennel bulb, chopped (optional)
• 20 to 30 duck or goose feet or 1 pig’s foot (optional)
• 1 large sprig rosemary
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, cracked
• 1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

• Chop the carcasses and various duck bits — except for the feet, if using and salt them well. Arrange in a large roasting pan in one layer if possible; leave out the feet. Roast in a 400°F oven until well browned.
• If you have duck feet, chop them with a cleaver or 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 broth more body. Put the duck feet into the pot you are making the stock in. If you’re using a pig’s foot, just put it into the pot.
• When the duck bits are browned, put into the large stockpot and cover with cold water leaving about 2 to 3 inches of room at the top of the pot. If the roasting pan has a lot of fat in it, drain it off. Add some more water to the roasting pan and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add this to the stockpot.
• Cover the pot and bring it to a boil, but as soon as it hits a boil, drop the heat to a bare simmer and move the pot lid slightly ajar. Let this cook very, very gently — more steaming than simmering — for as long as you can handle. I let it go overnight.
• When you are ready to add the vegetables, toss them all in and stir to combine. Note that this is the only time you stir this stock. Let them simmer gently for 2 hours.
• Turn off the heat and strain the stock. I do it this way: I set up a big container for the strained stock, like a big Tupperware tub. Over this I set a strainer, and in the strainer I lay a piece of regular paper towel. Now, using a ladle, ladle out your stock so it strains through the paper towel. Doing it this way keeps the stock clear.
• Your broth is ready now. Salt it to taste, adding a little at a time. You can further concentrate flavors by simmering the strained stock for as long as you’d like. Check every 15 minutes or so.
• Pour into Mason jars and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for up to 9 months. If you freeze, leave at least 1 1/2 inches of headspace in the jars or they will crack. You can also pressure can your stock at 10 psi for 25 minutes (follow your canner’s directions for this).

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Duck Egg Cake with Duck fat and Rosemary by Hank Shaw

“This is an insanely easy cake to make. It goes together in just minutes and tastes awesome: a touch ducky—more so if you use wild duck fat—sweet, but not overly so, with a little hit of rosemary to even things out. I originally made this as a sort of stunt, but it’s so good I’ve put it into the regular rotation.

If you like a sweeter cake, up the sugar to a full cup, and if you hate rosemary, skip it or sub in lemon verbena, sage, or winter savory.

Serve the cake with fruit and maybe a little whipped cream. A sweet dessert white wine, like a vin santo or a Sauternes, is a perfect choice.”

Ingredients

• 4 duck eggs
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 7 tablespoons duck fat or butter (melted)
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, lemon verbena, sage or winter savory (minced)
• 1 1/2 cup pastry flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• healthy pinch of kosher salt

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease a 9-inch loaf pan with butter.
• Crack the duck eggs into a large bowl, add the sugar, and beat with a whisk until well combined and slightly frothy. Drizzle in the oil and duck fat while stirring the mixture. Once the fat is well incorporated into the mixture, sprinkle the rosemary on top.
• In a second bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Using the whisk, stir the flour into the egg-fat mixture until combined.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes. Stick a toothpick into the center of the cake, and if it comes out clean, the cake is ready. If not, bake for another 10 minutes.
• Let the cake cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto the rack. Slice and eat warm or at room temperature