The biggest issue causing the US to trail woefully behind France in duck consumption is the fact that recipes like Duck A L’orange and Duck Confit, while exotic sounding and quite delicious, are also intimidating. Don’t forget that, just like Bruce Dickinson barking for more cowbell, the French put their proverbial pants on one leg at a time too and aside from the foreign sounding accent and the occasional grave accent, French cooking is easy and in most instances can betout à fait provincial. If roasting a whole duck seems like a feat extraordinaire, you can always start out with duck breast, legs or wings and, for the most amazing broth ever, throwduck bones in the pot in place of chicken or beef and reserve for the best of the best soups and gravies.
Here I am pulling from my old blog post Roasting Duck 101. Bon Appétit
There’s a world of intense flavor to be discovered when you choose to roast a duck instead of taking the tried-and-true path with chicken. Yet many cooks find duck intimidating.
The reason, in a word, is fat. Ducks wear a thick coat of it, and fatty skin is not a pretty prospect. Not to worry. After using our guide to roasting a duck, you’ll have a crisp, bronzed bird ready for carving. Some of the duck fat will baste the meat. The rest of this liquid gold can be spooned off to cook with in the future (think roasted vegetables or duck confit). See our Duck Fat description in our store for more information on this healthy fat.
A word about the varieties of duck most commonly available: Muscovy very often has a strong flavor that tends toward gamy, while the Pekin, which is what we raise here on the farm, is milder.
Here is the basic technique for perfect roast duck from Martha Stewart. You can also find this in our recipe section HERE
Tools and Materials
- 1 whole duck (5 to 6 pounds)
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Parsnips with Chili Powder (optional)
- Kitchen shears or a sharp paring knife
- Roasting pan
- Carving knife
How-To Roast a Duck 101
1. Line bottom of the oven with foil to catch any spatters. Preheat oven to 425 degrees with rack in second-lowest position. Rinse duck in cold water; pat dry with paper towels. Use kitchen shears or a sharp paring knife to cut away fatty deposits and excess skin around the neck area and just inside the bird’s cavity.
2. Cut through the last joint of wings to remove wing tips, and place them in roasting pan with the neck (which is usually included with giblets by the butcher). Place wing tips and neck in a large roasting pan fitted with a rack.
3. Hold a narrow paring knife almost flat against duck’s skin and make shallow pricks everywhere but drumsticks. Don’t forget the areas where the thighs join the body. Score skin of breast in a crosshatch pattern. Season inside and outside of duck with pepper and 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt.
4. Use a light touch with a paring knife to gently crosshatch skin’s top layer on breast side to facilitate the release of fat. Be careful not to cut all the way through the skin into flesh.
5. Place duck, breast side up, on a rack in pan. Roast for 50 minutes.
6. Remove pan from oven. Set duck on a rack in a sink or over a towel to catch drips. Spoon off excess fat from pan; strain, and reserve 1/4 cup if making roasted vegetables. Tilt duck to drain, pouring juices from cavity into roasting pan. To ensure even browning, turn duck twice during roasting. Use paper towels to lift bird from pan. Return duck, breast side down, on the rack to pan. Roast for 50 minutes.
7. Flip duck, breast side up, and roast until duck registers 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 50 minutes more. Let stand for 15 minutes before carving. Spoon off fat from roasting pan (reserve if desired). Carefully tilt duck, and pour accumulated juices from cavity into pan. Reserve neck and wing tips in the pan with juices if making a pan sauce.
8. After the duck has rested, place it breast side down on a carving board, and cut along both sides of the backbone.
9. Flip duck breast side up. Slice along the ridge of the breastbone to remove meat. When you get to the thigh bone, sever the joint. Remove wings if desired.
10. Separate leg quarters from the breast. Slice breast into serving pieces. Sever joint between leg and thigh.
11. Serve duck with roasted vegetables, and drizzle with pan sauce.
FAQs
Line bottom of the oven with foil to catch any spatters. Preheat oven to 425 degrees with rack in second-lowest position. Rinse duck in cold water; pat dry with paper towels. Use kitchen shears or a sharp paring knife to cut away fatty deposits and excess skin around the neck area and just inside the bird's cavity.
How long to roast a whole duck? ›
Prick the skin around the duck legs. Season the duck all over with salt and pepper. Place the duck on a rack in a roasting tin and roast in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes per KG plus 10 minutes extra. When the duck is cooked cover with foil and rest for 10-20 minutes before serving.
What is the best temperature to cook duck? ›
For the perfect roasted duck Ina Garten recommends boiling the whole bird in a broth of your choice for 45 minutes. This will help cook the bird evenly, then pat dry and move to a 500°F (260°C) oven to crisp up that skin and until the breast reaches an internal temperature of 135–140°F (57–60°C).
Does duck need to be covered when roasting? ›
Cover and roast in oven for 2 hours. Remove the aluminium foil and continue cooking uncover for 30 to 40 minutes to make the skin crispy and brown. When the duck is fully cooked the internal temperature at the junction of the leg and thigh should be 82°C (180°F) and thighs should come apart easily.
Do you roast duck breast side up or down? ›
Rub the duck generously with flaky sea salt, then lay, breast-side down, on a rack over a roasting tray. Roast the duck for 3 hrs, pricking again every now and then. Turn the oven up to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 and turn the duck over, roast for 30 mins and then rest for 10 mins.
Why you would baste a whole duck when roasting? ›
As we roast the duck, the fat will melt and run out of the holes in the skin, basting the meat as it cooks. There's one more step to the crispy-skin solution, but we'll get to that in a bit.
Can you overcook roast duck? ›
If you finish the recipe and the duck is too rare, I recommend finishing it meat-side down with a bit of butter in a low-heat pan (rather than putting it back in the oven). Otherwise, you risk overcooking the meat closest to the skin.
Why should ducks be roasted at a lower temperature? ›
The worry, with a well-done duck, is that the breast meat will be a little dry. This is solved by roasting slowly, at a low temperature, creating for the entire bird something similar to the confit process that's usually reserved for the legs alone.
Can duck be eaten medium rare? ›
While the USDA recommends cooking duck to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165° F (74° C) to avoid the potential risk of salmonella poisoning, restaurants often serve duck medium-rare. Since duck has dark meat and tight muscle fibers, these muscles are often cooked much like beef for tender results.
Should duck be room temperature before cooking? ›
Heritage Duck Cooking Guidelines
Place the duck, uncovered, in the refrigerator and leave overnight (at least 8 hours) to allow the skin to dry out. This step will help develop a crispier skin. Take the duck out of the refrigerator 1 hour prior to cooking to bring it to room temperature.
The Importance of Proper Prep
Vigorously simmering the leg and thigh meat on the stovetop before roasting the birds in the oven jumpstarts these tougher portions so that they finish cooking at the same time as the breast meat.
Do you need a roasting rack for duck? ›
(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.
How do you get crispy skin on a duck? ›
The trick for getting the crispy skin is to score the fat (not the flesh) lightly all over the breast-side of the bird, then just season it and put it in the oven as it is. The duck takes 3 hours and 40 minutes to cook, and during this time, you'll turn it over every hour.
Should I sear a duck before roasting? ›
The journey towards perfectly roasted or baked duck breast entails commencing with a searing process. This initial step sets the foundation for achieving the ideal oven-roasted duck breast—a tantalizingly golden and crisp exterior juxtaposed with a succulent, flavorful interior.
What is the best temperature for duck? ›
For a smallish duck, the temperature should register between 130°F and 140°F. Large ducks and geese may need up to 45 minutes to get this warm.
How long does it take to cook a mallard duck? ›
A mallard will roast in around 30 minutes or less and need between 5 and 15 minutes resting time, while a teal will cook in about 10 minutes with 10 minutes resting time. Check wild duck towards the end of its cooking time: the juices should still run red and the meat should be pink.
How long does it take to smoke whole duck? ›
It takes approximately 2-3 hours to fully smoke a duck (depending on the size). When cooking duck, you are aiming for the internal temperature of the breast meat to reach 160 degrees F. I plan on about 30 minutes per pound of duck.
Why does it take so long to cook duck? ›
Fat is an insulator, and in a duck it's all underneath the skin. You need to render that fat or the skin will never get crispy. And rendering fat from an obese duck takes time — so much time that your breast meat will be fully cooked by the time it's ready (The legs and wings will be perfect, though).
How do you crisp a whole duck? ›
The trick for getting the crispy skin is to score the fat (not the flesh) lightly all over the breast-side of the bird, then just season it and put it in the oven as it is. The duck takes 3 hours and 40 minutes to cook, and during this time, you'll turn it over every hour.
