Your Guide to Choosing, Storing, and Cooking Duck

A lot of people are drawn to duck meat because of its earthy flavour and juiciness. The meat is often available in supermarkets, although mostly frozen. But, it can also be bought from reputable online sellers. Depending on the type of duck you choose, you can generally get commercially-available duck weighing between 3 pounds and 6 pounds. In most supermarkets, duck can be available whole or in packages of parts. Whether you want to cook duck as a whole bird or specific parts like breasts or legs, the famous canards du lac Brome recipe will give you a great idea. It uses Canadian grown duck raised without the use of antibiotics.

Selection and Storage

These days, the demand for ducks is not as high as chicken and other poultry. If you check the frozen section of the supermarket, you will find duck that often comes in breast fillets. If you find fresh duck, choose a deep red colour, a great layer of fat on one side, and zero indication of drying out. If you want to buy whole ducks, consider visiting a good butcher’s shop.

After taking the duck home, refrigerate it right away and use it within 1-2 days, or free it in its original packaging. The duck will be safe for a long time when kept frozen continuously.

If you want to purchase a cooked duck, ensure it is hot when you pick it up. Consume it within 2 hours or cut it into smaller pieces and refrigerate in shallow containers. Make sure to consume those pieces within 1-2 days.

Remember these when Cooking Duck

If you cook duck at home, remember that you can get render out more fat from domestic duck than wild duck. You must score the skin before you roast or grill the meat to render out the fat. The perfect way to do this is to season the breast and leave it for two hours to come to room temperature and dry out. Then, score the skin in a crisscross pattern or with parallel lines. Place the breast skin-down in a cold pan and slowly heat it. This allows the fat to melt first and then begin to crisp up the skin and stop it from burning. Wait until the skin is brown before you flip the meat over.

As for the rendered fat, you can pour it into a ceramic or glass container and chill it. You can keep it longer by reheating it to a liquid and straining it before freezing it in cubes.