So here's the deal -- if an animal (or plant) is going to give its life to us, the least we can do is use all of it. Nose-to-tail, farm-to-table, whatever you want to call it, the goal is the same: waste nothing. Aim for maxiumum economy. I mean, face it: life wasn't a trivial matter for the animal (or plant)! The honorable thing to do is to consume it slowly and incrementally, rather than gobbling it up all at once.
I bought a 5 ¼ lb duck yesterday, but before I did I made sure I knew exactly what I was going to do with every part. Not that there’s anything to brag about here -- duck is easy. All of it is good.
The run-down:
1) Breast: Duck Proscuitto. This was, in fact, what compelled me to buy the duck in the first place. Duck Proscuitto is incredible: creamy, rich duck fat wrapped in dark, earthy, salty duck meat. Preparing it is ridiculously easy -- no special charcuterie equipment or training required -- just requires a little patience.
Here is the process, adapted from James Peterson's The Duck Cookbook
12 Juniper Berries
2 Tbl kosher salt
1/2 of a fresh large bay leaf, chopped finely
1/2 Tsp corriander seeds, crushed under a saucepan
10 black pepper corns, crushed under a saucepan
1 clove garlic, crushed and minced into fine paste
1 Whole duck breast (skin on), separated into two
Mix the dry ingredients and the garlic together to make the curing/seasoning salt. Generously coat both sides of each half of the duck breast with the mixture. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours. Remove plastic wrap and pat dry. Wrap in a clean, thin towel or doubled-up cheesecloth, tie with string (as though making a sausage). Hang in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 weeks -- when the proscuitto is firm, it's done.
2) Legs: Roasted, Smoked Duck Legs. Another super-easy preparation. Place the two duck legs in a small to medium-sized baking dish. Trim all skin and extra fat off of the duck carcass, and cut into 1" (appx) square pieces; add the fat and skin to the baking dish with the duck legs. The fat will render-out and help slow-cook/braise the legs. Put into an oven and set to 350 (no need to preheat). Cook for 2 hours, basting twice or so during the second hour. When there done, you'd swear you had duck confit -- just add a little of the leftover seasoning salt (from the duck proscuitto) and it's ready to eat.
After the legs are slow-roasted, you can bring them to another level by hot smoking them.
To do this, start a grill (charcoal is best). When the coals cool down to medium heat (and if using charcoal, be sure coals are to one side for indirect heating) and get a handful of wood chips, which have been soaked for at least 30 min (I used oak, from wine barrels). Add the chips to the fire, then put the cooked duck legs on the grill (but not directly over the coals) and cover. Allow them to smoke for 20 to 30 minutes.
A great thing about duck legs -- it's very hard to overcook them.
3) Fat: Rendered in the oven (along with the legs). When the legs are done, you'll have about 1 1/2 cups of beautiful duck fat. Strain the fat with a fine mesh sieve, and put into a non-reactive container with a cover. It will keep in the refrigerator for weeks -- perfect for cooking or even spread on toast with some sea salt.
4) Skin: The skin, which we rendered into fat (in the duck leg preparation above), makes excellent duck cracklings. Ariane Daugin, who runs the duck-centric specialty foods company D'Artagnan, used to have a restaurant in New York City (also called D'Artagnan); she served salted duck cracklings at the bar(!). Immediately after the duck legs come out of the oven, remove the cracklings and sprinkle with salt (again, you can use the leftover seasoning/curing salt from the proscuitto).
5) Carcass, wings, giblets: Frozen, to be used later for duck stock.
6) Liver: Duck Liver Pate. We put the livers (there seemed to be two packaged with our duck) in a cold sautee pan. Add several tablespoons of good olive oil, two anchovies, a large smashed clove of garlic, and a spoon of capers (in vinegar). Turn the heat to medium high, and let the livers cook through. Dump the contents of the pan into a food processor. Puree, adding a little more olive oil as it spins. Season to taste. Refrigerate and serve cold.
So this duck will be in my family’s life for many months -- we'll eat the smoked legs right away; the pate will last around a week; the duck fat several weeks. The proscuitto will last us months, and the duck stock (which we'll freeze) will last as long as half a year. And we’ll treasure and savor every bit.
I like to imagine that the duck (or whatever meat or produce I've purchased) cost me ten times as much as what I paid at the cash register; so instead of 5 1/4 lbs of duck for $13.05, it set me back $130.50. (I know it sounds weird, but try it.) I also try hard to remember that this food was once alive, talking with other animals, or vying for space with its neighbors. With these things in mind it’s easy to appreciate the food we have, and elevates how precious its existence really is.
