Roasted Duck is the new chicken!
It’s not just for special occasions…Pub #22
I roast a chicken quite often…almost weekly on the regular, but I often want duck, order duck when it’s on the menu, and think about including it in my rotation, but somehow, I forget. Maybe it’s because most stores keep duck in the freezer section, which I don’t wander down every time I shop, instead of in the fresh meat section with the other poultry. But this summer I brought 4 ducks home from Quillisascut Farm and I’ve had these glorious birds nudging me to bring duck to the dinner table, and not just on special occasions, holidays, or dinner party situations. Let’s roast duck instead of chicken, sometimes for the “any day” dinner!
Like other meats, we don’t often cook, a lot of us are intimidated at the prospect of cooking duck, let alone a whole duck, and, I’m here to tell you it is just as easy, if not easier than chicken. Easier, you ask? Yes, like most dark meats, even when we overcook it, it’s still delicious, the meat is tender, and I might argue that fully cooked duck is tastier than the medium-rare you often get in a fancy restaurant. I know my chef friends are horrified by this claim, but I said it and stand behind my statement.
There are other benefits to duck - duck fat is one of the healthiest animal fats with far more monounsaturated fats and fewer saturated fats, plus duck fat makes the yummiest potatoes. Ducks have more iron, protein, and vitamins than chickens. It has a rich, hearty flavor much like other red meats. Ducks are healthier, more disease-resistant than chickens, and generally not as intensively farmed. Because we bulk-up chickens they feed more people, 6-ish, and an average duck will only generously feed 4, but my vote is still duck!
When I pulled the duck out of the freezer, I started to visualize the taste and experience I wanted. Immediately my brain went to my love of Chinese Roast Duck served with Hoisin and savory pancakes. Not being of Chinese heritage, this is not that but inspired by. I gravitated to one of my other loves, plum sauce. I wanted to hit all my favorite flavors, tangy, spicy, tart, fatty (umami), and a balance of sweet. I landed on roasted duck glazed with plum jam and honey, served with my version of a savory plum sauce with cabbage slaw, scallion pancake, and white rice. It was an immediate hit with my family, clearing their plates clean in a matter of minutes! I can’t wait to pull another duck out of the freezer and enjoy this luscious roasted duck again. I hope you find duck just as crave-able as I do!
Recipe Below:
