Smoked duck breast

[luke clayton]

Luke Clayton here. Just yesterday, I tried a new smoked recipe that I really like. Now, if you think that ALL wild duck tastes like LIVER, listen up, I think you'll enjoy this one?

Pound you duck breast halves with a tenderizing mallet until about a quarter inch thick

Season fillets with your favorite seasoning (make sure and include garlic powder)

Marinate in Allegro liquid marinade or... Milk and Louisiana hot sauce... Let them marinade for 3 hours or overnight in frig.

Set Smokin Tex on 250 degrees, place duck breast fillets on lower grill and cook medium well. NOT rare! For some reason unknown to me ALL duck recipes call for duck to be cooked RARE but, I've found that to be the major cause of the LIVER taste!

I believe you'll find these breast fillets to be very tasty! I used gadwall, mallard and widgeon breasts and all turn out the same... TASTY!

P.S. You can also dust the fillets with flour and chicken fry them!!

[smokin-tnpete]

Luke we did about the same thing your doing. but pan fry them and then gravy and home made biscuits.. Man what some fine eating. I will try some on the smoker and see how they turn out.
Thanks
Pete

[tharder]

Actually, I've been cooking wild duck for a long time. Uhfortunately, what I've found the best is not on a smoker. Here is how I do it;

A: Breast out all of the ducks. Legs/Thighs too.

B: Prepeare your grill really hot! (first you've got work to do!)

C: Make sure everything is very clean. Then coat with course ground pepper. Let sit for close to an hour. No salt! NEVER salt any of your meat.

D: Just before you grill them put a nice amount of Mesquite Chips on your hot coals. Get them on immediately. They only take a couple of minutes on each side. Medium Rare is best.

BUT,

You need Hunter's Sauce!

Cook up your wild rice an hour ago! (I've got a wild rice recipe that is amazing). Make sure you've got a good DRY squash to go with this meal. Cook them naked and face down. One hour. It's heavenly!

Hunter's sauce;

Knors Hunter sauce mix - 2 packets for every 6 birds. (Pepperkorn mix is just as good)

Then cut up 2 Red Peppers (maybe more) and start them on in a Large fry pan. One whole Red Onion (BIGGER is better). Obviously chopped. One entire stick of butter. Plenty of Basil (maybe a tablespoon). Chicken Base, one full tablespoon, Garlic (one full spoon full). One Tablespoon of fresh ground pepper. Add almost as much water as the fry pan will hold. Let it boil/simmer for awhile. Then add the Knors Hunter Sauce Mix. Less water makes a thicker sauce. More water, a more penetrating sauce.

Cook the sauce down to a nice thick sauce. If you like it chunky don't cook it so long/don't add so much water. That's how my huntin buddies like it. They call it a food group of it's own!

No brown sugar in the Squash (Butternut?)...only butter after you scrape them out and mix it all up. Yep, none of that will be left either. Keep it all as dry as you can.

The hunter's sauce will go on whatever they want. Believe me, there will be none left!

But the succulent Wild Rice is what ignites all of their pangs. They love it!

The Hunter's Sauce goes on the Duck...It's simply amazing with the Mesquite smoked taste of the duck. Many put it on everything else.

It tastes NOTHING like Liver.

Good luck!

[tharder]

Oops, forgot the mushrooms in the hunter's sauce...1/2 a pound. I also usually add 2 chopped tomatoes. Delicious! The Hunter's sauce takes more time to make than anything. Take the time. Your friends will love it.

Try adding some ginger, some cumin or even some tarragon. All are fantastic herbs. Not too much. Don't be afraid to add some heat too. Chili powder surely wouldn't hurt and adds a nices flavor (it's not hot). Neither would Cyan powder (that is heat). Be careful though. Most people don't like much heat.

Wild Rice is made el-dente'. Once most "crack" open...they're done! Cook Bacon, small slices (maybe 3/4"). Cook them very crisp. Mix into the wild Rice the cooled, drained Bacon (I put them on a paper towel to let them crisp up even more). Add some of the bacon grease too ( I know, but it is fabulous). In a separate pan make; Red peppers (chopped), cooked/smoked Grouse/Pheasant chopped to bite size (if you have it). One stick of butter. Plenty of Fresh ground Pepper (one Tblsp). Chicken base (one Tblsp). One entire Onion chopped (I like Red Onions)... NO water!

Let it cook down (maybe 10-15 minutes), then add it to your cooked Wild Rice. Oh...My! There is NEVER any left and I make it a pound at a time!

Don't be afraid to experiment. I've added Basil (too Itlaian) and I've added Thyme Spriggs (don't prefer it). The basics seem to be the best. Red Peppers are the biggest source of taste.

Good luck!

[luke clayton]

Sounds good, Tharder but.... at camp or even for a backyard cookout, I like to keep it simple and, simple to me means marinading the meat (duck breast) and slapping it on my Smokin Tex heated to 250 degrees. The trick to great tasting wild duck is marinading and, above that REMOVING all the blood from the meat.