Almost Ready To Eat My Pekins

[HeadRooster]

I would think most folks at BackYardChickens forum are not raising their animals for food, but I have 3 Pekins ducks that I am thinking about eating. I certainly understand if you are not raising fowl to eat, as I have 10 chicken "pets" that not only give me eggs everyday, but are animals I and my grandkids love to have around. Bascially, the chickens give me a "lifestyle" that I like. I just love seeing them run around the place. Simple life but the good life in my opinion.
I currently have the 3 ducks on my pond and supplement their diet with waterfowl feed; snacks of tomatoes, watermelon, even a little bread. They have been on the pond for about a month. For some reason, I see them more as food instead of pets.
I just bought a duck from Winn Dixie food stores, produced by Maple Leaf Farms, and went to their website for tips on cooking it whole. I thought I would cook up this duck first, and if my family likes the duck, then the 3 at the pond are going to be next.

Anyway, I would like your opinion on how ducks taste, and any tips for cooking them you could provide.
Thanks

 

[saddina]

Actually all of our meat animals will end up as dinner (cats and 2 pet bunnies are the only exclusions). May I suggest this duck recipie?

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mighty-duck-recipe/index.html

Oh how do they taste? uh, like duck?

 

[streemers]

when i did my drake he tasted more like roast beef....maybe because what he ate? dont know but he was very yummy

oh yeah and if you boil a pot of water and dip him in it for a few seconds it makes plucking sooo easy

 

[HeadRooster]

Thanks for the replies, I likely will use that recipe but might have to modify it to use what I have on hand. I am planning on putting the duck in a brine solution for about 6 hours before cooking.
I, nor my family has ever eaten ducks, that is why I was asking about how they taste. I guess we are going to find out Sunday evening. I hope I do a good job preparing the duck. If I do, then my family will be behind me raising more ducks for the table, if not, I might have resitance from them. As the husband, it's not like I'm in charge or anything.

I'm a city boy, and have been slowing doing more and more things at my home, (2 acres), like raising chickens, orchard, vegetable gardening etc. Of course a lot of people have had these skills since childhood, but I am learing them now. All that back to the land movement etc.
The reason I was asking for advice on cooking a duck is that when I started deer hunting many years ago, my family didn't like the deer meat. Fast forward several years, we are pros at preparing vension many different ways and use it just as often as beef or pork. I want to learn the ends and outs of cooking ducks so my family will enjoy them.
Thanks so much for your comments, please keep them coming.

 

[saddina]

Here's the video that goes with the recipie.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=good+eats+duck&search_type=&aq=0&oq=good+eats+d

 

[danielbrown]

I've raised and eaten Muscovy duck. Duck is all dark meat. I like it. Lots of flavor. Some people call duck "gamey" but I think there just not use to flavor.

 

[mmwb]

They are great eating. Most don't seem to realize that some breeds of duck make good layers with great production. We used to collect their eggs right along with those of the chickens.

 

[MysticScorpio82]

I LOVE duck meat! Of course i have only had store bought, so I can just imagine how much better the home-grown is going to be!

My favorite recipe website is http://allrecipes.com/ Just type in duck in the search bar and there will be a ton of recipes and different ways to prepare them.

 

[HeadRooster]

Update:
Okay, I tried duck for the first time tonight. Personally, I did not care for it. Neither did my wife, but my teenager liked it. I would choose chicken over duck. Duck had too much gamey taste, but not like venison which has a gamey taste I like.
In the end I went with my own way and cut up the duck and put two leg quarters and two breasts in the slow cooker and boiled the carcass and deboned and added that to the slow cooker. We do chicken like this sometimes. The wife and I agreed that if we had a sauce to put over the duck when serving it, it would be better. We also thought it would be good in a jambalaya, as when we make jambalaya, we normally use wild game. I'm sure if I cooked duck often and tried different cooking methods, I would find duck more accepting to my tastes. But for now, it's chicken all the way.

I granted a pardon to my 3 young Pekin ducks out back. I guess they are now officially pets.

Thank you for the replies to my previous posts.