anyone have any tips for butchering duck?

[mommyofthreewithchicks]

Ok I have tried to butcher chicken and now it is time to try my hand at the extra ducks... Mindful I have called all meat shops around to see if they would do it for me as I have 14 to process. (when I jump I jump BIG) For this adventure my Dad has said he wants no part of it - he showed me "old school" how to butcher a chicken and really I have to give him all the credit on the two roosters in the freezer. I am hoping by batting my eyes he will cave, but just in case he doesn't I still need to be prepared to do the deed myself.

So how much harder are ducks to process? Are there any extra hints to defeathering waterfowl? Anything to make this an easier job? Anyone have a good duck recipe?

Thanks-

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

The fastest way to do ducks is to skin them. We raise Muscovy and plucking them is no fun at all.

Here is one of our favorite ways to cook duck breast.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=260021

Steve

 

[Bossroo]

Killing a duck is no different than a chicken, they only have a longer neck and some more and denser feathers and down and more oils on the feathers. So each will probably take a little longer. Check to see for pin feathers... if the feathers are grown out to where you can grab them easily, then it is time to process. Put a squeeze of dishwasher soap in the scald water at 150* ( check the temp. for each duck) dunk and swirl the duck to help with dispersing the feather oils ( just more oils on it than on a chicken, this allows the duck to swim instead of sink) for about a minute. Pull on a wing feather or two, if they come out easily, then the duck is ready to pluck . If you get a resistance continue to dunk and swirl a few seconds longer. Everything else is the same as doing a chicken. One year we hatched out 97 Pekin ducklings. My wife and I did the bunch on 2 different weekends only due to age differences. The duck skin is very tasty and the fat deposits under the skin will self baste the duck while roasting. Enjoy !!!