What do you serve with duck?

It will probably require multiple ducks to feed everybody.

Nah.

Neither of them are big poultry eaters. It's just the three of us.

When I start talking menus they start talking turkey and I always end up throwing so much of it away (nobody likes the white meat) so I nixed that idea this year. They wanted something more special than chicken so they decided on duck.

When I agreed I didn't realize that the fattiness of duck made it hard to cook at home. I think I've got a handle on how to prepare it though so I'm willing to give it a shot.

My brother and I had a duck, in Kansas City, one year. We were highly disappointed with the quantity of meat. We came away from the table feeling as though we had missed a meal.

I suppose I'll have to let them live with their decision.

And their decision means that I really need to amp up the side dishes.

Duck isn't difficult to cook.

Just have to make sure that it's not sitting in its own fat as it cooks.

The duck fat is great for cooking later on. Strain it and put it in the freezer for a day you want to cook something really special.

Traditional German side dishes are sweet/sour red cabbage cooked with a lot of apples and potato dumplings (which are terrific but it's easier to cook prepared perogies).

A fun alternative might be to prepare Chinese side dishes.

You could always go big and make a proper Peking duck meal with mushu pancakes. Braised bok choy would be nice if you went that direction.

How about a brown rice dish with some dried fruit such as apricots or prunes?

Something with a citrus component would help cut through the duck fat, maybe some orange glazed carrots or sweet potato.

Yep! I was just going to suggest rice with some other stuff thrown in.

I haven't forgotten the baked bean and sweet potatoe casserole. I never would have imagined how well they would work together.

Quackling and baked vegetables.

grilled veggies and a mushroom risotto.

sweet and sour veggies are the best . Cornbread is a must if you make a nice gravy and, of course, mashed taters or a nice stuffing . USE a rack for the duck to keep it up. Cookit fast and high Temp. (475 at 10 min per pound)
1Make sure the duck is at room temp to begin
2heat the oven first
3wrap the leg ends and wing tips in aluminum foil until about 15 min to finish


NOW, the duck.
IMHO, we always get a SCOVY DUCK from a butcher or a farm. The ducks they sell in the supermarket (unless fresh killed and available from a farm/market contract0 really suck. These are what they call the "Long Island Duck" strain and they are quickly grown and, as Edgar said, don't have a lot of meat.

The Scovy is able to feed a family and give you some bit of leftovers to make a delicious DUCK SOUP (This is where the best Goldina broth is made for Jewish holidays)

Most chefs like to cut the duck up and do the pieces separately because certain parts will (they say) get done at different times. With a scovy duck, we never have any problems

I wish we were having a duck instead of a turkey but we will be on the road this year and I think well be eating Thanksgiving dinner along with the drilling crews and I know the company is getting turkeys

Everything I've read talks about how greasy it gets and how easy it is to set your oven on fire if you aren't careful so I've been doing a lot of research -- it sounds like maybe I've been doing too much research because I'm thoroughly intimidated.

The general consensus seems to steam the duck for the first hour so that the fat renders out and then roast it for the second hour to give it nice, crisp skin. Have you ever cooked one using this method?

Sweet and sour cabbage sounds great! Do you have a good recipe?

Those all sound good. Especially orange glazed carrots. Thanks!

Baked bean and sweet potato casserole?

Tell me more....

Ummm... mushroom risotto....

Thanks for the duck buying tips!

I'm still seeking a vendor so now I'll know what to ask for.

Duck a l'orange is very traditional. Cherries and gooseberries also go very well with duck.

We're having duck for Christmas dinner.

My sister, a very good cook, gave me her Crispy Peking Duck recipe and I'm dying to try it out… maybe this weekend.

You're going to have to ask Butrflynet. I just ate it. I could have made two meals out of it, and all at one sitting.

I ordered my duck today. It's a Muscovey duck -- is that the same thing you call a Scovey duck?

It's supposed to be a lot less fatty and easier to cook. I'm still searching though recipes. How do you cook yours?