Is duck supposed to taste like, well .... swamp ?

[RobSmith]

An old friend of mine invited me for supper the other day and duck was on the menu. Come supper time the stuff tasted, well, pretty horrible, as in take a mounthful of swamp mud at every bite sort of horrible. Is this a "normal" taste for duck ? I proceeded to stuff my face as usual and never said a word, but still, it makes me wonder if duck is one of those hunts I may not want to get into, because I honestly hate what the stuff tastes like .... I've had all sorts of game meat in my lifetime, but this thing had to be the worst tasting critter I've ever had ...

 

[Cletus]

Assuming it was wild duck of course. Wondering perhaps if it could have been a diving duck of sorts. They usually seem to taste kinda fishy.

 

[Turkeyslayer 1300]

Whoever cooked it cooked it wrong duck when cooked properly has almost a livery taste.The trick is to keep the meat moist throughout cooking.

 

[pharaoh2]

The absolutly worst thing I ever ate was a duck I shot on a hutterite colony. I learned from that day on to play it safe. I marinate all my ducks now with different things.

 

[sherlockbonez]

Sometimes they have a slight irony aftertaste, I think from the blood. Have you ever had farm ducks? Maybe it aint your thing.

Wrap it in bacon, pan sear, baked, then simmer in a cream sauce...mmm.

 

[mommabear]

Yea.. duck is very strong tasting ( I'm not keen on dark rich meat anyway) but duck .. it needs to be marinated ( perhaps the person eating it as well, ya know.. a little Chardonnay )

 

[John Marshall]

Duck is one of my favorites, I will start digging to find my duck a la orange recipes, it takes time to prepare but when done properly it is excellent. I don't know if you eat goose but when prepared right duck is 10 times better, I would even say it is as good as grouse! IF IT WAS A DIVING DUCK IGNORE EVERYTHING I WROTE

 

[John Y Cannuck]

I always roasted my duck, never had a problem with taste, but I have to say that I preferred the meat in sandwiches. Matter of fact, duck sandwich is among my favorites.


Fish ducks excepted!

 

[K98]

I have found that when ducks have recently migrated from up north they do indeed have a swampy taste but when they've been feeding in grainfields for a while they do taste better.

 

[sjemac]

Huh? Sounds like over cooking to me. Duck is a med-rare meat at most. A well aged seared duck breast is excellent.
A few of my meals.

Last one is seared Canvasback Breast Sashimi with braised Canvasback legs.

 

[John Marshall]

Huh? Sounds like over cooking to me. Duck is a med-rare meat at most. A well aged seared duck breast is excellent.
A few of my meals.

Last one is seared Canvasback Breast Sashimi with braised Canvasback legs.

That looks amazing!

 

[DirtyGun]

Do you know what type of duck it was?

If it was a Merganser, then it would definitely explain the taste. You're better off eating the plate it's on than the meat from one of those things.

Most divers are stronger tasting as well. But, the stench and taste of Mergansers tops them all.

 

[Boonie Boy]

Every breed of duck has a slightly different taste and texture. Some of the bigger ducks like mallards and canvasbacks are going to taste significantly different from smaller goldeneyes or buffleheads. Personally, I prefer woodducks. Not sure what you were served, but it may also have been feeding for quite awhile in a very stagnant area. And yes, any diving duck (merganser) will taste like crap (fish).

 

[Covey Ridge]

sjemac,
Great presentation!

John Y Cannuck,
Me too! I prefer cold duck sandwiches to roast beef sandwiches!

 

[the_big_mike]

it might have been a diving duck?

 

[joe-nwt]

sjemac! I'm impressed!

Here i thought you were just another gun nerd...........

 

[DARKARCHER]

hopefully it wasnt one of those white duck like birds (a gull) we all know what they eat

 

[fogducker]

ive always loved game meat..........but duck has always tasted like crap to me...no matter how its cooked

 

[12magnum]

parboil duck in boiling water for 30 minutes. remove skin, drop into slow cooker on low with 1 1/2 cup white wine , 1 1/2 cup orange juice and a coupla good shakes of poultry seasoning. this is even better if you skin the bird before parboiling.

 

[RobSmith]

Do you know what type of duck it was?

I honestly have no clue what type of duck it was as it was feathered and prepared to cook by the time I caught a glimpse of it ... I remembered from the one uncle I have who is a hunter to take very small bites and chew carefully so that you detect and spit out the shotgun pellets as they present themselves, and there were indeed a couple of pellets left in there ...