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

I grew up on the southern Mississippi flyway--would have starved to death it if it weren't for ducks. I've had them all--blacks, mallards, pintails,and woodies plus all the divers.
I'm with Fogducker--I will starve to death before I eat another one.
 
Fish-eating ducks taste like fish that have been eaten by ducks.

For the rest, like sjemac says, it has to be rare. You can't cook a wild duck like you would roast a chicken - I "part them out", pan fry them, and then make a sauce to serve over top.

Wood duck is my favourite.
 
Worst thing you can do is overcook your ducks!

Again like everyone esle stated the fish eaters... not so good. Having said that, not all divers are fish eaters and goldeneye can be quite good. Even the fish eaters can be prepared in such away to taste great (although, I have only heard this, I have yet to experience it)

Problem is, around here a Black or Mallard could be a fish eater or a grain eater , most are both, but if you get one that has spent alot of time eating fish, it can be less than desireable.

My favourite recipe is to marinate in wine or juice and then bbq with bbq sauce.
I also marinate in bbq sauce and then fry strips of it and glaze with maple syrup!! yummy!
 
This is a bit off topic but we ate a beaver (4 legged ) that was trapped from a black muck bog pond with no moving water and it was mucky tasting. The the ones caught from moving water were good. We also ate pond raised trout that was not the same as wild trout.
 
Sjemac, what time is dinner served? I'll bring the beer.

As for Rob's duck, unless you know what it was, where it came from, and what happened to it after it was shot, the reasons for the muddy taste are numerous.

I have had beautiful northern mallards that had been feeding in areas where salmon had spawned out and died, and I still gag when I think about it. Any of the ducks that eat a lot of aquatic insects (shovelers, blue wing teals, etc.) will usually be pretty strong. If you do decide to go hunting for ducks, try and find them either feeding in grain or legume (pea, bean) fields, or returning from them in the morning. These ducks are usually awesome. The best duck I have ever eaten are widgeons that had been feeding in grain fields, they were so fat! Absolutely mouth watering, finger licking, heavenly good. Sjemac has the idea though, do not overcook; same with deer meat, you already killed it once, you do not have to cook it to death as well.

Cheers
Ian
 
i've never known any of the teal ,blue wing, green wing or the rest that weren't delicous and tender. if you marinade a merganser in apple juice or orange juice for 24 hours, even they're not to bad when broiled.
 
Pudelpointer said:
Any of the ducks that eat a lot of aquatic insects (shovelers, blue wing teals, etc.) will usually be pretty strong.
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I am surprised that you listed teal among the strong taste. I usually do not shoot them because of their small size, but where I get into an area where I know I can get a bunch I do. I just cook breasts, broiled or bbq partly wrapped in bacon to keep moist and cause flair. I take off heat when still rare and I test them while cooking by eating one. Chef's perogative:) They taste good enough that the only seasoning I use is a little salt and pepper.
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RobSmith said:
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 ...
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I think you were eatin' the duck from the wrong end...........:D
 
The green-wings I have had have been not bad, but the blue-wings and cinnamon's in southern AB have spent all summer eating bugs out of the muck, and the ones I have tried had a taste that was appropriate. The greens usually show up later and are eating in the grain fields, so far so good.

But they are all still better then a tasteless chicken.
 
I heard once that the only good ducks to eat were the ones with orange feet. Don't know if it's true or not.
 
KDX said:
I heard once that the only good ducks to eat were the ones with orange feet. Don't know if it's true or not.
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Even those orange footed ones have been known to suck their share of swamp juice before it gets cold enough to crave some decent food.
 
Tried some black ducks shot on the tundra on the west coast of Hudson's Bay. They were truly awful. Only way to get the dog to eat any was to throw a piece to him. If he snatched it out of the air, it would be swallowed before he could spit it out. In his bowl, he wouldn't touch it. Fall snow geese weren't much better. Spring geese, now....
 
Duck is a "5 or 5" meat. Meaning, like the pictures I showed 5minutes of cooking OR 5 hours. When I do do a full roast duck, I lay it breast down on some veg (carrots, onions, celery) stuff its arse with more of the same and salt n pepper the bugger good.

Pour a half bottle of beer (or similar volume of wine or apple juice or chicken stock) in the bottom of the dutch oven and then cover tightly and roast at about 225 F for 5 hours. Take bird out and brush with melted butter and sprinkle with seasoned salt and broil, turning every few minutes until the skin crisps up. My boy's favorite part is the skin. The legs are great while the breast is a little dry but tender. The drippings in the pan make for amazing gravy to moisten that meat though.
 
Here is an easy way to prepare duck breast. Its actually a marinade for flank steak and works well on all red meat. In a large Zip lock bag 1/3 cup of Veg oil, 1/3 cup dark soy sauce, 1/3 cup of red wine vinegar. drop the breasts in, shake, and refrig over night. BBQ them just like a minature fillet mignon, serve them medium rare. I usually slice them thinly and serve as an appitizer, everyone that I have ever served it to says its great, I concur. FS
 
An old fella told me how to cook fall and diving ducks.
You put a cedar plug in the chest cavity and slow cook the duck for three hours then throw the duck out and eat the cedar plug.
 
it may have just been the specific tastes of that bird?

a few months ago i roasted 3 wood ducks stuffed with apples and pineapples on top and in the sauce. 2 of them were great but the 3rd was so bad that even i couldnt eat it (means alot if you know what i eat:D) i figured it was either the stuff that specific bird was eating or maybe had a disease of some sort that would make it taste that bad. :confused:

couldnt even eat the apples or pineapple that was touching that one bird as they soaked up all those nasty juices.
 
I've got a lot more pintails than mallards this year and my wife who loves eating waterfowl finds the pintails distasteful, slightly fishy with a metallic aftertaste she says. I notice it too, but not as much.

Pintails are supposed to be dabblers and seed and plant eaters like mallards, but here on the coast I think they are into the sea grasses, seaweed and tiny mussels, though when I cleaned them their crops were full of seeds.
 
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Breasts seared, mid-rare. Legs/thighs baked with Worchestershire coat,. Go tart or savory with the sauce. (I'm a huge fan of a kiwi mint salsa.. blow your mind)

Duck is definatly one of those items that will turn people off if not done right. The trick is to sear out most of the fat yet keep the meat rare & moist. I've never had a duck I didn't like (that I cooked). I have had many that were made for me that I could hardly keep in my mouth though. I believe there is no such thing as a bad tasting duck until the cook ####s it up.
 
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