Duck needs slower cooking than other birds

I thought I would tackle something I haven't worked with very much, a duck.

Conventional recipes for cooking a duck are kind of all over the place, so I decided to chart my own course and butterfly one. Now I know lots of recipes had called for brining the whole bird, which I went ahead and did. My duck was just under 7 pounds. I put it in a stockpot and enough water to cover. I added 4 tablespoons of salt and swirled the water to dissolve it. I then placed the pot in the fridge for two hours.

Upon removing the duck, I drained the water and then broke out the heavy-duty kitchen shears. I snipped off the tips of the wings and the larger chunk of skin near the end of the duck. Then I snipped it up the backbone. Some of you will likely recall that I have done this with turkeys, though I've needed heavier-duty tools to do so, such as a sawzall or a heavy cleaver.

I had preheated my oven to 350 degrees and placed the duck on a rimmed baking sheet. I patted the skin dry and then let it sit about 15 minutes to allow further drying. I took a sharp knife and then cut a few slits through the depth of the skin, to allow fat to drain out. I then placed it in the oven.

When I did the turkey, I cooked it at a much higher temperature, but with the duck, I wanted a slower cook, to allow a longer time for the skin to cook and render out any fat.

There are a few recipes out there that speak to making a glaze and brushing it onto the nearly finished skin, giving it a deeply lacquered appearance and extra flavor. I'll try that on the next duck, as I wanted the extra savory flavor brought on by the skin itself, just like I did for the recent turkey.

I don't have a problem adjusting a recipe on the fly. If my skin isn't browning as well as it should, I'll turn up the temperature and crank on the convection fan. Conversely, if it starts to brown too fast, I won't have any trouble lowering the temperature or turning off the fan.

There will be a lot of fat in the baking pan. The duck will crackle in the fat unless you have it on a baking rack in the pan. As such, it will sizzle and fat will splatter all over in your oven. You've been warned! After my duck was done and the oven was cooled down, I took the time to wipe it down so the next time I used it there would not be a thick cloud of smoke coming from it.

As for the duck fat, I'll be looking forward to using it as a fat in frying my next batch of potatoes.

SWEET AND SAVORY GLAZE

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 3 tablespoons orange juice
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tablespoon sweet chili sauce (adjust to taste)

In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the honey, molasses, orange juice, soy sauce, and sauce.

Whisk constantly over medium-high heat for a few minutes, until it gets thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and set aside. Pull the cooked duck from the oven and remove the duck to a platter. Turn oven heat up to 400 degrees. Pour any drippings and fat into a measuring cup. Place the duck back on the baking pan and spread glaze all over the skin. Return to the hot oven and roast until golden brown, about 10 minutes or so. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before cutting into serving-sized pieces.

ORANGE GLAZE

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 7 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• Pinch salt
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1/8 teaspoon sweet chili sauce

Combine sugars, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Gradually stir in orange juice, zest and sauce until blended. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside. Pull the cooked duck from the oven and remove the duck to a platter. Turn oven heat up to 400 degrees. Pour any drippings and fat into a measuring cup. Place the duck back on the baking pan and spread glaze all over the skin. Return to the hot oven and roast until golden brown, about 10 minutes or so. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before cutting into serving-sized pieces.