Roast Duck

Lacking time to do the duck I wanted, I chose this one because it only took 2.5 hrs. I cut and pasted between the rest. I added smashed garlic and mushrooms to the stuffing mix and mixed them all together with homemade 5 spice seasoning and olive oil. I scored the skin with a razor blade- great idea, rubbed in more 5 spice and made a glaze with the zest and juice of a large orange, mixed together with a bottle of apricot jamb that had not set up properly. It was fabulous. Will do it again.

The French cook their duck to med rare. Overcooked duck=dry, unpalatable. The USDA (& some chefs like Hank Shaw of Duck Duck Goose) suggest reaching 165 degrees. Julia Child uses pale rosy juices (med rare) & doesn't adhere to a thermometer reading. This recipe cites a really high thermometer reading of 180 degrees. From my humble experience this is overdoing it. Does anyone else have experience in this regard? Just wondering & don't want to wreck my $24 duckling! Thank you!

For seven Holiday guests I cooked two ducks, one by this recipe, the other by Melissa Clark's (also in NYT). Both were good, but Ms. Clark's was preferred for its crispy skin. The product of this recipe was satisfactory, but sad to say that the recipe itself is poorly edited (if at all). Specifically, it's insufficient (and in places muddled) in order, detail, and precision of instructions. That makes it unsuitable for any but more experienced home cooks.

To get the duck tender and juicy all you need is a tube for roasting. Give the process a bit more time and then it comes perfect.

Absolutely delicious! Just wished we would have made a bit more of this delicious gravy. The duck was tender and juicy after exactly 1 1/2 hours.

As others have noted, cooking it to 180 is way too long. 155 is a much better target temperature.

This was ... the worst duck I've ever made. Granted, I'm by no means a duck-cooking-queen, but I'm a strong home cook and it was my third or fourth attempt at quacker. I'm willing to say my duck spent longer in the freezer than it should, but this recipe, had no perks. It took three solid hours to reach 180, and the bacon + fat were smoky and oily. The stench in my house will take days to dissipate, and aggravated both my and my SO's sinuses well into the evening.

Bacon, I don't think so. 180, I don't think so

I'm surprised by all the high ratings. I found the duck to be very bland. It only tasted flavorful if you had a bite of the bacon with a bite of duck. The onions and carrots didn't provide much flavor at all. I think fresh herbs stuffed inside would help. Also, more salt/seasoning needed on the outside. The bacon did not provide much flavor.

Roast duck in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 180 degrees. 180?? It will be dried out shoe leather. 165 is fine. Some would even say 155. In fact Sam Sifton's Sautéed Scallops With Shredded Duck and Hollandaise Sauce calls for that. Although at 155 you are not being certain to have killed off salmonella, even as duck is assumed to be not as prone to salmonella contamination - thus folks eating rare breast meat. But there is no guarantee.

I added apple chunks to the carrot and onion stuffing, which added a bit of sweetness to the meat, and rubbed the bird with oregano, smoked paprika, and BBQ hickory smoked salt.

I use the excess fat to stir fry some cabbage. Amazing flavor! Learned this from a Moravian lady decades ago. She would add a bit of stock as well and simmer until soft and silky. These days we prefer a bit more crunch in our veg, but the old ways were good.

^ Yeah, here's a little plan for the vegetables to become a very quick side dish: stir them in some of the duck fat and broil them.

And save whatever fat you don't use in the vegetables or the gravy. Pour it in a jar, let it cool, seal with plastic wrap almost touching the surface inside the jar and use the next day or two, or freeze it. You can use it instead of butter for pretty much anything savory.