Hi folks,
Thought I'd share an updated version to this nice simple recipe that I whipped up for the kids school lunch. I had some beets from my garden that were ready to go and thought I would try adding that to the sandwich... worked out nicely!
This one works great for smaller ducks that you just want to breast, but just as good with a larger duck too.
Ingredients:
- 1 or 2 whole ducks (depending on size)
- 3 to 4 heaping tablespoons of mayonnaise
- 1 heaping tablespoon of whole grain or seeded mustard
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of green seedless table grapes
- 1/4 to 1/2 a yellow or red onion (whatever you prefer)
- 2 or 3 medium sized B.C. beets (from your garden is best) **
- Fresh butter lettuce (or whatever you have on hand works too)
- Cheddar cheese (I prefer old or aged cheddar for this)
- 1/2 teaspoon of butter
- Fresh ground pepper
- Pinch of chopped dill
- 1 lemon + the lemon zest
- Pinch of chili powder to taste (add more if desired)
- Bread of choice (I used whole wheat).
Step 1. ** new addition
Wash clean and peel your beets. Thinly slice your beets and place them into a mixing bowl. Use a grater and grind the lemon to add a bit zest to the mixing bowl. Cut the lemon in half and then squeeze a whole lemon worth of juice into the mixing bowl. Add a pinch of chili powder and mix the ingredients thoroughly. Optionally if you have time, place the bowl of beets into the fridge overnight to allow juices and spices to soak in.
Step 2.
After feathering and cleaning out your duck, place it in a zip lock bag and stick it in the fridge a few days prior preparation. The key here is to make sure the meat is nice and cold as you aren't going to use the skin for this. Naturally, because you aren't using the skin you can be a little less finicky with your plucking so it tends to be a little less time consuming.
Step 3.
Pull your duck out of the fridge and take your knife cutting the skin back so that you can get your fingers underneath the skin layer. Because your duck is cold, you should be able to easily pull back all of the skin from the breast and other areas you wish to use. In my case, I carved off everything as to not waste any meat and used the meat from the breast, wings, legs and whatever I could salvage from the underside as well.
Cube your duck meat into nice thick chunks and set aside in a bowl. Be sure to remove any shot that may be present (especially if you are doing this for the kiddies).
Step 4.
On a clean chopping block, prepare your veggies and cheese. Chop up and dice 1/4 to 1/2 an onion and set aside. Half or quarter all of your grapes depending on size and set aside. Slice your cheese and set aside.
Step 5.
In a cast iron pan, using a low setting bring your pan to temperature. Add about a 1/2 teaspoon of butter to the pan and then add your onions. Stir to mix in the butter and add your duck meat. Stir frequently to keep the duck from sticking. Once cooked to a nice medium or medium rare (I prefer medium rare) remove your duck and onions from the pan and place into a mixing bowl. Allow your meat to rest for a few minutes.
Step 6.
Add your grapes along with 3 to 4 heaping tablespoons of mayonnaise and 1 heaping spoonful of mustard to the mixing bowl. Add some fresh ground pepper along with a pinch of dill and mix ingredients thoroughly.
Step 7.
Make your sandwich! I added a little mayo to both slices of bread, then on the top half, added cheese, add 3 or 4 beet slices and then the lettuce. On the bottom half take a few good heaping spoon fulls of the duck salad and spread it evenly. Slap them together, cut in half and serve!
Enjoy!
P.S. For the adults, this goes great with a nice cold German style beer.
If you give this a try, let me know what you think!
