how to prep a mallard?

[hoochie]

whats the correct way to do it?
I tried some today, and to me it tasted like Liver ( which is something I would say tastes BAD), my wife said she thought it tasted like mud?

So with all this work people put into hunting with blinds, decoys etc... what would a preferred way be to eat the meat?
plain ol butter and salt in a frying pan was gross.

[pnbrock]

my dog never has complained about mud/liver taste.

[Wild one]

Soak them in saltwater overnight makes a big difference

[gbrown001]

Dice into cubes, pan fry in olive oil, green curry, eat with rice. A lot of ducks are way more fun to shoot than eat. Plan B would be save the meat up and make pepperoni. Mix it with enough spices and pork fat and any meat is delicious.

[Ovis17]

Give this a try....soak them in water overnight. Drain blood. Put the breast halves in a large ziploc. Add olive oil, worcestershire, chopped or minced garlic, bit of lemon juice and montreal steak spice. Let them sit in the fridge overnight in the bag then bbq the next day. Enjoy with a salad, new potatos and some asparagus. Not prime rib but pretty good for duck. Works well on goose breasts too. Oh and maybe a nice red to accompany.

[tigrr]

Cube it then slow cook for 6 hours in a vegetable soup. Same with goose.

[Red_Mist]

I’m assuming your talking about breasts. Brine or marinade them. BBQ works, just needs a few minutes on each side. Stove top also works, just a few minutes each side then I finish in the oven for a few minutes. Don’t over cook them.

[MichelD]

I don't like to distort or radically alter the flavour of mallards with much of anything. I don't go for overspicing and marinades to make it taste like everything but duck

I pluck it, gut it, put half an onion and some pieces of apple in it , put in a clay pot with marjoram on it , cover it and slow cook it in an oven.

I'm kind of a greenhorn to waterfowling since I only started around 2000 but in that time I have only had one "off" mallard that seemed a bit fishy.

Can't say the same for pintails. They seem to love snails and other seafood and demonstrate it in their flavour.

Also, I pluck and gut the same day they are shot, the next day if I absolutely cannot get to them immediately. I have a friend who leaves the guts in and hangs 'em for a week and they taste like shit.

By the way, some ducks will be gut shot. You just can't help that. I gut them, flush them with lots and lots of fresh water, splash a generous amount of vinegar and flush 'em again.

[Goatfarmer870]

Dont cook it above medium rare! That’s the most important thing.

[walks with deer]

1.clean everything you ever kill immediatley..
2.dont shoot thinks eating carion late season mallards when you get snow in feilds will feed on dead salmon.
3.if breasting a duck hammer breast flat cover in olive oil than cajun fish crisp from ct...
than drop in hot oil.

[boblly1]

don`t over cook them as they dry out real quick thus the livery texture

[Relicduckhunter]

Butterfly each breast. Put a jalapeno pepper inside with some cheese of your choice. Wrap with bacon and bbq. Remember what Goatfarmer870 said about don't overcook. You will never cook it another way again.

[digger dogger]

Soak breast strips in pineapple or orange juice, for 12 hrs, drain off bloody juice.
Resoak for another 12hrs in pineapple or orange juice.

Cook strips in stir fry.

The juice breaks down the rubber like breast meat.

[Wild one]

Soak breast strips in pineapple or orange juice, for 12 hrs, drain off bloody juice.
Resoak for another 12hrs in pineapple or orange juice.

Cook strips in stir fry.

The juice breaks down the rubber like breast meat.

Done this with orange juice and it’s good