Whole Pekin Duck

Description

Pekin is the duck most people mean when they say duck, mild rather than gamey, with a thick even layer of fat under the skin. Ours come in whole from a family operation near Giddings and are air chilled, so the skin is dry when you unwrap it. We bag the neck and giblets separately and leave the fat pad in the cavity, take it out and render it, it is worth as much as the bird.

Prick the skin all over with the tip of a knife at a shallow angle, aiming to pierce the fat and not the meat. Roast at 300F for two hours on a rack over a tray, pouring the fat off every forty minutes, then raise to 425F for the last fifteen to twenty minutes to colour the skin. Thigh should read 170F, the breast will be past medium and that is correct for a whole roast duck.

Specification

• Breed: Pekin, Giddings, Central Texas
• Chill: air chilled, skin dry
• Trim: whole bird, neck and giblets bagged, cavity fat left in
• Yield: roughly a cup and a half of rendered fat per bird
• Sold by: the bird, weight banded

Cooking

Two hours at 300F on a rack, draining fat as it renders, then 425F for fifteen to twenty minutes. Thigh to 170F, rest fifteen minutes.

Storage

Three days in the fridge uncovered on a rack, drying the skin further only helps. Freezes well for three months whole, and rendered duck fat keeps six months in a sealed jar in the fridge.