Abundance – Duck Hunting the Grasslands
Jan 2nd, 2009 | By Hank Shaw | Category: Hunting & Fishing Stories, Wild Game | Comments | 16 Comments |
I am not accustomed to an overabundance of wild ducks. Holly and I hunt public land, which, for the most part, means we scratch out a duck or two apiece on any given day. This suits us just fine.
But we went down to the Salinas Gun Club on New Year’s Eve for what we expected to be a pretty good hunt with our friend Pete Ottesen, and Pete did not disappoint. I’ve hunted with him before, and I knew that the Grasslands, a vast natural marsh in Merced County, was a massive teal wintering ground. After hunting with him last year, we threw a big teal dinner shortly thereafter.
Teal, for those of you who might not know, are more than just a pretty color: They are a pretty — and petite — duck that spends much of its time eating seeds, when it is not embarrassing hunters with its aerobatics. Their small size and dietary habits make the green-winged teal among the finest-eating birds we have in California. (The cinnamon teal is another matter.)
As expected, the shooting was epic. Teal fly early and they can be very tough to hit, as they fly more like scared pigeons than ducks, wheeling and zig-zagging rapidly. I shot several using one shot each, though, and began to feel good about myself. Too good, it seems, as I then missed six in a row. Damn teal.
The Grasslands is not a place to shoot mallards, and big ducks are not very common, other than the pintail. What’s more, the hunters there know that gadwall and wigeon — two prime eating ducks where we hunt in the Sacramento Valley — tend to be sketchy in their marshes. Another lesson in the importance of diet to an animal’s flavor.
Pete and I had our seven-bird limit by 8:30 on the first morning, and Holly not only got her first-ever limit of seven ducks (yay!) but repeated the feat on Day Two. (Here’s her account of our trip) What’s more, she shot a few interesting ducks as well, including a gorgeous cinnamon teal drake she may get mounted. I’m taking a keen interest in the ringnecks she shot: I am fond of their flavor, because, like gadwall, they are eater’s ducks: Teal are accessible to anyone’s palate, but gadwalls, ringnecks and wood ducks all have very distinct flavor profiles. I am thinking about smoking the ringnecks over apple wood this weekend.
With so many birds I could get choosy about rendering out some wild duck fat. I almost never render out diver ducks or spoonies, and I generally take a long look at the pope’s nose (the butt end) of every duck before tossing it into the pan. Teal are always worth rendering, as are pintails and rice-fed ducks. But here in the Grasslands, where everything eats natural forage, we had a lot of skinny birds. Still, I managed to get nearly a full pint of clean duck fat.
Another benefit of such abundance was the heart bonanza.
Yes, teal have teeny little hearts, but we got so many birds that I replenished my supply to the point where I can make the duck heart tartare that went over so well at the last Duck Hunter’s Dinner; I have another coming up soon and wanted to make the dish again.
We also came home with two snow geese: One a giant old bird, the other a smaller Ross’ goose, which is a subspecies that doesn’t get too much bigger than a mallard. The big ole’ snow was possibly the toughest plucking job I have ever had, but it will make excellent goose prosciutto and the legs will go into confit.
This goose also had a gigantic gizzard. How big? Here it is next to a teal. They weighed nearly the same. I cleaned the gizzard and plan to brine it, sear it hard on all sides, then slice it into translucently thin slices as a sort of carpaccio. I think it’ll be good.
This still leaves a shitpile of ducks. After two days of hunting, we each shot limits, which means we now have 28 ducks and two snow geese in the fridge. Having this many birds presents an unusual opportunity: I have enough to make another batch of duck sausages. Normally we only get enough for me to make one batch a year.
Why not roast all the ducks? Well, the one you see in my hand will get roasted, because its breast is in good shape. But some of our ducks are shot-up to varying degrees, so I can feel better about skinning them and chopping the meat for sausages.
I am still undecided about what kind of sausage to make, though. Anyone have some suggestions for a style or flavorings? I’m all ears.
Sounds like a pretty good shoot down there!
One of the other birds I seem to see a lot in late season in the grasslands is specklebellies. I know that tastes differ, but the speck has got to be the best tasting waterfowl I’ve ever shot. (I’ve eaten swan and it was awesome, definitely better, but I haven’t been able to get back east to hunt them.)
Anyway, very curious to hear how the goose gizzard carpaccio comes out. It sounds tasty!
A shitpile indeed. Just a note of clarification for the taxonomists … Ross’ goose is a distinct species, not a subspecies of snow goose – though I have no idea whether or not that will translate into a difference in taste.
Looking forward to seeing the recipes to come.
How about some South African inspired droewors or biltong made from the duck meat? Coriander seeds, pepper, garlic, salt…
If you do it this way, please send some my way, and I will provide high-quality tasting services to you for no charge at all.
eh-hem.
Love your blog!
Mungo
Phillip: I agree on specks. As for the carpaccio, you will find out! It’s on the menu for the dinner you are coming to.
Kindred: huh. Did not know they were far enough apart to be a separate species…
Mungo: Don’t know droewors, but maybe boerwors? And I just made biltong from venison – I plan on posting on that soon!
My experience with wild duck is limited (last time I had my hands on some, I did turn them into terrine and broth), but I like the marriage of domestic duck and olives as well domestic duck with ginger and vanilla. Just some ideas… ginger and cherries; ginger & olives; vanilla & ginger…
Let us know what you do. This is a fun blog to read and learn from!
Sylvie
http://www.LaughingDuckGardens.com/ldblog.php/
Wow! That’s an impressive lineup of ducks. I love your blog. You have inspired me to save all the innards from my geese, and I am now enjoying wild goose mousse, devilled hearts, and goose sausages in a goose neck. Now I might have to try the gizzard carpaccio. I have to know how you managed to pluck all those ducks in the picture. That must have taken all day. It takes me a good hour or more to pluck just one Canada goose.
I am having major flashbacks to that time I cleaned 8 of my cousin’s ducks. I wish I’d known to just gut them and roast them – I was sitting there trying to breast those poor little things out. They were so tiny. My kitchen stank for days.
Chris: Goose mousse? Sweet. Send me the recipe. And yes, it takes a long time to pluck a Canada goose, but they are the toughest to pluck, other than the snow geese. We waxed them and plucked that way — much easier.
Heather: Why would your kitchen stink? Sounds like something was wrong; our kitchen does not smell when we’re done. And as for breaking down a duck like you would a chicken, I am planning on postung a step-by-step soon…
[...] parts out for people to buy, and livers are plentiful now. I suppose I really should consider duck hunting at some point this year. I still need duck [...]
Found your post while trying the solve the same problem, although I have fewer than 28 to deal with.Like you, I intend to make sausage, although I’ll also make some duck confit (dry-cured then poached and preserved in fat), which I do every year.
Have you tried duck prosciutto? It involves dry-curing the breasts and air-drying them; very similar to Italian pork prosciutto.
Hey Chris: Glad you had a good shoot, too! Yep, I make confit all the time (am making some from snow geese legs today, in fact.) and I have several versions of goose “prosciutto” going; some sweet, some spicy.
Wow, what a haul of ducks! Good shooting you two! =)
Hank, for the Goose liver mousse, I adapted the recipe here.
I add some reconstituted dried porcini mushrooms to the sauteing shallot, then add some of the porcini soaking liquid along with the madeira. Also, I use more butter than they call for. It’s great spread on crusty bread as a starter to any game dinner.
That’s a huge gizzard – how big was that snow goose? The biggest Canadas we get here are around the 14 lb mark, but I’ve never seen a snow even close to that big, nevermind have a gizzard like that!
Kevin: The snow was big, but only about 7-8 pounds. Snows tend to have really large gizzards in general, not doubt because of their diet. Dunno exactly what they eat, though; have not yet looked into it.
Went on my first duck hunt yesterday! I was lucky enough to get invited to join a friend at the Yolo Bypass Refuge, it was pretty good day. I ended up with 6 duck, 2 spoony, 1 sprig, 2 mallard, and a teal (man those teal move fast); at least that is what I was told. I am still trying to brush up on my species recognition, but I am already looking forward to next year. Can’t wait to try some of your recipes!