Smoked duck is my favorite way to save our hunting season’s bounty for the warmer months.
Holly and I spend most of our winter days hunting ducks and geese, and we eat them several times a week over the winter months. In that time I do a lot of preserving: Mostly confit, salami, cured goose “prosciutto.” But I will also smoke duck and goose and freeze them for the rest of the year.
Those who know their way around a smoker know that fat is a critical element in the process. Fat absorbs the smoke’s flavor better than the meat itself. This is why you see lots of recipes for smoked pork and salmon; both are fatty animals. So are waterfowl. Domestic ducks and geese are essentially avian pigs, and even wild ducks will have enough fat on them to make it worth some smoke time.
I smoked a flock of ducks and geese to get to this post, so here are my thoughts on what to do, and what to avoid.
For starters, if you are using domestic ducks and geese you will want to remove as much of the fat inside the body cavity and around the neck as you can. Save it, though, and render the duck fat for cooking later.
You will want to prick the skin of a domestic duck or goose all over with a needle — be careful not to pierce the meat, though. This helps rendered fat escape. I’ve even done this on fat wild ducks such as pintail and gadwall that had been gorging themselves on rice.
If you have wild waterfowl, follow these guidelines:
- Don’t smoke sea ducks, divers or shovelers you think might be fishy. Smoking will not help you. Skin these birds and do something else with them.
- Avoid smoking snow geese or any other wild bird that is über-lean; you need some fat to make this work. Even a little is OK.
- Only smoke plucked birds. Remember, the smoky flavor lingers in skin and fat far more than meat. If you smoke a skinned duck it will be more like jerky and less like a proper smoked duck.
- Smoking whole birds give you better results than pieces. Smoking a whole goose or duck will keep the meat more tender and juicy.
- Big ducks smoke better than small ducks, although there is no reason you can’t smoke a teal.
To brine or not to brine? I’ve done both. If you want to eat the smoked duck for a Sunday dinner or whatnot, you can skip the brining — unless your duck is pretty lean, in which case the brine can help the meat stay moist. But brining a duck, especially if you use pink salt, will help preserve the bird longer in the fridge and will let you smoke it longer without drying out the meat.
So, if you choose to brine, do this:
- Mix 1/4 cup kosher salt with 4 cups water and submerge your duck in the fridge overnight.
- If you want to cold-smoke (below 90°F) or smoke for a very long time or if you want that pretty pink color, add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of pink salt, sodium nitrite, a/k/a Instacure No. 1.
- When your duck is nicely brined, take it out of the water and pat it dry. Set it in a cool, drafty place for a few hours to dry out a bit. If you want to go the extra mile, put a fan on the ducks. After it is dry, then you can smoke it. if you skip this step and put a wet duck in the smoker, the smoke will not adhere as well to the skin or meat of the bird.
If you are skipping the brine, simply pat the duck or goose dry, let it dry out for a few hours and salt it well before smoking.
As for flavors, I am in love with the combination of smoke, duck, salt and maple. And not just any maple: I prefer the thick, super-premium maple syrup from Blis, which you can buy online. If you don’t want to bother with fancy syrup, boil down regular maple syrup by half; it’s close, but not the same. I need no other flavors in my life, but honey would be good, as would a Cajun rub, something vaguely Indian, chiles, French quatre epices, etc. Use your imagination.
Wood is another choice you will need to make. I am a big fan of fruit or nut woods, like apple, pecan or walnut. Oak is OK, mesquite too weird.
How you place your duck in the smoker doesn’t really matter. I’ve stood them on end like a beer can chicken, with a glass jar jammed up its butt, and it worked well. But I’ve also just set the duck down on the rack, breast side up, and it went fine, too. You will always need a drip pan under the birds, as they will drip fat.
Your final issues are temperature and time.
If you plan on serving the smoked duck for dinner, go with a hotter temperature, between 250 to 275°F. This renders fat pretty well and gets you closer to a crispy skin. As for time, I prefer 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours at this temperature.
To crisp the skin, get your grill or oven ripping hot — 500°F or so — and put the ducks in with a drip pan underneath for a few minutes, until the skin crisps. Check after 5 minutes, and in no circumstances let the ducks or geese sit in this temperature more than 15 minutes.
Like the Recipe? Buy the Book!
You'll find everything you need to know to master waterfowl in Hank Shaw's cookbook Duck, Duck, Goose.
If you want to have a traditional smoked duck, served cold as a luncheon meat or as an appetizer, keep the temperature closer to 200°F, and not hotter than 225°F. This will still render some fat, but will not crisp the skin — duck skin will lose its crispiness anyway once you put the cooled duck in the fridge. As for time, at least 3 hours and up to 6 hours. If you go to the long end of this scale, you will need the pink salt.
Allow the duck to cool before carving. Sliced thin and on the diagonal, smoked duck is fantastic as part of an appetizer plate or in a sandwich. You can also carve a whole breast, sear the skin side in a frying pan until it crisps again, and serve it with lentils or polenta. Again, use your imagination.
Smoked Duck or Goose
Ingredients
- 1 large duck or small wild goose
- Salt
- 1/4 cup thick maple syrup
Instructions
- Salt the duck well inside the cavity, then paint the outside of the bird with the maple syrup. Salt the outside well.
- Set the bird in your smoker with a drip pan underneath. Smoke between 200 and 225 degrees over apple wood for 4 hours. Baste the ducks with the maple syrup every hour. When smoked, allow to cool completely, then carve. Serve cool or at room temperature as a cold cut or appetizer, or carve the breast whole and sear in a pan. Slice and serve with lentils.
Hank,
Love your book! My wife wants me to replicate a smoked duck we get from a local Taiwanese restaurant. Very little fat is rendered from the duck, and it is served cold. The skin on the duck is quite pale, with no evidence of burning or crisping. The flavor is salty and mildly smoky, with perhaps a few other aromatics mixed in.
Most folks, including myself, are usually after that beautiful golden brown duck with the crispy skin. But this time it’s different and I would love your comments and thoughts about my plan.
I plan to brine the duck over night (12-18 hours) in the refrigerator using your brine recipe (1/4 cup kosher salt, 4 cups water, 1 teaspoon Insta Cure #1). I will try to dry it as best as possible for about 4 hours prior to smoking. I’m thinking of a low temperature smoke, around 180 °F, until the breast temperature reaches around 165 °F. I’m guessing this will take around 8-10 hours or so. I’ll then refrigerate and serve cold. Thoughts?
Hi,
Thanks, but this technique didn’t work too well for me. It took forever for my smoker to come down from 500 to 250. I think if I do this again, I’ll crisp it up in the oven, then transfer to a smoker running at 250.
Sam
Sam: You did it backwards. You smoke first, then crisp.
Easy and yummy!!
Do you need a drip pan when using a Traeger Grill? The drip tray is under the the grate and at an angle.
Bill Walker: Yep, I use one. I fashion one from foil.
This is my absolute favorite thing to do with my ducks that aren’t shot up too bad. It is great hot for dinner and sliced for sandwiches. The salty/savory/sweet/smoky flavor combination is as good as it sounds. Thanks for the great recipe!
We smoked 2 small green heads (mallards) that my son brought back from his hunt in Kansas…we brined and did a lovely maple glaze…they did not stay on the smoker 2 hours and were tough and had zero taste. I believe he salt water soaked them, then made a brine…did we do much soaking/bringing? They were beautiful but tasted?.
Jennifer: Weird. Yes, you cannot salt them twice or it will make them salty and tasteless. As for tough, the key is to monitor the temperature of the breast meat, and pull the birds when it hits 140F or even 135F. The rest of the bird will be tough. I use it for a soup base.
This sure was a helpful write up, thank you. I appreciate the times and smoker temps, but I think the meat temp is the key thing… Can you provide the guidelines you’ve used in your experience? I’m thinking about cooking to an internal temp of 145F and tenting for 30 mins to get a final of maybe 150F. Thanks.
Would you brine if the duck is already in a salt/sodium chloride solution? Worried about too salty
Joshua: No I would not.
You say to salt the duck inside and out. Even if I brined it? No pepper?
Larry: The recipe card is for the quick version of smoked duck. The brined version is in the text. It all depends on what you want. If you brine, no extra salt, and no pepper — but if you want to add pepper, that’s OK.
Can I serve this hot? Or do I need to adjust the temp/time? Thanks
Shawn: You can serve it hot.
Hank,
I plan to smoke 8 lbs ( bone in) of Canda’s , breasts and legs. am following your Goose pastrami recipe — for breasts only . I think legs won’t make good pastrami and slicing is a chore.
Q. My bresats are bone in – I’m reding your smoke time , ~ 3 hours – , so ia ssume that’s fpr Boneless???
Thanks
Yves
Yves: Yes, I use boneless goose breasts.
When smoking on low temp (200-225) – What internal temp do you go for with a whole – skin on – wild mallard? Thanks
Travis: About 140F.
w/ maple syrup then hit it with 5 spice powder but, I did have to grill it a lttle to crisp up the skin a bit like you said
hey hank I made this amazing and like you said be creative first I smeared[hey im from new York we smear]
Great article! Do I need to salt if I use the brine?
Steven. Salt is the brine.
what is the final internal temp you are aiming for. Ive heard 150-165?. thanks
Michael: It’s in the recipe. I shoot for 145F in the breast, tops. I prefer 140F. This undercooks the legs a bit, but gives you fantastic smoked duck breast.
Hank is the man
How do you like your duck? Medium Rare? With that, what internal temp are you trying to reach when smoking 3-6 hours?
Going to become a family classic. Everyone ate it, most came back for seconds. The 4 other ducks in the freezer may have future appointments with the smoker.
One of our family favorites. Smoke, salt and maple syrup together is fantastic.
This worked great with a super fat Canada goose over the holidays. I let it get a little hot (~155F in the breast) but still was delicious.
What should the internal temp be for something not as pink in the picture but still have some pink show
Hank when smoking the duck does the internal temp matter? I don’t want to over cook. When I roast duck I go to about 135 internal temp. I will be smoking wild birds.
Steven: It’s does. I prefer 140F in the thickest part of the breast.
A neighbor has generously given us a huge bag of wild duck breasts (he’s a hunter). Should they be removed from the bone before smoking?
EclecticDeb: Nope. Keep them on the bone.
I’ve used this recipe many times as a base for my experimentations and following some of the additional prompts. I only went wrong once by over salting the skin in my prep – now I lightly salt and let the duck sit over night then rub/glaze prior to smoking. I’ve had good luck with adding pecans and orange peel to the rub and the same woods for smoke. The part about removing the extra fat – do it! One year the fat drippings overspilled and torched my ducks, luckily it only meant crisper skin and a warped smoker, the meat was still good but it could have been really bad. Anyway, thanks for the recipe Hank!
Earlier in your explanations, you suggest cooking at a higher temperature if cooking for dinner. This differs from the temperature suggested in the “recipe card.” Which temp should I go with?
Melissa: Both work fine. If you have the time, go with the lower temperature.
Hank, I put a 5 lb domestic duck on the smoker yesterda using your recipe. I stuffed the duck with a quartered orange and onion to keep the breast from collapsing. Followed the instructions to a tee and the duck turned out great. Everyone ate it up. Thanks!
Hank
Curious, why the maple syrup? Is it to help retain moisture, add flavor, or something else? Thanks for the great article!
Steve: Just for flavor. You can skip it if you like.
“To crisp the skin, get your grill or oven ripping hot — 500°F or so — and put the ducks in with a drip pan underneath for a few minutes, until the skin crisps.” Should this be done before or after the duck is cooked? Thanks for sharing, I’m looking forward to giving this a try!
Perte: After the duck has been smoked.
“Sliced thin and on the diagonal, smoked duck is fantastic as part of an appetizer plate or in a sandwich”
1.) Would you remove the (cold) cooked breasts from the bird prior to slicing?
2) I’m not sure where the ‘diagonal’ is.
Lou: Yes, you cut off the whole breast before slicing. And on the diagonal means not straight up and down on the breast, but on a bias, so your slices are wider. But you can slice it thinly however you want.
If the bird is already skinned will wrapping it in bacon keep the moisture in?
Erin. No. You need to do this with a skin on bird. Sorry.
Erin: No. Sorry, you need a plucked bird.
Awesome recipe. We opted out of maple syrup and used herbs de Provence. Very nice. We are new to smoking food so thanks for the tips.
Hank, I love your book! I’d like to smoke some skin-on wild duck breasts I have for a thanksgiving appetizer – it’s not the whole bird and I saw your note above. My question is, how much better are the results? Is the smoked breast still good just not as good? Or is it difficult to make it taste good when it’s just the breast alone?
Jason: It can be tricky to not have the meat dry out before you get a nice smoke on the breast. You will need to brine the meat for no more than 8 hours or so, then dry overnight in the fridge. Get your smoker as cold as it will go so you don’t overcook the meat before you can get at least a couple hours’ worth of smoke on there.
Hank,
when’s the maple syrple applied?
Mike: As the duck is smoking. You paint it on the skin.
Doing this tomorrow.
Cant wait
Hello Hank,
I’ve used your smoked duck recipe multiple times, I really like it. Especially the maple syrup and salt combo. I have one detail that I’ve tinkered with, and would appreciate you input on; what internal temperature do you smoke the duck to, and do you take it in the breast or the thigh?
Dave: I smoke to an internal temp of 140F in the thickest part of the breast.
would eider ducks work well with this, there a sea duck but never have tasted fishy to me in soup?
Eric: Only one way to find out. I’ve never considered smoking a sea duck, because every one I’ve shot has been very fishy.
Can I cut shallow diagonal lines in the fat before brining and cooking or just before smoking?
Kevin: Only if the duck is store-bought or really really fat.
This is fantastic!! Followed directions, brined then put duck on a mason jar in front of a box fan and rotated it periodically to dry the skin. Maple syrup and five spice powder and orange peel spice. Smoked 2.75 hours at 275 F. Came out absolutely perfect everyone loved it. Next day smoked duck hash for breakfast. Thanks!
Question: My smoker will only go to 225F. Can I smoke my duck for 4 hours (165F internal meat temperature) then use my grill to crisp the outside for a Sunday dinner?
David: Yes, but I’d only smoke the duck to an internal of no higher than 150F.
what temp do you pull bird off at?
Wes: I like to when the thickest part of the breast hits about 140F.
Sounds like a recipe you could use on a potato! Nice and salty and sweet! Can’t tell if its beef pork bird or potato. Does anyone use a smoker on plain meat so you can tell the difference when yo eat it?
Mike: Yes, all the time. But most people like the added sweet touch. And you need salt for a smoked product… otherwise you are barbecuing. Also good, but different.
If I intend to use the instacure 1 for the brine, do I include that in addition to the kosher salt?
Thanks,
Herb: Yes.
Hank, how long will smoked duck keep after smoking if frozen? When you’re ready to use it do you just thaw, slice, and serve cold? Thanks!
Max: That’s right. Should last a year well wrapped in the freezer.
We’re getting ready to try this with a few Muscovy ducks. They require very low and slow cooking when done whole. This recipe is perfect! We can’t wait to try it out.
6th variation of a great simple recipe. I Added a cavity rub of salt, shallot pepper, cake spice,sugar, and stuffed with quartered honey crisp apples and smoked over apple and cherry wood. Great recipe, thanks for the help!
Great recipe. Thanks for the guidance. Looking forward to trying it this weekend in the smoker while brewing a batch of agave wheat ale.
Will the same results be achieved using a frozen duck? No access to fresh.
Rebecca: Yes, thawed, obviously… 😉
What internal temp are you shooting for here?
Ben: About 140 degrees Fahrenheit for the breast meat.
I used this as the. Base for duck jambalaya. The only change was I brined for 12 hours with ancho chilies in the brine, then made a run with blackening and ground coffee, then smoked at 250 3hrs basteing syrup every 30 min. Cooled, chopped and used in place of Tasso in the jambalaya. Rock star meal
Thanks for this post — used it as the basis for cooking my duck this evening.
Made this for the second time last night. I am not a fan of syrups, maple or other, but the combination of thickened maple glaze and smoke is unbelievably good. I don’t have an electric smoker, so temp stability was questionable, but I kept the bird at ~250 over apple wood for 3.25 hours, and then a quick 3min trip to the oven at 550. This time, we were able to restrain ourselves long enough to let the bird cool – that really does seem to be the key for the best flavor and texture. Rendered the fat from the neck skin, tail and body cavity for a duck fat vinaigrette (Duck, Duck, Goose recipe) and had a truly special meal.
I made this for a picnic potluck and it was a huge hit! I used a local farm duck with the head on. That made for a really lovely presentation! I smoked her 3 1/2 hours at 260 over Pecan and Apple wood, and basted periodically with thick maple syrup. I pierced lightly about 30-45 minutes before the end to let excess grease out (she wasn’t very fat). And I crisped the skin in the oven at 500 F for 5 minutes. Absolutely perfect.
This is the best whole duck recipe I’ve ever tasted. I don’t really like whole roasted duck, but I’ve wanted to find a way to cook whole duck that I like. Well, this is it. It is AMAZING! I’ve done this with a dozen ducks now in the last 2 years. We eat the meat warm right off the smoker (after letting it rest for a bit) but then we also cut it off the bone and eat it as cold lunchmeat for the week. It’s simply fantastic. My 4 year old son loves it dipped in honey mustard sauce or even just plain mayonnaise. We put this is tacos, as well. This recipe does not disappoint. Do it!
what internal temperature should be reached when smoking at lower temps?
Christian: I’d say about 155 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
I prepared this for our typically non-traditional Christmas Eve dinner and I have to say that it was hands-down the most succulent, tender, flavorful duck I can recall! WOW! I left the duck sitting out overnight to thoroughly dry and smoked it over apple wood at 225 for about 4 hours (maybe a bit longer). Pure quince cider made the ideal accompaniment. Looking forward to making the soup with the carcasses.
Diana,
What do you make with the broth?
Logan: This soup: https://honest-food.net/2016/02/18/smoked-duck-soup/
Hank – I have used your recipes for duck and goose countless times and it has become my “go to”. I just wanted to pass on a little info on something I tried that was a success regarding the skin and the carcass later on.
I’ve found that if I put just the smoked chicken, duck, or goose skin in an air fryer after smoking it works beautifully! Think chicharones. It won’t be on the whole bird, but the bits of crisped skin can be plated up, or better yet snacked on by the hard working chef before serving.
For the carcass I just make basic bone broth, but then reduce it way down to a Jell-O like thickness. Using a spoonful of that broth concentrate in a recipe makes it something really special.
I used this recipe to make smoked duck for a multi-course dinner centered around Peking-style duck dinner (pancakes, scallions and cucumbers with homemade plum sauce).
I roasted three ducks for three hours at 225′ in my electric smoker – the meat was nicely done, easily shredded and full of smokey goodness. The skin was pretty disappointing but I don’t think that’s really fixable – the drying effect of smoke and the lower roasting temp isn’t going to produce crispy skin, it’s just too leathery. Even running it through the oven at 500′ for a few minutes only gave marginal improvement. Still, Peking duck is a mix of shredded meat and skin and the general smokiness from the skin was great.
I note a lot of people here proposing to use the smoked duck carcass for stock – I don’t think this would work very well. In my experience (mostly around smoked chicken carcasses) the smoke flavor comes through really strongly, rendering the stock too weird to use for anything. That said, I had smoked a few test ducks in advance of the dinner and was going to throw out the carcasses until I happened on Momofuku’s tare recipe, which relied on a chicken back and smokey bacon. Ok… this might work, I thought. Tare is basically Japanese dipping sauce and is sort of a “chef’s secret” with everyone using different variations (feel free to correct me if someone knows more than I do). Momofuku is using it as a flavoring sauce for their ramen in this example. It’s simply a matter of simmering the duck carcass for a while in a mix of mirin, sake and soy sauce.
I served it with my duck ramen soup and my guests went wild for it – the smokiness played well with the savory/salt of the soy and the sweetness of the mirin. In addition to soup, it’s worked as dipping sauce for dumplings and stir fry flavoring. I’m sure it would be great with fish as well. Here’s the original recipe, just substitute duck carcass for roast chicken back and bacon:
http://luckypeach.com/recipes/momofuku-ramen-2-0/
Mark: Trust me. The smoked carcass is wonderful for a soup broth. I use it every time I make a smoked duck. Here is my favorite way to use it: https://honest-food.net/2016/02/18/smoked-duck-soup/ Also, this is nothing remotely like Peking duck, so I am not sure why you used this recipe for that, unless I am misunderstanding your comment. Peking duck isn’t smoked, incidentally.
Wow. I am bookmarking this page. Thank you SO much for all the helpful info! I am so impressed! Just got a Bradley Smoker & have been smoking trout & salmon like crazy, but tomorrow I will try this and smoke some of my wild black ducks for a Supper Club I’m having here in Nova Scotia. Thanks again!! 🙂
I know this post is from about three years ago, but hopefully you still reply to questions. Full disclosure: I’m brand new to smoking, I have no idea what I’m doing. Also, I have very little prior experience with eating duck so I’m not sure what a “good” duck is supposed to taste like. I just got this electric smoker for Father’s Day and I’ve been smoking stuff like a madman ever since.
With all that said. We’re doing a small Christmas eve dinner and I had the bright idea to smoke a duck for it. My wife found this post and we decided to do a dry run. I got a frozen Muscovy duck thawed it out and followed your recipe. Did not brine. Salted the inside, painted with maple syrup and basted with maple syrup every hour. I put it in at 225 for ~4 hours. I let the internal temp. get up to 160 and pulled it out.
The meat was really tasty but pretty tough and a little dry. Is this normal? If not, what did I do wrong? After skimming through the comments it looks like the internal temp. of duck doesn’t need to reach 165. Should I really pull it out at 150? My in-laws would never forgive me if I gave them salmonella for Christmas.
That’s all I got. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.
Michael: Brine it. It is important. And use the curing salt, as it will keep everything pretty and pink. You won’t give anyone salmonella, incidentally. Ducks aren’t normally a carrier of it. And keep in mind that the legs and wings will be a little tough. I generally use them in stews after I’ve smoked the duck. The prize is the breast meat.
For those asking about how much pink salt (instacure #1) to use, the standard ratio is measured by weight. Weigh the combined meat (the duck) and the brine liquid, then add pink salt in the amount of 0.25% (one quarter of one percent) of the total weight. For example if you have one gallon of brine liquid (weight 128 oz) and a duck which weighs 2 lbs (36 oz) then your total weight is 164 oz. One quarter of one percent of that is .41 oz of pink salt.
A digital kitchen scale is not too expensive and is a very helpful addition to your kitchen especially when you are reading charcuterie recipes which are often expressed by weights and percentages of weights.
If you go a lot under .25% then your pink salt won’t be effective, if you go way over then you are eating more nitrites than you need to.
The pink salt is in addition to the regular (kosher or sea) salt which you use to create your brine mix.
Hank, would you change the process at all when smoking ducks for a duck and andouille gumbo?
Jason: Nope. I’d do it as is.
You should be writing books. I’ve never seen anyone wrap so many variables into a workable recipe. There’s a brined farm duck hanging over my sink in front of a fan right now, and a stack of oak and cherry out by my Bar-B-Chef. BUT, if I’m to go the ‘long-term’ 5-6 hour route, would you recommend tenting it in foil before I go for the big heat at the end?
Neil: Um… I do write books. In fact, I wrote a book about cooking ducks (link is at the top of your screen). To answer your question, yes, tent it.
how long to smoke a 6 lb duck in digital smoker @ 200 f.?
Rian: Until it’s done. Sorry, but there is no set time because it all depends on how fat the duck is, what your outside temperature is, how fast your smoker gets hot, etc. Best guess? About 4 hours. Use a thermometer to check doneness.
Hank,
Absolutely love the site. Question on timing for smoking: if I’m going for a long smoke on a duck, and want to use your grill method after the smoke session to crisp the skin, do you know if there’s any reason I couldn’t wait, say, 30 minutes or an hour between the time I finish smoking and the time I put the bird on the grill?
(Context: I and a group of buddies consistently try to outdo ourselves at sporting event tailgating sessions, and I tend to think that smoked duck would have to be at or near the pinnacle of tailgating cuisine.)
Best,
Aaron
Any tips for keeping skinned goose beats moist during the smoking process? After a brine what temperature does the meat need to rise to in order to be safe to eat?
Tyler: Smoking skinless breasts is tricky. The brine is your only insurance policy…
Hank,
I have used your smoked duck recipe several times with great success on my offset charcoal/wood smoker – my only variation has been to start with 50/50 cane syrup and bourbon and reduce that by 1/2. Otherwise, I have followed your recipe to the letter, using mallards and wood ducks, though with a shorter smoke time for the wood ducks.
Things changed when I got an electric smoker for Christmas, and I am hoping you might have a suggestion. In the offset smoker, the ducks have come out beautifully – deep golden mahogany. I have smoked some mallards and pintails on the electric smoker, and the ducks have come out a muddy brown. The temperature is the same in both units, per my digital thermometer, but the results in the electric smoker have been very different. The taste is okay, but the color is less than appetizing. The only thought I have is that the cover on the offset smoker may be radiating/reflecting heat onto the skin of the birds, causing the skin to brown and the sugar in the syrup to caramelize. However, that is just a guess. I am not really sure what the difference is. If you have any suggestions, they would be welcome. It would be nice to be able to use the electric smoker, as it is much more convenient than the offset smoker, but I don’t want to sacrifice any more of the ducks in my freezer to random experimentation.
Thanks for any help you can provide and keep up the great work on this great site.
Ronald
Hank – thanks for the response. I can’t wait to try the lower cold cut recipe later on. As for the dinner temp, both birds are relaxing in an electric aromatherapy sauna as I type so I’m looking forward to trying them.
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly! My family is having a good “We told you so” laugh about what you said about the coot. I happen to like coot, and have found that using your maple smoking technique gets rid of lots of their legendary “muddy” flavor. Perhaps my fondness for them is related to my lousy shooting and their awkward, easier to hit flying… Also, I have used this recipe a few times now on shitake mushrooms; they smoke up nice! Do you reckon it’s worth trying on a few fresh bolete caps, to be eaten as appetizers?
LOL. Yeah, I eat coots, but I skin then first. Mostly for gumbo. As for the porcini caps, absolutely! Sounds like it’d be good.
Hi Hank: First of all, I love your website! I wanted to ask, I am smoking a coot, a teal, an Aleutian, a mallard and a turkey for tomorrow over oak and pear wood in my (non-pc) “little chief” charcoal smoker. I am doing it today so I can make your bourbon-maple gravy (with lots of porcinis I picked yesterday) and help with all the other kitchen craziness my family will be up to, tomorrow. I was going to reheat and crisp the skin of the birds tomorrow, but should I worry about them drying out while reheating? What would you do?
Um… you’re smoking a coot? I wouldn’t. It will be like a smoked bottom of a pond. On the rest, you should be OK just crisping the skin afterwards. You might want to even deep-fry the teal. That crisps them up nicely!
For Thanksgiving tomorrow I’ll be smoking both a duck and a turkey (putting the duck on the upper rack to baste the turkey). I didn’t see any notes here on finished temperature? Would I be correct in assuming 180 for the ‘dinner duck’ and about 160 for the ‘cold duck’? I’ll be doing the dinner version tomorrow, but would be interested in the cold version for later on.
Diana: I’d go a little lower on the “dinner” duck, to about 175 degrees, tops, and 170 isn’t too bad.
I had doubts about the recipe. Boy was I wrong! Simple and delicious.
I used mostly cherry wood and a couple of chunks of walnut. Reducing the maple is a must. I didn’t brine, but I sprinkled a little salt with each maple syrup application. Great recipe thanks. Oh, did I mention, great recipe?
Someone ask about smoking a turkey. I have smoked several. Yes I do brine my turkey with 1/2 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup brown sugar, a large handful of fresh tyme, a 6 inch sprig of rosemary, 1 teaspoon of peppercorns, 1 tablespoon dry mustard. I put all these in a pot of water and bring to a boil. I let the water cool with ice and make sure it is cool before pouring over my turkey. I set the brined turkey in the fridge for at least 24 hours. I then rinse off and pat dry. Rub with butter and apply your favored rub. Let let again for at least a full day wrapped tight in plastic wrap. Now get the smoker ready. I use an electric smoker. I like oak and pecan wood mixed. I smoke at 200 degrees for 12 hours. I have never had any one not want seconds.
Hank: I am intending to smoke duck breast in few days time. This dish will be used with a salad. Should I pan sear the skin before or after the smoking process?
Hank: I shot some ducks in ND which were breasted. Is there a more abbreviated proces without the whole carcass ?
Hi Hank, thanks for sharing all the great recipes. I mostly hunt tye SF bay out of Mtn. View Ca.I shoot a few cans and was wondering what your thoughts were on cooking them whole or smoking them?
Thanks, jeff
Erik: Yep, double everything.
Love the site and your books. I am always making something off your website and am telling everybody about it..This maybe obvious to you but I just want to be sure.i have a question about a goose. If I wanted to smoke a goose the 4 cup brine is not going to cover the bird.. Do I just double everything in the brine, including the pink salt if I wanted a more watery brine to cover the whole goose?? So 8 cups of water 1 cup of salt and 2 teaspoons of pink salt??
Thanks
I can’t wait to shoot a plump dabbler so I can try this method on my Traeger smoker. We are seeing mostly divers and shovelers right now in the SF Bay Area, so that fishy “surf & turf” essence comes with the duck, especially the hens, who are packing on the protein. Here’s a way to mitigate that:
I breast the ducks, sometimes retaining the skin, but not usually. Then, before grilling I par boil them in a 20% vinegar solution for about 3-4 minutes. The breasts retain that deep red color to the meat, despite the boiling (that color cannot be cooked away!). But, much of the fishiness is gone, and the meaty, hint-of-liver taste I love remains.
Anne: I never smoke skinless goose, so I am not sure. But my instinct is to say yes, brine it for 2 to 6 hours.
I have several Canada goose breasts to smoke. Should I brine them before smoking? How long should I plan on smoking them? Because they have been skinned should I be concerned about them drying out? I have a Brinkmann smoker without temperature control.
Peter: Nope, but I would stick to cheap lagers or pilsners, or with malty beers. Hoppy beers might make everything too bitter.
Hank,
Have you ever used a beer brine for duck? If so, how did it turn out? If not can you speculate how it might come out? Thanks!
Richard: I use cool water.
I’m a first time smoker, looking to smoke some duck. Your recipe sounds divine! This may be a silly question, but my smoker tray has an area for the wood chips/etc. and an area for brine or other liquid additives. Any recommendations for the liquid portion? Or should I just use the leftover brine?
Hi Hank, I’ve been working on a smoke house out back for a few days now and this will be very helpful. We were given a couple of Muscovy ducklings around Christmas, and told not to kill them or the kids would be upset. Of course they turned out to be drakes, and have become quite aggressive (and randy!). Mother managed to top it off by asking why we hadn’t put them in the pot at 12 weeks! So, I decided on smoking them, which has led me to here, and here I shall stay-Great Blog, keep it up!
Steve Button, Tasmania
Hank,
Almost exactly my process. I do brine longer as I do larger batches and freeze some after smoking, but I also do a 24-48 hour (depending on the size of the birds) soak in dr. Pepper or coke. The phosphoric acid does a nice little tenderizing. Err on shorter rather than longer as the consistency gets a little like liver if you over do it. Great recipe.
Peter
Hi,
I live in South Africa, we hunt on a regular bases and will try your recipes, it looks greate!
Good site…Am bringing the 10 geese . I breased them & took the legs as well….Hope this works…Thanks for the tips.>>>>COLIN
Great article. I agree, mesquite is weird. I tend to like Red Oak from the California Coastal Mountains (think Santa Maria Tritip), but I’m going to try some of the other woods you talked about. Another wood I love is Olive.
I always place my birds breast down. That way the fat off the back moves to the breast making it juicier. I’ve done taste test and everyone unanimously preferred breast down(wild and domestic). I never have time to cut the birds, because after I put them out, they are gone in minutes.
Marty
What great recipes you do. With pheasant season coming fast Iam looking for a smoked phesant recipe. Do you think this would work for pheasant? I plan to try your pheasant sausage this year as well.
Neville: I don’t have a lot of experience with true cold smoking, but if it were me I would use Instacure No. 1 in the salting process as a safeguard against bacteria.
i would like to smoke some barbury duck brests i was looking at your method and trought i would ask for you opnion salt the breasts then cold smoke for 12 hours would this be a safe way to do this
Hank,
Love the website. I am a Navy pilot who was stationed overseas in Japan, and I used to salivate reading your blog while underway. I have used many of your techniques and recipes to serve to friends, including a huge Christmas meal in 2010 for most of our squadron, many of whom had to go out to sea the next day. That meal was a highlight for many of us during a time when 24 hour-notice deployments were a regular occurrence.
Duck is popular in Japan (think of all the starred French restaurants in Tokyo…) but less common than in China, so whenever I cooked one of your recipes for our Japanese friends, they could not get enough.
Our neighborhood park in Yamato, JP had a fantastic pond that attracted great waterfowl during the winter, usually making the trek from Hokkaido, Korea, or Siberian Russia; lesser scaup, Eurasian widgeon, pintail, redheads, etc. My wife and I used to love spending Sundays reading books by the pond and throwing old bread to the ducks.
Now that we are back in the states and have access to a smoker, and easier access to ducks to cook with, its funny that you posted something about smoked ducks. You already posted a great recipe for pheasant carnitas. As a native Iowan, I naturally gravitate towards anything pheasant. I feel you may want to try this idea, as it has worked for me time and time again:
Smoke your whole duck according the the recipe above, with the added thought that a touch of cherry or persimmon wood to any bbq is a good idea. Serve the breasts as described. Then, take the smoked wings and legs and do a decent carnitas slow cook in duck fat. Serve on heated tortillas with onion and cilantro.
Oh, and beer. I am an Iowan, and a Navy pilot. Beer must be included.
Clifton: It is salt mixed with sodium nitrite, which helps prevent botulism in sausages that are cooked very slowly. It also gives the meat a pretty pink color. In general, the cooler you smoke the meat, the more you need the pink salt. I buy it under the brand name Instacure No. 1
.
What’s pink salt?
Hank,
We smoked a bunch of goose yesterday. How long will it keep in the fridge?
If I freeze it, when we’re ready to eat do I just thaw and serve (I like it chilled or even room temperature).
Sweet! We served duck for a pre-Thanksgiving dinner party and I ended up braising them in mulled cider, then roasting a bit for crispy skin. It worked, but I really want to try them smoked next.
Mark: Yes they do! One smoked duck carcass has become a required ingredient in my wild duck stock these days…
Not only is this smoked duck fantastic (thanks again for the tips on this technique with my wood ducks), the carcasses make amazing stock.
That’s killer. Just another thing that makes me wish I lived outside NYC. I’d follow your blog and hunt and smoke stuff. happy new year’s.
I love smoked duck … my absolute favourite way to do them though is to brine the breasts exactly how I’d brine pork for ham and hot smoke them with a simple rub of salt and pepper with a drizzle of maple syrup.
Dan: I am talking about excess fat, from morbidly obese domestic ducks or fat pintails and such. You’re right – you want a nice layer of fat on the bird, but all that body cavity fat and the fat on the neck is too much.
And on domestics, you want some of the body fat to render out because they are just so damn obese….
Hank. Why is it so important to remove the fat? Isn’t fat what holds the smoke flavor?
Thanks. I am just always worried about overcooking and getting the livery taste. I will be smoking a Pintail, Gadwall, and Spoonie today that we got at Sacramento NWR on Wed. for a New Year’s Day party tomorrow.
Bob: I am not really worrying about internal temperature with this method, because even at 200 degrees a 3-hour smoke will cook the bird to at least 150 degrees internal – pink but cooked. The longer smoke times are more for piling on smoke flavor than for cooking.
Hank,
When you are smoking for the slower low temperature version, what internal temperature are you trying to achieve? 3-7 hours is a pretty big window.
Great tips, dude. I now know why my skin didn’t get all crispy last couple of times I’ve tried smoking.
A few nights back, I smoked up a mallard, a cannie and a speck the other day for me and a buddy for dinner. The cannies were heavenly, though the other two were good. The best part, however, was the leftovers. I chopped the meat up cold and mixed it in with red-leaf lettuce, a homemade balsamic vinaigrette and some salty green olives.
Pure bliss.
Just finished smoking a mallard and a wood duck with this recipe. I used both cherry wood and pecan hulls for the smoke. Modified the glaze and used about 1/4 maple syrup and the other 3/4 boiled cider. Fantastic! Looking forward to cooking the carcasses down into stock. Thanks for the inspiration.
Steve: I generally use a half teaspoon of pink salt and it works fine in a brine. And I shot a ringneck just this morning! Only here in California they are never so fat and lovely as they are in the Midwest.
Rachel B and Diana: I use a Bradley Smoker, so I use wood pellets for it. When I used to smoke with logs, I’d start a fire with charcoal, then add a few branches of apple or nectarine or almond wood at a time. You want smoke, but not a raging inferno of heat.
Steve: Absolutely. Smoked turkey is awesome, but be sure to brine it first – less fat.
Bob: The legs come out nicely done! Still a little red, but tender. It’s the long smoke time that does that, I think.
Which smoker do you use? I have never bought one, but a vendor at the farmer’s market sells a whole duck and I’d like to try your recipe.
I smoke ducks unbrined, salted the day before, left to dry in the fridge overnight, seasoned simply with salt and peppers and some aromatics on the inside. I let them cook until completly tender throughout at about 215-225 for around 5-6 hours. I dont mind eating the overcoked breast because they stay moist. My question is how do the legs come out with your preparation? The breast looks great in your pic though. Cheers
This sounds wonderful. Could you smoke a turkey? We have a turkey awaiting harvesting and I’ve wanted to smoke it. The last one was 40 pounds and this will push 30. I was thinking the longer smoke would be a nice way to savor this bird.
My husband and I disagree on the amount of wood you use to smoke with. How much do you use?
Just a couple of suggestions: I would lean strongly towards only a half teaspoon of the Pink salt. A little goes a long way, but then I start with a gallon of water. I would also brine it a lot longer if it was a bigger duck.
Good Lord, I am salivating at my desk! Smoked duck is close to heaven!
Here in the Midwest, we get a small ‘diver’ that still goes to puddles called a ring-bill. They are obviously coming from north of us; they are well fed, easier to pluck, snowy white skin with no pin feathers, and a consistent layer of fat that makes them a favorite.
But I will also pluck a teal and be perfectly content. There are not many ducks better than these little morsels!