Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (2024)

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4.78 from 36 votes

By Hank Shaw

January 28, 2015 | Updated February 04, 2021

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This is an old school, slow roast duck recipe, the way your grandma might have made. If you have a store-bought duck or a really fat wild duck, this is the recipe for you.

Roasting a duck this way will give you crispy skin, much of the fat will render out, bathing the root vegetables underneath, and the whole bird will be cooked through.

Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (2)

This is how pretty much everyone made roast duck until relatively recently, when the glories of duck served medium or medium-rare began to be more well-known. Yes, you can absolutely serve duck — or goose — rare, or even raw, if it’s of good quality. Food-borne illnesses from waterfowl are very, very rare, unlike with chickens and turkeys.

So if you happen to have a wild duck, or a lean farmed duck — Indian runners and Muscovy ducks can sometimes be quite lean — you are better off using my other recipe for roast duck, which is geared specifically for lean, and wild birds.

This method, slow roast duck, is the way all of Europe has been doing it for millennia, so there’s some history here. I go into it in more detail in my cookbook Duck, Duck, Goose: The Ultimate Guide to Cooking Waterfowl, Both Farmed and Wild, an entire cookbook dedicated to waterfowl. Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (3)

The reason it works is fat. Fat is an insulator, and in a duck it’s all underneath the skin. You need to render that fat or the skin will never get crispy. And rendering fat from an obese duck takes time — so much time that your breast meat will be fully cooked by the time it’s ready (The legs and wings will be perfect, though).

I should tell you that I don’t love fully cooked breast meat; I prefer it medium-rare. It gets a bit livery and, at least to my mind, essentially becomes a vehicle for gravy.

You can do two things about this: You can slice off the breasts when they reach an internal temperature of about 135°F, then sear just the skin side in a pan before serving, or you can live with fully cooked breast meat and make a damn good gravy. (Follow the technique for the gravy in my poached turkey recipe, only subbing in duck or goose bits.)

Even fully cooked, the breast meat will still be moist because it’s been bathed in its own fat for an hour or more, so it’s not as if it will be inedible. And some people prefer it that way.

Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (4)

A few tips: Do not cover your duck when roasting because you want that crispy skin. If you cover it, the bird will steam.

And, you will know a roast duck is ready when the legs feel loose, the fat runs clear, and the skin is crispy.

Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (5)

With this recipe, err on cooking the bird longer, not shorter. As the cook, remember that the legs and wings will be the best parts. Distribute them accordingly.

My advice for when you make slow roast duck this way is to roast them over the top of lots of root vegetables, the more varied the better. And think about a gravy or a sauce to go with it. I have a large selection of wild game sauces here you can choose from. Other than the gravy I mentioned above, I might suggest the maple-bourbon gravy for starters…

4.78 from 36 votes

Slow Roast Duck

This recipe works with any sort of waterfowl. Domestic ducks typically serve two to four. As for wild birds, a mallard, canvasback, redhead, gadwall or pintail will serve two (if you have other things on the plate), a wild goose four and a wood duck, bluebill, wigeon, ringneck or teal one.

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Hank Shaw

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours

Ingredients

  • 1 domesticated duck or 2 very fat wild ducks (see above)
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 lemon, cut in half
  • 4 sprigs sage, rosemary, parsley or thyme

Instructions

  • Set your oven to 325°F. Using a needle or a sharp knife point, prick the skin of the duck all over -- but be sure to not pierce the meat itself, only the skin. This lets the fat render out and will help crisp the skin. Pay special attention to the back, the flanks, and the very front of the breast.

  • Rub the cut lemon all over the duck and stick it inside the cavity. Liberally salt the bird; use a little more salt than you think you need. Stuff the duck with the herbs. Let the bird sit out for about 30 minutes to come to room temperature, while the oven heats up.

  • When you are ready to roast, put the duck in an iron frying pan or other ovenproof pan and surround it with root vegetables. Set the pan in the oven. Small ducks (wood ducks, wigeon, teal, ruddies, etc.) only need 40 minutes in the oven. If you are roasting mallards or a typical, store-bought Pekin duck, you will want to increase the roasting time to 90 minutes. A goose may take as long as 2 hours. After the allotted time, take the pan out of the oven and set the ducks on a cutting board to rest. Spoon any fat that has accumulated over the vegetables and salt them well. If the veggies are ready to eat, remove them. If there is a lot of excess fat, spoon it off.

  • Now increase the heat to 450°F. When the oven hits this temperature, return the birds to the oven and roast them for up to 30 more minutes, or until the skin is crisp. The reason you take the bird out of the oven is because a) the resting time helps redistribute the juices in the bird midstream, and b) you are crisping skin without totally overcooking the duck by only returning it to the oven when it is hot.

  • Remove from oven and let the birds rest. Small ducks need 5 minutes resting time, large ducks 10 minutes, geese 15.

Nutrition

Calories: 780kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 22g | Fat: 75g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Cholesterol: 145mg | Sodium: 1866mg | Potassium: 442mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 411IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 5mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @huntgathercook or tag #hankshaw!

Categorized as:
Ducks and Geese, Featured, Recipe, Wild Game

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About Hank Shaw

Hey there. Welcome to Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, the internet’s largest source of recipes and know-how for wild foods. I am a chef, author, and yes, hunter, angler, gardener, forager and cook. Follow me on Instagram and on Facebook.

Read More About Me

Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw (2024)

FAQs

Slow Roast Duck Recipe - Slow Roasted Duck | Hank Shaw? ›

I learned this method from Hank Shaw and it is pretty foolproof. You simply rub the duck legs with our Night Market seasoning and let them sit in the fridge overnight. The next day, you roast the duck in a slow oven for 2 hours and then raise the heat for 20 more minutes to brown the skin.

What temperature do you cook a duck roast? ›

For the perfect roasted duck Ina Garten recommends boiling the whole bird in a broth of your choice for 45 minutes. This will help cook the bird evenly, then pat dry and move to a 500°F (260°C) oven to crisp up that skin and until the breast reaches an internal temperature of 135–140°F (57–60°C).

Why should ducks be roasted at a lower temperature? ›

(Lower heat will give you more time to render the fat from the skin before browning it too far. This is especially important for the breasts.) Place the legs and wings skin-side-down in the pan and cook until the skin is browned and crisp.

What is the most popular duck dish in the world? ›

For the dish called Peking duck—perhaps the best-known duck preparation in the world—the skin is scalded, air is pumped between the fat and the flesh, and the bird is basted in a sugary syrup to create a shiny carapace as it roasts.

How to cook duck so it's not tough? ›

We cook it on a medium low heat so that the fat can render out and also sear the skin. If you don't do this you'll find that the duck breast skin can become chewy and we don't want that. I prefer to use a cast iron skillet for cooking since I can pop it into the oven once the skin side is done cooking.

Do I cover duck when roasting? ›

Cover and roast in oven for 2 hours. Remove the aluminium foil and continue cooking uncover for 30 to 40 minutes to make the skin crispy and brown. When the duck is fully cooked the internal temperature at the junction of the leg and thigh should be 82°C (180°F) and thighs should come apart easily.

Can you overcook roast duck? ›

If you finish the recipe and the duck is too rare, I recommend finishing it meat-side down with a bit of butter in a low-heat pan (rather than putting it back in the oven). Otherwise, you risk overcooking the meat closest to the skin.

Why is my roasted duck tough? ›

But because duck breast is thinner than chicken or turkey breast, it cooks through even more quickly than they do, making it even more of a challenge to get the tougher legs and thighs to turn tender and succulent before the breast overcooks and dries out.

How long does a duck take to roast? ›

Roast (whole duck: 2 ¼ hours for ducks weighing 1.75-2 kg, 2 ¾ hours for ducks weighing 2.5-3 kg; breasts, 30 mins). Dry fry, grill or barbecue (3-4 mins on each side). Stir fry (cubes or strips, 5-7 mins).

How long does duck take in the oven? ›

Prick the skin around the duck legs. Season the duck all over with salt and pepper. Place the duck on a rack in a roasting tin and roast in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes per KG plus 10 minutes extra. When the duck is cooked cover with foil and rest for 10-20 minutes before serving.

Why isn't duck popular in the US? ›

The increased cost of raising ducks means the cost of duck meat will also be higher. Many Americans never get to experience duck meat because it can only be found on menus in high-end restaurants. Hunters are the few exceptions to this rule, as duck can be a popular target for meat.

What culture eats the most duck? ›

These countries have a long history of consuming duck meat, and it is an integral part of their culinary culture. According to Global Trade Magazine, meat consumption in China accounts for 76% of global consumption.

What fruit pairs well with duck? ›

Mouth-watering duck was made to pair with fruits, like blueberries, cherries, cranberries, apricots, currants, dates, figs, citrus fruits, mangoes, peaches, pears, pomegranates, prunes, and grapes. Seared Duck Breast with Pear Chutney not only has pears, but raisins and orange juice.

Why pour boiling water over duck? ›

The boiling water helps pull the skin taut, making it easier to score in a crosshatch pattern. That, in turn, allows the fat to render out as everything roasts. The result is a perfectly cooked duck with pink, juicy meat and burnished, crunchy skin.

How many people does a 5 lb duck feed? ›

For the sort of evening when you'd normally roast a chicken, and you want to make dinner into dinner, duck is your friend (or friends—because much of a duck's weight is bone and fat, one five- or six-pound duck will feed only three people).

What temperature should duck be cooked to for medium? ›

This'll get you a perfect medium-rare breast; if you prefer your duck cooked to medium or well-done, give it some more heat on both sides, cooking until the internal temperature is about 140°F (60°C) for medium and 155°F (68°F) for well-done.

What temperature is comfortable for ducks? ›

Ducks are just fine down to temperatures around 20 degrees, but below that they can suffer frostbite on their feet which could lead to amputation. In addition to the straw, wooden planks, benches or even low stumps in their pen will help the ducks get off the frozen ground and keep their feet warm.

What is the average time to cook a duck? ›

How to cook duck. Roast (whole duck: 2 ¼ hours for ducks weighing 1.75-2 kg, 2 ¾ hours for ducks weighing 2.5-3 kg; breasts, 30 mins). Dry fry, grill or barbecue (3-4 mins on each side). Stir fry (cubes or strips, 5-7 mins).

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