Smoked Duck Is Delicious (And Way Easier To Make Than You Probably Think)

Smoked duck is way easier to make than you probably think.

Duck is expensive to order in a restaurant, but if you love duck, it’s so worth it to enjoy the incredibly bold and delectable flavors. So, why not have duck as often as you want from your offset smoker instead?

This recipe produces a savory and luscious smoked duck that is not only delicious but also appealing and pleasing to the eyes. If you aren’t already addicted to eating duck, this recipe will ensure that you will smoke a duck on your offset smoker over and over again.

WHY YOU SHOULD TRY THIS SMOKED DUCK RECIPE

• The best reason to try this smoked duck is – THE FLAVOR! The combination of duck, caramelized duck fat, Asian flavors, and the addition of smoke creates a luscious and mouthwatering dish. You will be amazed that you created this heavenly meal.

• Economical – A whole frozen domestic duck from your local large grocery store will cost you about $25. And one duck feeds two people, so that’s $12.50 a serving. Pretty economical compared to the cost of one duck entrée at a fancy restaurant.

• Easy to prep – Only two ingredients. A duck and it’s marinade. What could be easier? Add smoke as the third ingredient, and watch the magic happen.

• Easy to smoke – This is literally one of the easiest recipes to smoke with your offset smoker. It takes 2 hours to smoke a 5 pound duck. No moving around or flipping! So easy. Just set it on your grill grate and forget it! REALLY!

INGREDIENTS FOR SMOKED DUCK

• One 5 pound duck
• 2 cups Asian marinade

DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING SMOKED DUCK

1. Bring your offset smoker to temperature – You will want to maintain a temperature of roughly 250 degrees throughout the entire smoking process.

2. Prepare the duck – Bring the duck to room temperature. Trim any excess fat off the duck, especially around the body cavity and around the tail. You will find that there is a substantial amount of fat left over. But don’t throw this away because we will make duck butter with the fat later on in this recipe.

3. Brush the duck – Liberally brush the duck with the Asian marinade. Be sure to get into all the little nooks and crannies all around the duck as well. Do this a couple of times to ensure the duck is completely covered with the marinade.

4. Place the duck onto the smoker – Place the duck on the 8” x 10” wire oven rack and place it into your smoker’s grate. Smoke until the internal temperature of the duck reaches 135 for a rare duck. For a 5 pound duck, at a smoking time of 25 minutes per pound, this will take you roughly 2 hours. About every 30 minutes, brush additional marinade on the duck.

5. Remove the duck from the smoker – Let the duck rest for 15 minutes before carving. Slice the duck breast off the breast bone, and remove the leg and thigh in one piece. Slice the duck breast horizontally into six nice pieces. Serve the duck breast and the leg and thigh as one serving.

VARIATIONS AND SUBSTITUTIONS FOR SMOKED DUCK

Salt the duck the day before – With the help of a spoon and without tearing the skin, separate the skin from the body. Rub salt and pepper under the skin and in the body cavity. Place the duck on the 8” x 10” wire oven rack, then place it on a small cookie sheet to catch the drippings and place it in the refrigerator. Separating the skin will create a more crispy skin while smoking and the salt and pepper add even more flavor to the fabulous duck.

Experiment with other marinades – There is a long history of duck raising and cooking in many Asian countries, and I like to use an Asian marinade for the delicious combinations of flavors it produces. However, many other poultry marinades on the market are easily accessible and cost-effective. Lawry’s makes a great line of marinades for you to experiment with.

Make duck stock – Using the leftover bones after carving the duck to make duck stock is a marvelous addition to this recipe. Simply place the duck bones into a stock pot, add carrots, onion, celery, a few peppercorns, bay leaves, and water to cover, and let it simmer away for about two hours. Strain out all the stock components, and you will have hearty duck stock for future uses.

TIPS AND TRICKS FOR OFFSET SMOKER SMOKED DUCK

Truss the duck – Trussing is tying the wings and legs to the duck’s body to improve flavor, making moving it around the kitchen easier. A great video on how to truss a bird can be found here.

Remove the wing tips – Unlike chicken wing tips, duck wing tips are mostly uneatable as there is really no meat on them. So I cut them off and throw them in with the other bones to make duck stock. Plus, it’s easier to truss the duck with the wing tips removed.

Render the duck fat and cracklings – This is a very cool two-for-one tip! Cut the excess duck fat into small chunks about half the size of your thumb and place them in a small saucepan. Add white wine to cover and gently simmer for about half an hour. Strain the liquid fat into a small kitchen container and place it in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, use the duck fat like butter on your toast or favorite bagel. Add a slight sprinkling of sea salt, and you will not believe what you have just created. Make cracklings with the reduced fat pieces by simply frying them in a pan. Unbelievable!

Using an 8” x 10” wire oven rack and a drip pan – Placing your duck on the wire oven rack ensures that the duck will not sag into and between the grill grates, and it’s much easier to move the duck around and on and off the smoker. Placing an aluminum drip pan on the ash tray under the duck to catch the drippings will help when it comes to cleanup. Just toss it away!

EQUIPMENT LIST

Offset smoker

8” x 10” wire oven rack

Aluminum drip pan

Kitchen brush

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION