Stuffed Duck with Duck Fat Onions
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Recipe by:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Stuffing
  • 2 pounds bulk raw pork sausage, such as Cajun green onion sausage
  • 1 medium apple, peeled, cored, and finely diced
  • ½ cup unseasoned breadcrumbs
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
Duck
  • 1 (4 to 5 pound) duck, cleaned
  • 2 tablespoons Acadiana Table Cajun Seasoning Blend, see recipe here
  • 4 large whole Vidalia onions or any sweet onion, skins removed and cut in half
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter
Instructions
Stuffing
  1. In a mixing bowl, add the pork sausage (remove from the casing, if necessary). Mix in the rest of the ingredients and combine.
Duck
  1. Preheat your oven to 350ºF.
  2. Inspect the duck and remove any pin feathers remaining as well as remove any packet of organ meats in the cavity. Rinse the inside of the duck thoroughly. Sprinkle the cavity and all sides of the duck with Cajun seasoning. Stuff the sausage/apple combination into the cavity.
  3. In a large disposable aluminum foil baking pan with high sides, place the onions on the bottom flat-side-up. Top with a wire rack and add the stuffed duck. Using the sharp point of a wooden skewer, repeatedly poke holes in the surface fat and skin of the duck on the top, bottom, and all sides, but do not pierce all the way to the meat. Add the water to the bottom of the pan and cook uncovered (repeat the pricking of the skin/fat at about the halfway point of cooking) until the duck juices run clear and the internal temperature of the duck (thigh portion) and the stuffing reaches 175ºF (90 to 120 minutes).
  4. Remove the foil roasting pan from the oven and increase the oven temp to broil. Move the cooked duck to a clean baking tray. Remove the onions from the roasting pan and place on a wire rack for 5 minutes to drain excess duck fat, and then place them alongside the duck on the baking tray.
  5. Just before serving, brush the top of the duck with butter and run under the broiler set to high for a minute or so until the skin begins to brown and crisp (watch carefully to prevent burning). Remove the duck and onions, place on a platter, and serve family style in the center of the table. Carve the duck into pieces and serve with the stuffing and onions.
Notes
Find a local farm-to-table source for domestic duck or buy it (Muscovy is my preference) at the supermarket (usually frozen near the whole turkeys). Pricking the fat/skin will help render the fat; don’t skip this step. Spicy green onion sausage is common in Cajun country, but feel free to use whatever is available where you live; add some Cajun spice, if it is unseasoned. Some folks like to tie the legs together to hold the stuffing inside, but with this sausage-based stuffing, I do not find it necessary. As a final step, crisping the skin under the broiler will also bring everything (onions and stuffing included) back to temperature, but watch carefully to prevent burning. Be sure the stuffing is fully cooked to a temperature of 175ºF before serving. Strain off all the duck fat and refrigerate for up to a month; use it for roasting duck fat potatoes.
Recipe by Acadiana Table at https://www.acadianatable.com/?p=26119