Smoked Duck

This post may contain affiliate links which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through links. I will only recommend products that I have personally used! Learn more on my Private Policy page.

My youngest son and I love almost anything smoked. I have long wanted to try and smoke a duck. This past weekend was the time to give it a try. Duck, as we know, is very gamy. So how will it take the smoke? Duck is very fatty so slow cooking is a good technique that should render the fat and leave the meat very moist.

My take away is that the duck did not take to the smoke real well. The duck was smoke for 4 1/2 hours. So it had plenty of time to absorb the smoke. I guess what I am actually saying is that the gaminess of the duck competes with the smoke flavor we love so much. I also think that the thinness of the duck is not conducive to the slow cooking method. Now don’t get me wrong, it was decent, tasty, just not awesome.

Recipe
Ingredients:

2 quarts water
1 cup each salt and sugar
1 whole duck
1/4 cup maple syrup

Directions:

The first thing is to brine the duck. Wash the duck will and remove all the inside stuff. Fill a large container with the water and add the salt and sugar and mix until dissolved. Insert the duck and let brine overnight. When ready to cook, take out the duck and wash off well with water and pat dry.

Meanwhile, prepare your smoker. I used a mix of hickory and apple wood. I got the temperature set to between 200 – 225 degrees. Once the smoker is prepared, place the duck into the smoker and be patient. Every hour baste the duck with the maple syrup. When the cooking is complete, take the duck off and cover and let cool for 10 – 15 minutes.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply