How many times do I start a smoked post with “have I told you how much I like smoked foods.” And I really love duck.
So what do you get when you marry smoking with duck? An unbelievable meal.
Duck is not commonly eaten by many of us. It is also not easy to find in the grocery store. You can only find fresh frozen duck. It is so good and if you have not tried duck, look for it. You will really enjoy it. I have made some fun recipes using duck including my ASIAN ROASTED DUCK, a DUCK BEET RISOTTO or this DUCK SANDWICH.
Smoked Duck Tamales
I have noted before that one of the best things about smoking foods is all you need to do is spice it, put it in the smoker and let it go. These Smoked Duck Tamales has more going for it than just the smoking. The smoking is the base of the flavor. The other key flavor accent in this recipe is the red sauce I made. The red sauce is infused into the tamale masa and serve as a sauce.
The red sauce is super easy to put together. In a sauté pan, add cherry tomatoes and onions. Cook until the tomatoes blister. Let cool and add to a blender. Some basic spices are mixed in and that is it. I also reheated the duck with the red sauce. As GUY FIERE says, it would taste good on a shoe. A couple of alternative red sauces that I really enjoy are this PIQUANTE PEPPER SAUCE or this RED PEPPER SAUCE.
The cast of characters for the tamale.
Tamale Ingredients
The making of the tamale.
Making of the Tamale
The making of the duck.
Making of the Duck
The Smoked Duck Tamales Plated.
Smoked Duck Tamales Plated
Smoked Duck Tamales
Smoking meats is so easy and so flavorful. The base of these Smoked Duck Tamales is succulent smoked duck topped with a terrific red sauce.
Ingredients
Tamales
- 1 1/2 Cups Masa
- 1 Tsp Baking Powder
- 1 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Cup Chicken stock
- 6 Tbsp Vegetable shortening
- 1/4 Cup Red sauce
Smoked Duck
- 8 Whole Duck breasts
- 3 Tbsp Traeger Chicken spice
- 1/4 Cup Red Sauce
Assembling the Tamale
- 12 Whole Corn husks
Instructions
Tamales
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Begin by mixing the dry ingredients together in a stand mixer. Next, add the shortening. Mix well and add the red sauce. Finish by adding in the chicken stock. Add the stock slowly. You are looking for a sticky consistency.
Smoked Duck
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Spice the duck breasts liberally with the Traeger chicken spice. Place in your smoker at 325 degrees and cook for about an hour. Remove from the smoker. Let cool slightly. Cut into 1" chunks. Place in a skillet and grill for a couple of minutes to get a little bit of a char on the duck. Finish by adding in 1/4 cup of the red sauce and simmer for a minute.
Assembling the Tamales
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While the duck is cooking, soak the corn husks. Spread out the corn husks on your counter. Place a good amount of the masa mixture on the corn husk. Add 5 or 6 pieces of the duck and top with a heaping spoonful of the red sauce. Fold the husk over to fully cover the tamale mixture and finish filling the rest of the tamales with the needed corn husks.
Place in a steamer and cook for 45 minutes.
Serve and enjoy!
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