Taste Bud Turn-Ons: Post Hibernation

I'm alive! I'm alive! Sadly there has not been a post in months...busy busy, but over the last few months I had the pleasure of reading a new book, "Girl Hunter" by Georgia Pellegrini. Another female-voice for the slow food movement, the book states she is "revolutionizing the way we eat, one hunt at a time". And that she does. With no real hunting experience, she sets out to learn to hunt, fish, and gather food around the world.

http://georgiapellegrini.com/

I, myself, found this book extremely interesting. Although I wouldn't call myself a "hunter", I appreciate the field to table aspect. I grew up going dove hunting every September with my dad. I started off being the bird dog, but a couple of years ago I bought a 4-10 shotgun and have been shooting. The task of killing an animal, cleaning it, preparing it, cooking it, and then eating it, is not one most people experience. I have never been interested in hunting anything other than dove, such as duck or deer, being not so much a fan of the meat, BUT the farther I go in culinary school, the more interest I have in being part of the whole process of killing the animal and cooking it. There is an appreciation there like no other.

So I had been reconsidering my "duck hunting" venture, having liked some recent duck. A family friend had offered to take me, and although still not completely convinced I was ready to kill a duck, I told him that if it wasn't too much hassle, if he could bring me one or two, I would like to clean and cook them. What a pleasant surprise this morning to receive a text stating "I have two ducks for you". My first initial thought was "Oh, shit, I have no idea how to clean them!" Doves are very small and the breasts are the only meat you can eat. You can clean them one of two ways, "breast" them or cut the feet and wings, then cut up the backbone to remove the innards. Presentation-wise, the second way is much more pleasing, but it does take a while. Duck is much bigger and there are more ways to prepare and cook the meat.

Doves

I admit, I watched a YouTube video on cleaning ducks and conversing with an old friend, before going to pick them up. I knew the feathers were going to be a pain in the ass, and I wanted to know what I was getting into before I started.

Male (left) and Female (right) Mallard Ducks

Now that I had the ducks in my possession, I needed hot water with some Dawn dish washing soap. The Dawn would help cut the natural oil that allows the birds to keep dry and warm in the water. Before I dunked them into their bubble bath, I clipped the wings and their feet.

Remove wings and feet

Then into the bubble bath they go! The more hot the water the better. I let them sit for a bit, then rang them out the best I could.

Hot water bath

And the tedious job of plucking begins.... surprisingly it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. You want to be sure to get all the pin feathers you can out.

Plucking

I decided that I wanted to leave the bird as intact as possible. I wanted to not cut into the bird at all, but I couldn't fit my hand up into the body cavity to remove the innards, so I cut up along the backbone just as I have done with the doves. It's very important to remove all the innards, especially the lungs which can be a little tough to get all out. I reserved the livers only, but many keep the hearts and gizzards.