Duck Head

[OliverB]

Asian supermarkets are full of surprises, which is why I love to go there. This week I was excited to see a whole duck for $13, instead of the $50 or so I spent on one a while ago, ordered from the butcher.

I did not expect the added surprise of the head (and feet) suddenly coming flopping around once I lifted it off it's tray!

Now, I'm making stock with the carcass, keeping the (rather small) breasts and legs for later experiments, and I'm rendering some of the fat now, and will add what ever swims on the stock later, but do I put the head in the stock pot? Throw it away? Roast it? I have seen it hanging in the bbq racks at the Asian store, but really don't know if you can eat it, if it does good or bad to the stock. Hopefully somebody here can enlighten me, otherwise I'll err on the side of caution and throw it out (or freeze it).

Thanks!

Oliver

[OliverB]

well, I put it in the stock pot, google did finally get me some results (after duck head clothing, duck head stock on rifles, duck heads on walking sticks, etc etc). I tried to take the tongue out, as it's sometimes on the written in Chinese only menu at the door of a local restaurant, but it's kind of bony and I have no idea what to do with it, so in the stock it went as well.

Lots of fat rendering out of all the extra skin, should make some nice cracklings too. All in all a great deal at $13, though definitely not for the breast meat, there's hardly any on there. I'll cook them SV some day, see what happens, guessing I will end up with some kind of confit, as there's still a ton of fat on those pieces. Fun experiments :-)

Still interested in what other things might be done with the head. Do people just pull the little meat off of them when they're bbq'ed?

[djyee100]

I'm not sure the duck head is kept on for any reason except the aesthetic. I was told by an Asian chef once that a whole-cooked bird without the head is unattractive. It's decapitated. That's obviously very different from the Western ideal. A restaurant I go to in SF has pix of the various poultry it serves. Whole birds are served with the head.

Anybody else know?

[dcarch]

All fish, chickens, ducks are to be served with the heads, as well as the tails.

Everything must have a good begining, and a good end.

Without the heads means without good beginings.

dcarch

[Badiane]

I have a friend that is a duck farmer...he makes more money off the unhatched eggs and the tongues than he does off the actual ducks.

[OliverB]

interesting posts, thanks!

I ended up with lots of duck fat and cracklings, I kept those in a small tub with some fat, I think that'll be great with potatoes etc. Also got a lot of stock, I have to take the fat off of it and then I'll probably reduce it down by at least half.

[ayanamidreamsequence]

Here the fish, chicken and duck dishes are often served whole (or rather, whole bird but chopped up in the case of chicken and duck), with heads, feet etc. Usually people will just suck on the head to get the flesh off and eat anything inside. In Zhou Hei Ya, a takeaway chain that does spicy 'ma la' duck, you can by the heads on their own, though I myself don't really see the appeal as they don't really have much on them. I do like the duck and chicken feet though.