396. How To Roast Ducks

Ducks should be well plucked without tearing the skin, all the K 2 plugs being removed. Some cooks go so far as to skin the duck, holding it a minute by the feet in scalding water, that the skin may peel easier; clean the insides thoroughly with a little warm water, and stuff them with the same stuffing as for goose, using perhaps a little more bread for the sake of mildness, roast them before a brisk fire, but not too close, baste very frequently, they will take from half an hour to an hour, much depends on the age and size, when the breast plumps they will be just done; serve them with a rich brown gravy.

397. How To Boil Ducks

Clean and pluck them, let the skin be preserved from rents while plucking, salt them for about thirty hours previous to cooking, flour a clean white cloth and boil them in it, a moderate sized duck will take about an hour's boiling, make a rich onion sauce with milk, and send it to table with the duck. When the duck is boiled fresh it may be stuffed as for roasting, and served with the same description of gravy,

398. How To Stew Ducks

There is a difference between a stewed duck and stewed duck, and it is not the a alone; in the one case the duck is stewed whole, and in the other in pieces. To stew a duck or ducks, they should be stuffed and roasted for twenty minutes, and then placed in a stewpan with an onion cut in slices, a little sage and mint, and sweet herbs chopped fine, and about a pint of good beef gravy, seasoned with pepper and salt, let it stew gently for about twenty minutes, take out the duck carefully and keep it warm, strain the gravy, pour it into a clean stewpan, and add to it when well heated the duck and a quart of green peas, let it simmer for half an hour, if not sufficiently thick add a little flour and butter, a glass of good old port wine, and send to table, with the peas in the same dish as the duck.

399. Stewed Duck

The ducks should be cut into joints and laid in a stewpan with a pint of good gravy, let it come to a boil, as the scum rises remove it; season with salt and cayenne, let them stew gently three quarters of an hour, mix smoothly two tea-spoonfuls of fine ground rice, with a glass of port, stir it into the gravy, let it have seven or eight minutes to amalgamate with the gravy, dish and send to table very hot.

400. How To Hash Ducks

The same receipt may be followed as for hashing fowl and game, with the exception that it will not require so much time to stew.

401. Wild Ducks, Or Teal

You must be very particular in not roasting these birds too much; a duck about fifteen minutes with a good fire, baste them very frequently; teal will of course take less time, but your fire and motion of the spit must be attended to, and when you dish it, unless preferred to be done by the gentleman at the table, draw your knife four times down the breast; have ready a little hot butter, and juice of a lemon, cayenne pepper, a little dust of sugar, a glass of port wine, pour it all hot, the last minute, over your ducks; the remainder left of those birds the next day makes excellent salmi or hash, taking care of all the gravy that may remain.

402. Wild Ducks

These birds require clean plucking and clean washing, which may be done by pouring warm water through the body after it has been drawn; half an hour before a brisk fire will suffice to roast them, and stuffing is not required. When it is sent to table the breast should be sliced, and a lemon squeezed over it, the slices of the breast and the wings are the only parts really worth eating to a sensitive palate, the strong flavour of the bird rendering it a dish only for those with peculiar tastes.