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Duck
Appears in
By Anne Willan
Published 1989
The meat of a duck varies greatly from one breed to another, and so does the best method of cooking it. Some varieties, notably the American Long Island or Pekin and the British Aylesbury, have rich meat with a good deal of fat secreted under the skin. This fat must be dissolved, so thorough cooking is important.
Barbary or Muscovy ducks, and the Nantais breed popular in France, are less fatty. The Barbary is large, with generous amounts of firm breast meat; Nantais are smaller, more tender and delicately flavored. In the United States, smaller varieties of duck can be found in Chinese markets. A new Mulard crossbreed is one of several offering leaner meat than the common Long Island duck. Unique to France is the Rouen duck, which resembles a game bird in taste and texture, and is killed by smothering so that its meat is dark from the blood.