Ducks Mahal

The Little Woman and I had a quiet celebration. Our family is spread all over. Our next of kin lives in Hawaii, Chicago, California, Louisiana, South Carolina, Florida and the UK. The main consideration in staying here has everything to do with Black Friday where the Little Woman cranks up for marathon pre-Christmas shopping. Since we have to send Christmas gifts all over creation, we start our preparations early, rather she starts our preparations early while I, you guessed it, blog.

So, I thought I’d give a tour of Ron’s kitchen and demonstrate duck cooking skills. Before you ask, no, we ate a store bought duck. Our ducks are considered lawn ornaments. But whenever I put a store bought duck on the pit, the first thing our ducks do is swim to the middle of the pond and start counting heads. (Not really, little joke there.)

The first pic is of the dining area. Note basket in the far right corner. Sorry, I mean my other right. That basket is filled with cat toys, which they drag and drop to the four corners of the house. Also note tennis ball on the floor. That’s one of the dog’s toys. Our children animals have lots of toys.

Pic of dining area here.  ( Note:  You can click on pic to expand it.)

The next pic is of the cooking counter. The fern on the side of the cabinet is a Stag Horn fern. It’s indoors this time of year to shelter it from the cold. The giraffe on the recipe book bookshelf has a very important story behind it but I forgot what it was. Note tennis balls on the top of the shelf above the pots and pans. More dog toys. It took some real effort getting this counter to this point. When we bought our house it had sweat equity written all over it. This room was pretty much gutted and holes cut in the counter for a new stove and trash compactor and washer, new counter tops and new floors. It gets a new coat of paint each year whether it needs it or not. The Little Woman likes changing colors – often. But, we never did get around to refinishing the cabinets and I still need to reseat the washer. This room is a work in progress, actually a “paint the bridge,” if you will.

Pic of cooking counter here.

The next pic is of the ingredients I will stuff into the cavity of the duck. The rosemary was cut from a bush I planted alongside the house. Note salt shaker. Actually it’s not a shaker and that’s the point. It’s easier to pour into my palm and sprinkle by hand into the food. A doohickey invention of mine.

Pic of ingredients here.

The next pic is of the duck and stuff. Note the chopped ingredients. The Santoku knife is Wusthof and is a totally awesome blade. The most important thing about cooking a chicken, duck, Cornish hen or goose is to relax the bird. Most birds are frozen so after defrosting, it is best to massage it after thawing, you might even sing to it, wash it and let it sit for awhile and get all laid back. We call that the Laid Back Bird. Note heavy equipment in the corner. Those are blenders and food processors. We’re a CuisinArt family here at Ducks Mahal. It’s like an auto repair shop in here. We got motors and hardware. After washing dishes, it’s always best to moisturize. Note moisturizer next to signature glass of wine.

Pic of duck and stuff here.

The next pic is of the duck stuffed with the ingredients. Before stuffing in the ingredients, I salt the cavity. You might notice the skin on the breast is kind of poofy a little. I cut a small hole between the meat and the skin, separate the skin from the meat with my finger along the entire breast and spoon in dried herbs, in this case thyme and oregano, then I pour in olive oil. I learned this trick from a New Orleans’ chef at Le Ruth’s. When smoking a bird, it needs all the oil and moisture it can get. I also pour one cup of white wine in the pan. The aluminum foil helps me later when cleaning the pan. It protects it from the fire. Note the Bolla wine bottle with an alcohol spout. That’s actually olive oil in the bottle. Another doohickey invention of mine. It makes for very controlled and accurate pouring. I don’t use as much oil or waste it.

Pic of duck stuffed here.

The next pic is of my smoker pit. Note separated coals. The rusty iron thing has apple wood chips in it and the sticks on the right, I mean my other right, is a pear branch from my pear tree. That combo of woods is a great duo for cooking birds. I use mesquite wood for steaks, and pecan wood for ribs and pork. I leave the bird in there two hours.

Pic of smoker pit here.

The next pic is of the serving, breast and wing, crispy wing part removed, green beans fried in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire until al dente, and stuffing is with bits of Andouille sausage, green and red bell pepper, green onions and plain ole Stove Top stuffing. Nothing real fancy on this plate and easy to carry into the living room because we actually eat Japanese style on the floor on a long coffee table to watch the news or a movie while eating. We use the kitchen dining table to leave books and bills and newspapers on and not much else. Another doohickey invention of mine.

Pic of plate here.

Well, that’s it. Thank you for following me on this tour and I hope it’s been entertaining as well as informational. Are there any questions?

Real warm and welcoming, arent I?  :)