Liquid Gold and breaking it down

The gold price is going higher and higher in a hurry.  It is believed that it will reach $1200 an ounce before the end of the year.  With only one more trading day this month it might happen before December, we will have to see.  I remember just a few years ago it was $400 an ounce.   If you do not have a supply of gold that would make Scrooge green with envy, here is the liquid version that you can make on your own without a degree in alchemy.

My husband is hitting the books this Thanksgiving week, in preparation for his PhD exams next week. Therefore, we have sent the kids to the grandparents for the holiday to ensure a little quiet. With that said, a turkey was out of the question due to the sheer size of the bird. I decided that a duck would be more interesting and a better size for two.

I bought a whole bird and had no idea how to break it down. Thankfully I found this helpful video:

I quartered the duck for some interesting dishes that I plan to post soon.  After that there is a lot of remnants from the bird that would make some great rendered duck fat and it would be a complete shame to throw gold in the trash.  I used the water method I found at Saveur Magazine and I am very happy with the results.  All the moisture has been evaporated and what was gold while warm is now a snowy white while holding up in the fridge waiting for its demise.

Did you know that duck fat is really not as unhealthy as one might believe.  We have been brainwashed into believing that saturated animal fat is a heart attack waiting to happen.  Au contraire, mon frère… Here is a good synopsis by Nancy Hinton at SoupNancy with links to supporting articles, but all you have to do is Google it and there is a plethora of info at your fingertips.  Like this article Healthy Fat on Quackers besides having a cool title it really makes you think and crave some duck.

Not only is it healthier than butter, it is damn tasty too!  Use it to make duck confit or fry up some potatoes, delish.

Here is some great info that I found on rendering the skin and solid fat of the duck.  What remains is worth gold in my kitchen

Saveur Magazine — recipe on rendering your own fat

The Bitten Word — they used the same recipe above as did I (from Saveur), they give detailed info and pics to accompany their post

Greenmarket Recipes — they give details about the 2 different methods and results

I chose to use the water method.  I am really looking forward to having enough fat to make confit.

Tagged as: duck, how to