Eating or Trash Ducks?

[BOGSTER]

Same reason Amberjack does. "Daddy said they taste like crap"...

As QA pointed out, some of my worse puddle duck meals came from Gadwall.
Even wigeon get rank after they have been feeding in pasture grass.

I'd bet money, 85% of all people who post pics of Ruddies, Buffs, Mergs never even clean/cook them.

Pathetic pieces of shit. You know who you are.

I really enjoy amberjack....but, they do have worms here. I don't eat anything with worms. I will order it from sea food restaurants after inquiring if it was caught in the gulf.

I've never had a bad gadwall from SC or out west, and I don't kill many widgeons, but I can't remember eating a bad one.

The ruddy ducks and the one bufflehead I've had were delicious, if times get tough, I'll be shooting them without a 2nd thought.

I've had more mottleds taste awful than any other puddle duck I can think of. I've probably killed 25-30 in SC over the years, all from the ACE and I'm telling you maybe 5 got eaten with a smile. Some just smell bad....smell has a lot of influence on me.

I'll shoot the hell out of Mergs and i've only ever cleaned one. Honey Badger don't give a shit.

This comes as no surprise.
Do you still have your nipples peirced?

[CreekGeek]

Pretty sure I"ve posted this before but at one time Ruddy's were pretty sought after...

"Check this out: These are retail market prices for ducks taken from the Currituck Sound in North Carolina in 1884:

Pair of Canvasbacks: $1.00-2.75 ( $64.83 )
Pair of Redheads: $0.50-1.60 ( $37.72 )
Pair of Ruddy ducks: $0.25-0.90 ( $21.22 )
Canada Goose: $0.50 ( $11.79 )
The price in parentheses is the modern price, adjusted for inflation. Astounding, isn’t it? Also, note that no other species of waterfowl are listed. Then I found a 1901 restaurant menu cited in Appetite City: A Culinary History of New York from a place called Rector’s that listed restaurant prices for a single cooked wild duck:

canvasback, $4 ( $101.79 )
redhead, $3 ( $76.34 )
mallard, $2.50 ( $63.62 )
ruddy duck, $2 ( $50.89 )
teal, $1.25 ( $31.81 )
Can you imagine plunking down a Benjamin for one duck? Even crazier, can you imagine paying more than $50 for a ruddy, which barely feeds one person? I was gobsmacked.

You’ll note that the vaunted pintail, universally considered the finest-tasting duck nowadays, doesn’t even make the cut. And when pintails do show up in market lists, they are always cheaper than ruddy ducks. What was going on here? Back to the literature, and what emerged was a picture of an age when diver ducks, not puddle ducks, were king at the table.

Adolphe Meyers, in his “Post Graduate Cookery Book” (1903), wrote that “many connoisseurs and epicureans prefer the ruddy duck to the redhead, claiming that it equals the canvasback in flavor. This bird has become scarce in late years, and its price went up in consequence.”

In the 1900 book “I go A-Marketing,” Henrietta Sowle writes: Another duck of delectable flavor is the ruddy duck or broadbill as it is known in some localities…”"

[Rubberhead*]

CreekGeek,
Those numbers get even more interesting if you look at it in $/lb instead $/duck.

[Cutm jack]

At this point can you really tell what's what?

[rollinriver]

All this discussion about Ruddy's got me wanting to give em another go at the table. Last time I tried one was about 13 years ago and I didn't have fond memories of that experience. With a little more knowledge in the kitchen, I figured if I had the opportunity this season I would kill a couple to try them again. Had a good hunt Saturday morning with 2 Redheads and 2 Ruddys for the days take. Brought em home, plucked and filleted the breast and put em in a salt brine overnight. I can tell you, just cleaning em, the Redheads smelled awful and the Ruddys not so much. The Ruddys meat was a deep maroon hue and did not look appetizing at all, but I figured what the heck. Pulled em outta the brine yesterday evening, put some garlic salt and pepper on em and threw em in a red hot dutch oven with some butter, skin side down, for three minutes, then pulled em and let em sit wrapped in foil for 10 minutes. Cut a slice off the Redhead to try, and I thought it was pretty tasty. Gave a piece to my wife who usually turns her nose up at duck. She said it was good but it still had that duck aftertaste. Then I cut a slice off the Ruddy and gave it to her to try. After a little convincing she ate the Ruddy slice and then said "That's Duck? I can eat that! Can I have all of that kind?" So I ate the Redhead and she ate the Ruddy like I've never seen a woman eat duck before. Ate every slice. And like I said, she typically wont eat a wood duck. I probably shouldn't be posting this if I wanna keep the Ruddys to myself but thought I should so they don't become dog food. Not very sporting to shoot but you can make it challenging. Probably one of the better ducks I've ever eaten! Don't knock it til you tried it!

Not much on presentation but damn it was good!

[DK]

Can you elaborate a little on what you did preparing that Ruddy?

[quackaddict]

Sounds to me like he put it in a salt brine over night, put some garlic salt and pepper on the before throwing them in a hot pan with some butter for about 3 minutes. Took them out of the pan and wrapped them in tin foil for about 10 minutes so that they would finish cooking, then ate them.

[DK]

That's what it sounded like to me also. I just thought there may be some other details not included that make a difference.

[Rubberhead*]

Sounds to me like he put it in a salt brine over night, put some garlic salt and pepper on the before throwing them in a hot pan with some butter for about 3 minutes. Took them out of the pan and wrapped them in tin foil for about 10 minutes so that they would finish cooking, then ate them.

I'm sorry but that's funny...

[rollinriver]

That's what it sounded like to me also. I just thought there may be some other details not included that make a difference.

That was pretty much it DK. It was basically blackened duck done in a covered cast iron dutch oven with the skin side down. I think leaving the skin and fat underneath on them really helps with the cooking. Basically does what bacon wrapping does without all the greasy fumbling with bacon and toothpicks. Keeps the meat that is in contact with the cooking surface from drying out and also imparts some flavor. I really don't think you could mess it up any way you did it unless you overcook them. Must be eaten medium rare.

[quackaddict]

Thanks RH*...glad I made someone laugh today.

[PharmHunter]

I am still licking my chops after eating some delicious bufflehead off the grill as a nice Christmas lunch treat. Compliments of CPP4720's prep work on em.

A lot of guys assume things about certain ducks, and we all know what assuming does. I can't add much that hasn't been said already in this thread, but just thought I'd share my bufflehead lunch off the grill was fantastic.

I ain't eating a merganser for what it's worth. Had a fella tell me he gave a few to a guy who always appreciated ducks, deer meat, extra fish whatever when he did some work for my buddy. Buddy told me he got a phone call saying "Steve, man i cooked them ducks...Man my house smell like a bream bed!!!"
I almost wrecked my truck laughing.
Best part was he asked him if he threw them out...Nah man! I put some tartar sauce on em.

[Fish]

The bream bed comment was funny.