Really into duck and money?

If you know me, you know that I'm REALLY into duck. In my opinion, there just isn't a tastier creature alive.

What alot of people don't know, is that I spent a few years cooking in kitchens ranging from one man hole-in-the-wall bar kitchens to upscale operations where I reported to an executive chef. Despite their perceived differences, they had one thing in common - some asshole yelling at me about food cost. That yelling really sunk in. At home, I scrape mixing bowls with a rubber spatula to make sure nothing gets wasted.

Along the same lines of making more money with less ingredients is this 3 part video. It shows easy tricks on how to turn a single duck into over $200 cash by being creative with every part of that tasty little beast.

http://ahungerartist.bobdelgrosso.com/2008/09/hunger-arttotal-utilization-of-duck.html

Related video on breaking down a chicken.

http://ahungerartist.bobdelgrosso.com/2008/10/breaking-down-bird-101-by-mike-pardus.html

Why buy already quartered bird parts? Quarter yourself and save money plus end up with parts for stock!

Rendering duck fat

I love duck and everything about it.

Whenever I make duck, I try to buy a whole bird and quarter it for use. I'm not doing this as a cost saver. Rather, I'm buying a whole bird to collect the massive amount of excess fat these little guys have and render it for later use.

How to render duck fat.

Take the excess fat you've collected and rough chop into smaller pieces. Inch squares are fine.

Put the fat into a pot that is big enough to hold it and an equal amount of water. Bring this up to a simmer, and keep there for about 60-90 minutes. Remove from heat and strain the liquid into a bowl, through a fine mesh strainer, and place in the fridge. While in the fridge, the rendered fat will rise to the top and solidify. Once fully cooled, the fat will come out in solid chunks, leaving a gelatinous layer beneath it. I usually discard this layer.

Store in an air tight contain in the fridge. Your duck fat should last for months.