Duck, Deer, Trout

I admit that I have never tasted venison, or duck or trout that has been shot or caught in Arkansas. And I know from much conversation that many people have very strong opinions and tastes about eating game. So, I decided to find someone local who both hunts and cooks. Gary Parrish is just such a person. In a recent email interview Gary told me: “I love to hunt and have spent lots of special times in the woods with my daughter, best of friends and my lab, Ash. One of my greatest rewards is to prepare the game taken with these special people (Ash thinks she is people) and to get the nod of approval.” His Duck Gumbo recipe represents a 20-year odyssey with good batches and not-so-good batches. He writes: “This gumbo recipe has been something that I have worked on with my daughter for years. I've had bad batches and the best batches. It may seem like just another soup recipe but as I looked over the 20 year old notes of changes my heart was warmed with memories.”

I turned to Chef Peter Brave, Brave New Restaurant, for the trout recipe. Peter is known for his Beurre Blanc sauce. He is also a proponent of recipes that are “doable” by ordinary people. He shared his Buerre Blanc recipe at a recent cooking class. I prepared the trout in 20 minutes on the night I tested it at home.

One note: this month’s recipes are mainly method and technique, so you will just have to be fearless and try them out. Bon appÉtit!

Duck Wraps

Ingredients:
duck breast
hoisin sauce
flour tortillas
cilantro, coarsely-chopped
peanut sauce

Place duck breast in hoisin sauce to marinate a minimum of 2 hours, but best if overnight. Remove from marinade but leave sauce on heavy. 
Place in baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. Ovens vary, but the key is not to over cook. The breast should remain rare to medium-rare, depending on your taste. Be careful if using small ducks. Remember: over-cooked duck tastes like liver ...
Remove duck from oven and slice thin, place back in cooking pan with remaining sauce and drippings. Serve with tortillas, cilantro and peanut sauce. To assemble at the table, place duck in the center of flour tortilla with cilantro and lightly drizzle with peanut sauce. Fold in a triangular shape. Or assemble before serving and stagger wraps on a serving pan and garnish with chopped cilantro and a light drizzle of peanut sauce. 
Note: The cooking time will be longer on the duck if it comes directly out of the refrigerator. I made this recipe recently and it took about 45 minutes to cook 30 breasts in an oven at 350 degrees, but they were all large mallard breasts.
Submitted by Gary Parrish, Little Rock
Venison Roll Ups

Ingredients:
venison steaks
Italian dressing
Dale's Meat Marinade
bacon (thin sliced)
toothpicks
pepper jack, cut into cubes
Ole El Paso Jalapenos Sliced
ranch dressing (for dipping)

Trim steaks and pound out to tenderize. In the middle of each steak, place a cube of cheese and 2-3 jalapeno slices. Fold meat so the cheese and jalapenos are not exposed, then wrap a piece of bacon around each steak and secure with toothpicks. If the steak is large you may want to use a couple of pieces of bacon.
After all have been wrapped, place in marinade pan. Mix the Italian dressing and Dale’s Marinade in a four-to-one ration and pour over steaks. Soak for at least 30 minutes.
Cook on grill only until bacon is done. Remember that venison is very lean and is easily over cooked, so only cook steaks until bacon is done, or cook in oven on a broiler pan at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes depending on the size of the steak. Serve with the ranch as a dipping sauce.
Note: You can prepare this same recipe with duck. Simply butterfly the breast and stuff it instead of pounding out the meat.
Submitted by Gary Parrish, Little Rock

Baked Trout with Peter Brave’s Beurre Blanc Sauce

4 trout fillets or other freshly caught fish fillets
Salt, pepper and herbs de Provence for seasoning
1 stick butter, room temperature
1 cup white wine
1 large shallot, minced
Rice to serve

For the Beurre Blanc
Put the wine and shallot into a small heavy-bottomed saucepan and reduce over medium high heat for about 10 minutes until there is almost no wine left. Remove from heat and quickly whisk in butter. Return to very low heat to warm; do not allow to boil.
For the trout
Season the fillets with salt, fresh pepper and herbs de Provence. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for approximately 10 minutes; do not over bake. Plate the trout over the rice and pour over sauce. Serves 4.
Recipe courtesy of Peter Brave, Brave New Restaurant

Rouxsters Duck Gumbo

2 wild ducks
2 chicken thighs
2 celery stalks
1 small onion, sliced
2 small carrots, diced
1 tablespoon salt
1 gallon water
1 1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup flour
2 cups onions, chopped
2 cups celery, chopped
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper
1 pound smoked kielbasa
1 pound baby shrimp
1/2 cup green onion tops, chopped
1 cup bell peppers, chopped
1 habanero pepper, diced

To make the stock: In large pot, combine ducks, chicken thighs, 2 stalks celery, one small onion (sliced), diced carrots, salt, and gallon water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 hours, from time to time skimming off the foam.
To make the gumbo: Make the roux of flour and vegetable oil until dark and brown. Add the bell peppers, red and black pepper, celery, and onions. Remove the ducks from the stock, and reduce the broth to 2 1/2 quarts. Strain, and pour over the roux. Simmer the gumbo for 1 hour. Remove all the meat from the bones, and add to the gumbo. Slice kielbasa and pan fry; add to the gumbo. Bring to a boil and let simmer another 30 minutes to an hour. Add baby shrimp and let it cook for another 5 minutes. Serve over white rice and garnish with chopped green onion tops.
Recipe Courtesy of Team Rouxsters

GP’s Duck Gumbo

Gary writes: “Making the gumbo is a winter tradition at my house. It is usually a weekend project starting with stewing the birds on Saturday and ending as Sunday night dinner. The duck soup, as I like to call it, is my family’s favorite wintertime comfort food and the broth has special healing powers, kind of like chicken soup.

“Here is somewhat of a recap of 20+ years of chicken scratch on a loose sheet of paper with gravy stains and all... One thing that I probably don't have to tell you is I do something a little different every time I cook a batch. My family will tell me to remember what I had done because ‘It was the best batch ever.’”

3 whole ducks
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
6 tablespoons olive oil
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons flour
2 medium red onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup chopped garlic
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
4 cups andouille sausage (pre cooked and sliced approx. ¼ inch thick)
1-24 ounce package of frozen chopped okra
2-10 ounce cans Rotel
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
1/4 cup Dales Meat Marinade
2 pouds cooked and peeled medium shrimp
6 cups cooked white rice
Panola hot sauce and file powder to serve

Stew ducks in water seasoned with salt, pepper and the yellow onion. You want to slow cook the duck so as not to over cook. You want the ducks cooked to medium, then pull from broth and let birds cool down. Save 2 quarts of stock. When birds cool, pull and shred the meat. Set both the stock and duck aside.

In a large iron skillet make the roux from the olive oil, butter and flour. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until the mixture becomes peanut buttery in both consistency and color. The darker you can get the roux without burning it the better it will taste in the final product. It is VERY important not to scorch the roux. If it does burn, trash it and start over. THE KEY TO A GOOD GUMBO IS A GOOD ROUX! So be very patient through this process.

To the hot roux add the red onion, garlic, parsley, peppers and sausage. On medium heat stir until onions and peppers are soft. Pour into a large stew pot and add Rotel, Worcestershire, Dales and shredded duck. Pour in the stock to desired consistency and add the okra. Let simmer for 1 hour, add shrimp and simmer for an additional hour.

Serve over rice. Drizzle with panola hot sauce and sprinkle lightly with file.

 Duck and Andouille Jambalaya

4 boned duck breasts, skin-on, about 2 pounds
3 tablespoons Creole seasoning
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 pound andouille or other spicy smoked sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 1/2 cups long grain white rice
1 quart best-quality, organic or homemade if possible, chicken stock
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1/2 cup chopped green onions, green and white parts
1/2 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

Rub the duck with 2 tablespoons of the Creole seasoning. Heat the vegetable oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the duck, skin side-down, and sear for 7 minutes. Turn and sear on the second side for 3 minutes. Duck should still be pink inside. Remove from pot and drain on paper towels.
Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, salt, cayenne and black pepper to the fat in the pot and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the sausage and cook another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and garlic and cook, stirring, until the tomatoes give off some of their juices, about 2 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring for 2 minutes.
Add the stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until the rice is tender, about 30 minutes.
Cut the duck into chunks, discard the skin. Season the shrimp with the remaining tablespoon Creole seasoning. Add the shrimp and duck to the pot, and cook until shrimp are pink, about 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let sit, covered, for 15 minutes. Gently stir in the green onions and parsley. Adjust salt, pepper and cayenne to taste. Serves 6.
Adapted from Emeril Lagasse

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