Okay, so I’ve been wanting to try making a duck casserole for ages. I finally decided to just go for it today. Let me tell you, it was a bit of an adventure, but totally worth it!
Getting Started
First things first, I had to get all my ingredients together. I went with:
- One whole duck, about 4-5 pounds, I guess.
- Some chopped onions – like, two big ones.
- A few carrots, also chopped.
- Some celery, because why not? Chopped that too.
- A bunch of garlic. I love garlic, so I used a whole head, minced.
- Some chicken broth – I used about 4 cups.
- Red wine – just a splash, maybe half a cup?
- Fresh thyme and rosemary – I just grabbed a few sprigs from my little herb garden.
- Salt and pepper, of course.
- Olive oil.
The Cooking Process
Alright, so first, I patted the duck dry with paper towels. Super important to get crispy skin, I read. Then, I seasoned it all over with salt and pepper. Don’t be shy with the seasoning!
Next, I heated up some olive oil in my big, heavy-bottomed pot – the one I use for everything. I seared the duck on all sides until it was nice and brown. This took a while, maybe 10-15 minutes total. I took the duck out and set it aside.
Then, in went the onions, carrots, and celery. I cooked those until they started to soften, stirring them around so they wouldn’t stick. After that, I tossed in the minced garlic and cooked it for just a minute until it smelled amazing.
I poured in the red wine and let it simmer for a bit, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Those bits are flavor bombs!
Next, I added the chicken broth and the herbs, thyme, and rosemary, I put the duck back into the pot, making sure it was nestled in amongst the veggies.
I brought the whole thing to a simmer, then put the lid on and stuck it in the oven. I had preheated the oven to 325°F (160°C).
Now, the waiting game. I let it bake for about 2 and a half hours. I checked it a couple of times to make sure it wasn’t drying out. You want the duck to be super tender, like, fall-off-the-bone tender.
The Final Result
After that, I took the pot out of the oven and let it sit for a few minutes before I took the duck out. I carefully put the duck to a cutting board and I shredded the meat using two forks.
I carefully skimmed some of the fat from the top of the cooking liquid in the pot, making sure to keep the veggies. I put the shredded duck back into the pot and gave it a good stir.
And that’s it! I served it with some crusty bread for sopping up all the delicious sauce. It was seriously good. The duck was so tender and flavorful, and the vegetables were perfect. Definitely making this again!
