The Fenton Canteen welcomes veterans of any age to attend Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Fenton Mansion, 67 Washington St, Jamestown. Kameron Brooks, Vietnam veteran and author, will be the guest at 11 a.m. to discuss and sign his book 90 Minutes Over Cambodia. The public is welcome to attend.
FREWSBURG – A five-hour pre-licensing driving course will be offered at Frewsburg High School on Monday, April 15, from 5 to 10 p.m. The cost is $30. Preregister by emailing [email protected] – include a picture of the student’s permit – or by calling 716-569-7026 between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. When calling, have the student’s learner’s permit on hand.
MAYVILLE – The North Chautauqua Lake Sewer District board will meet at 4:30 p.m. Monday, April 15, at the Carlson Center, Mayville. The meeting is open to the public.
Editor’s Note: The date for this meeting was incorrectly listed in the April 3 edition of The Post-Journal.
FALCONER – The Ross Grange will meet Monday, April 15 at the Falcon’s Nest Banquet Hall. A dish to pass lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m. Erma Wollcott, county dairy ambassador, will attend and discuss the work her group does promoting dairy products. A business meeting will follow including committee reports and finances. All interested are invited to attend. Table service and beverages will be available.
RANDOLPH – The Randolph Central School Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, April 16, at 7:15 a.m. in the district office to vote on the BOCES budget and the BOCES Board of Education. The public is welcome to attend. Those who wish to attend are asked to contact Maureen Pitts, district clerk, at 358-7005.
LAKEWOOD – The Board of Trustees of the Lakewood Memorial Library will meet April 16 at 5:30 p.m. in the library, 12 W. Summit St., Lakewood. The public is welcomed to attend.
SHERMAN – The Sherman Central School Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 16. The meeting will be held in-person in the school’s auditorium. Members of the public are encouraged to attend.
Large, whole birds like mallards should be brined for at least 12 to 15 hours. Twenty-four hours in a brine won’t hurt them, but beyond 24 hours, they’ll get a bit too salty. Duck breast fillets can be brined for six to 12 hours. If you’re short on time, just a few hours in the brine will always help.
Raised a Minnesota farm-girl in a hunting family, Krissie Mason (below) is an outdoorswoman, writer, wild game food enthusiast, and has been reconnecting with my culinary country roots and family hunting traditions. She is a regular contributor to and several outdoor websites and print publications. Krissie fully supports a field-to-fork wild food chain, and especially enjoy expanding pantries and stretching wild game palates with ambitious & delicious family-friendly wild game recipes. Additionally, she is the Editor of Horizons Magazine: a bi-monthly publication of the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers, and has recently been shooting historic, large format, wet plate photography for outdoor brands.
Krissie Mason is currently a writer for OutdoorHub who has chosen not to write a short bio at this time.
Brining, busty dabblers, divers, or farm walkers enhances three things: moisture retention, flavor, and texture. It is increasingly popular for wild game home cooks since it is inexpensive and produces delicious results. And, despite what some may say, you do not need packaged mixes, or blends. If you have salt, water, and some spices and sweeteners in your cupboard you have everything you need.
Use a non-reactive container that is large enough to hold your meat while being fully submerged. I often use a tall plastic pitcher. There is room to slip in the duck , cover with brine, and yet small enough to fit in the refrigerator. Brining bags are available if you’re brining a large bird, like a wild turkey, but you can also use a small hard sided premium cooler. When prepping several birds, or a whole wild turkey I drop them in my compact YETI Roadie 20 with its ColdLock Gasket. I pour over a chilled brine and let it sit overnight. When brining whole birds, you may also need to weigh them down to keep them fully submerged. Among conventional weights like a heavy pot lid, or a plate, I’ve used a clean rock, a paver brick, and even a hand maul slipped in a sealable plastic bag.
The salt to water ratio is an most important factor in creating a good brine. Use kosher salt to brine as it is free from iodine. Iodine can affect taste. A good rule of thumb for whole birds is: ¼ cup of kosher salt for every 8-10 cups or unsalted liquid. (Approximately 1 tablespoon per 2 to 2 ½ cups of water.) Sugar, although not a must, is a great add-in if you like a hint of sweetness. (Add ¼ cup sweetener to the basic salt to water ratio.) Sugars, whether granular, or liquids like honey, molasses, maple syrup, sorghum, add flavor. They also caramelize when heated creating beautifully browned meats. You can add spices, fresh herbs, aromatics, or other flavorings to intensify the seasoning if you want to move beyond the basics. Citrus peel, fruit juices, beers, wines, peppercorns, garlic cloves, dried herbs, whole spices, all are possible additions.
Editor’s Note: The date for this meeting was incorrectly listed in the April 3 edition of The Post-Journal.
LAKEWOOD – The Board of Trustees of the Lakewood Memorial Library will meet April 16 at 5:30 p.m. in the library, 12 W. Summit St., Lakewood. The public is welcomed to attend.
RANDOLPH – The Randolph Central School Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, April 16, at 7:15 a.m. in the district office to vote on the BOCES budget and the BOCES Board of Education. The public is welcome to attend. Those who wish to attend are asked to contact Maureen Pitts, district clerk, at 358-7005.
MAYVILLE – The North Chautauqua Lake Sewer District board will meet at 4:30 p.m. Monday, April 15, at the Carlson Center, Mayville. The meeting is open to the public.
FALCONER – The Ross Grange will meet Monday, April 15 at the Falcon’s Nest Banquet Hall. A dish to pass lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m. Erma Wollcott, county dairy ambassador, will attend and discuss the work her group does promoting dairy products. A business meeting will follow including committee reports and finances. All interested are invited to attend. Table service and beverages will be available.
How to Cook Duck – Duck Brine – No more gamey flavor
FAQ
Do ducks need to be brined?
What do you soak wild ducks in?
Should you brine wild duck before freezing?
How do you make wild ducks less gamey?
How long should a duck be brined?
The brine has done its job. Large, whole birds like mallards should be brined for at least 12 to 15 hours. Twenty-four hours in a brine won’t hurt them, but beyond 24 hours, they’ll get a bit too salty. Duck breast fillets can be brined for six to 12 hours. If you’re short on time, just a few hours in the brine will always help.
How do you brine a duck?
Wet brining a duck is the simple process of soaking the meat in water, salt, sugar, and spices to tenderize and moisturize it. This process is critical for cooking those fishier and tougher diver ducks, but it works nicely on all duck species. Ducks Unlimited has a tried-and-true recipe for a good salt brine:
How much salt do you need to brine a duck?
The general ratio for a basic brine is 1 cup of salt and 1/2 cup of sugar per gallon of water, but feel free to adjust the seasonings to suit your taste preferences. Once the brine solution is ready, place the duck in the container, ensuring that it is fully submerged.
Why do you brine duck?
Brining is the process of soaking meat in a saltwater solution, which helps to tenderize and flavor the meat. For duck, brining is important because it helps to lock in moisture and infuse the meat with flavor, resulting in a juicier and more flavorful final dish. How do I prepare a brine for duck?