Duck, Duck, Goose, a new guide to cooking waterfowl from hunter, writer and cook Hank Shaw, could be read as a variation on Wallace Stevens' famous poem “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird,” save that Shaw's ode flows through more than 200 pages of prose, and the object of his affections always ends up on a plate.

Shaw is probably less known for his first cookbook, Hunt, Gather, Cook, than for his colorful blog Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, a recipe blog dedicated to wild game and other peripheral mediums (think cardoons, salsify and cicerchia), illustrated, as his cookbooks are, by the vibrant photographs of his partner — writer, food photographer and journalist Holly A. Heyser.

“Cooking a duck or a goose in today's world is an act of expression. It is a way to find that forgotten feast we Americans once enjoyed, to free ourselves from the Tyranny of the Chicken and shake our fists at the notion that fat is our enemy,” his introduction begins (insert poem line breaks), and the chapters that follow provide an education in the diverse spectrum of waterfowl and the broad capacity of their expressions. Though Shaw's subject is niche, he's sensitive to readers who haven't ventured beyond domesticated fowl.

The book begins with an outline of duck and goose breeds as well as a guide to cleaning, breaking down, hanging and processing. If you linger long enough, Shaw will teach you how to master sous-vide and confit and he'll tell you that an off-dry German Riesling or Gewurztraminer will pair well with your Laotian duck salad. A grid in the right margin of each recipe reports difficulty level, serving size, prep time and cook time. Some recipes will take half a day to prep, others half an hour.

Shaw believes we're in the midst of a duck renaissance, and the romantic tone of his book makes you want to hide out in the hunting blind with him and smother barbecued duck with Chinese char siu sauce. A recipe for duck jerky might seem crass next to goose prosciutto, but Shaw argues that it belongs in a hunter's lunch pail just as much as it does on a charcuterie plate.

And the jerky, dusted with porcini powder, may be cured in your car in the summertime if you don't have a proper dehydrator but happen to live in a place as hot as Sacramento, where Shaw and Heyser reside, and where extreme temperatures provide the ideal conditions for back-seat drying.

Shaw takes us on a world waterfowl tour: Sichuan tea-smoked duck, German-style goose meatballs, French duck-wing soup, duck-heart tartare puttanesca. The difference between the duck recipes from South Carolina versus Southern Mexico is the sauce they wear — mustardy sweet-and-sour instead of green mole — and the company they keep — potato salad and corn on the cob rather than sautéed white rice, cilantro and lime.

Needless to say, this is not a book for vegetarians but for readers who might like to fold duck into everything they cook. Recipes for duck fat hollandaise, duck fat pie dough, duck egg pasta and Chinese duck stock suggest that, if one wants, it is possible to never be without duck.

Consider the poetic possibilities had William Carlos Williams seen coots or mallards instead of white chickens beside his “Red Wheelbarrow.” Hank Shaw sees duck breast glazed with maraschino liquor beside 20 pitted cherries, and you'll want to see it (and eat it) too.

Turn the page for Shaw's duck jerky recipe …

duck jerky; Credit: Photography (c) 2013 by Holly A. Heyser

duck jerky; Credit: Photography (c) 2013 by Holly A. Heyser

Duck Jerky

From: Duck, Duck, Goose, by Hank Shaw

Note from the author: This recipe makes a jerky that is dry enough to store at room temperature — although the fridge is best for really long storage — but pliable enough to keep it meaty. I designed this recipe for a dehydrator, but if you don't have one, you can dehydrate it in your oven set to warm. Another option is to use the inside of your car in summer. I've done this when the temperatures get beyond 100°F, which is often in Sacramento. Works like a charm.

More notes: The porcini powder is made by grinding dried porcini (available in most supermarkets) in a spice grinder or coffee grinder. Insta Cure No. 1 can be found at most butcher shops or online.

3 pounds defatted skinless duck or goose breasts

2 cups water

½ cup Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (1½ ounces or 40 grams) kosher salt

Heaping ½ teaspoon (4 grams) Insta Cure No. 1 (curing salt), optional

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper or hot paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon porcini powder

1. Slice the breasts into strips about 1/4 inch wide. In a large bowl, combine the water, Worcestershire sauce, kosher salt, curing salt, sugar, cayenne, garlic powder, thyme and porcini powder and mix well. Put the meat strips into the marinade and massage them well to coat evenly. Pour everything into a zipper-top bag or nonreactive container, close tightly, and put in the fridge.

2. Let the meat cure for at least 24 and up to 48 hours. The longer the meat is in the mix, the saltier it will be, and the longer it will keep at room temperature. During the marinating process, massage the meat with the marinade every now and again to keep all the pieces in contact with the liquid.

3. Remove the meat from the bag and pat dry with paper towels. If you have a dehydrator, follow the instructions that came with it for making jerky (I dehydrate mine at 130°F). If you do not have a dehydrator, lay the strips on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet to catch the drippings, and put the baking sheet in the oven.

4. Turn the oven on to the warm setting and leave the meat in the oven for 6 to 8 hours, until it is dried out but still pliable. I leave the oven door ajar for air circulation.

5. Store the jerky in the fridge indefinitely, or at room temperature for up to 1 month.

Reprinted with permission from Duck, Duck, Goose by Hank Shaw, copyright (c) 2013. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House.

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