Spatchcock Duck

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Spatchcock duck is an easy way to cook a whole duck so that the breast stays succulent and the legs are tender and juicy.

If you have never spatchcocked a duck or chicken before, there are step by step photos and instructions, so you can do this at home.

The duck is flavoured with orange and honey and can be cooked in the oven or on the grill or barbecue.

Perfect for fuss free entertaining, casual dining or a delicious family meal, once you have tried this method you will uses it again and again.

Enjoy!

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❤️ Why you will love this recipe
🥘 Ingredients
🍽 Equipment
🔪 Instructions
⏲️ Roasting Time
🥗 Side Dishes
📖 Variations
🍣 Storage
🍱 Prepare in Advance
🤔 FAQs
📋 Recipe
💬 Comments

Meat cooked on the bone is always so tasty and tender, however, a whole duck can be tricky beast to cook.

If the duck is roasted whole, the breast cooks easily but, by the time the breast is cooked, the legs are often nowhere nowhere near tender enough. The result is dry breast.

Or, you can cut the legs off and slow roast them separately, but it's not economically good sense to run two ovens this way, especially in the current climate.

By spatchcocking the duck, the heat can circulate all the way around from the start of cooking and the breast isn't exposed to a higher level of heat than the legs.

❤️ Why you will love this recipe

Technique works on all birds and especially chicken.
Breast and legs cook perfectly at the same time.
Cook in the oven or on the barbecue.
Elegant presentation for entertaining.
Easy to portion and serve.

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🥘 Ingredients

Duck - oven ready duck. The most available duck in the UK is a Gressingham duck. They are a cross between a Pekin duck and wild mallard. These birds are much larger than a mallard and the taste is milder but still delicious.
Salt - cooking salt or kosher sal.
Pepper - freshly ground black pepper.
Honey - clear honey.
Garlic - garlic cloves for flavour rather than powder.
Orange - orange zest to flavour the duck and the remaining orange for a garnish if you like.

The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post.

🍽 Equipment

Large oven tray with rack / trivet
Poultry shears or heavy duty sharp knife
Zester or grater
Pastry brush
Kitchen paper

🔪 Instructions

Peel and finely mince the garlic.

Zest the orange and mix the zest with the garlic and honey.

Bring the duck to room temperature 30 minutes before you want to start cooking.

Remove any giblets and pat the duck dry with kitchen paper.

Lay the duck on a board, breast side down and with the neck furthest away from you.

Grab the tail end and use the poultry shears to start cutting the ribs as close to the backbone as possible.

💭 Top Tip

If you are using a sharp knife it is easier to set the duck kneck down and let gravity help to cut as this is safer with the knife always moving away from you.

Repeat the cut on the other side of the backbone.

Trim off any excess skin and discard.

Turn the duck over with the breast uppermost and press down hard on the breastbone to flatten the duck completely.

💭 Top Tip

Save the backbone and giblets for making stock for the gravy. Or, if you are serving the spatchcock duck with salad, freeze the bones and giblets for another time.

Place the duck on a trivet and use a knife or carving fork to poke holes in the skin all over.

Pour over boiling water from a kettle and leave for a few minutes. This will encourage all of the fat to drain away and leave crispy skin.

Drain off the water and pat the duck dry with kitchen paper.

Sprinkle the salt and pepper over the skin.

⏲️ Roasting Time

Preheat the oven to 160 C / 310 F / 140 FAN / Gas 2.5.

Roast for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Remove the duck from the oven and increase the heat to 180 C / 350 F / 160 FAN / Gas 4.

Use the pastry brush to spread the honey mixture over the duck.

Return to the oven for another 30 minutes.

💭 Top Tip

The duck is ready when a skewer or fork inserted into the thickest part of the thigh has no blood in the juices.
More importantly, the meat needs to feel very tender, so the leg should feel really loose. If it has resistance then it needs to cook for longer.
If you want a really crispy skin, place under a preheated grill or broiler for a few minutes, but watch that it doesn't burn.

Transfer the duck to a serving plate and let it rest under foil in a warm place for 20 minutes before carving.

Slice off the legs and remove the whole breast.

Cut the breast into slices across. This makes sure that everyone gets a bit of skin as well as the breast.

🥗 Side Dishes

Spatchcock duck is delicious in the summer with salads like these.

Or, serve it as a roast with some of these side dish ideas.

📖 Variations

Try some of these flavour variations.

Chinese - rub a tablespoon of five spice powder into the skin with the salt and pepper.
Citrus - replace the orange zest with lemon, lime or grapefruit.
Fruity - serve the spatchock duck with griddled or grilled pineapple slices, plums or peaches.
Herby - flavour the duck with tarragon, rosemary or sage.

🍣 Storage

Refrigerator - cool cover and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Leftovers are perfect in a rice dish or a curry.
Freezer - divide duck into pices and place in airtight container. Freeze for up to a month.
To reheat - Add directly to soups, stir fries or curries in a saucepan or slow cooker.

🍱 Prepare in Advance

Spatchcock the duck and leave covered in the fridge until you are ready to cook.

🤔 FAQs

What's the difference between spatchcock and butterfly?

Butterflied meat is usually taken off the bone and then sliced open so that a flat piece of meat remains in a butterfly shape. For example, this could mean slicing open a chicken breast lengthways, while keeping one side intact.

This is done to spead up the cooking process.

In a spatchcock, the bones remain and the bird is flattened for even cooking.

Does spatchcocking reduce cooking time?

Yes. As the bird is flat and cooked on a trivet, more heat can circulate, which helps to cook the bird faster. Typically, this reduces the cooking time of a roast chicken by half an hour.

What other birds can you spatchcock?

A spatchcock can refer to a young chicken, that is cooked in this way, but the technique can be used with all poultry.

I often make a spatchcock chicken in the summer and cook on the barbecue. You could place the duck on the barbecue after oven cooking or cook it on the barbecue too, if you can regulate the temperature.

Other birds such as pigeon, pheasant and guinea fowl can all be spatchcocked but will benefit from quick roasting, as they do not have the same layer of fat and will dry out.

You can even spatchcock a turkey, however, most domestic ovens won't be big enough to fit anything but a small turkey! It's a great way to get the thigh meat really tender and juicy.

What can you do with duck fat?

Duck fat makes the most perfect roast potatoes with a richer taste than just using oil.

It's also used in other potato dishes, such as French Sarladaise potatoes and confit potatoes.

Contrary to popular belief, duck fat does have some health benefits too.

Whilst it is not as healthy as olive oil it does contain a good level of monunsaturated and polyunsaturated fats and also vitamins and minerals. These fats can help to lower cholesterol.

Keep it in a sealed container in the fridge and it will last for months.

More duck dishes to try

📋 Recipe

Spatchcock Duck

Amanda

Step by step instructions on how to easily spatchcock a duck or any poultry. The duck is then cooked with honey, garlic and orange zest for a tasty crispy skin.

4.64 from 33 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 2

Total Time 2 15

Course Main Course

Cuisine British

Servings

Calories 2058 kcal

Equipment

Large oven tray with rack / trivet
Poultry shears or heavy duty sharp knife
Zester or grater
Pastry brush
Kitchen paper

Ingredients

2 kg duck oven ready
1 teaspoon salt
½ tsp black pepper
2 tablespoon honey
2 cloves garlic
1 zest of an orange

Instructions

Peel and finely mince the garlic. Zest the orange and mix the zest with the garlic and honey.
Bring the duck to room temperature 30 minutes before you want to start cooking. Remove any giblets and pat the duck dry with kitchen paper.
Lay the duck on a board, breast side down and with the neck furthest away from you. Grab the tail end and use the poultry shears to start cutting the ribs as close to the backbone as possible. Repeat the cut on the other side of the backbone. Trim off any excess skin and discard.
Turn the duck over with the breast uppermost and press down hard on the breastbone to flatten the duck completely.
Place the duck on a trivet and use a knife or carving fork to poke holes in the skin all over.
Pour over boiling water from a kettle and leave for a few minutes. Drain off the water and pat the duck dry with kitchen paper. Sprinkle the salt and pepper over the skin.
Preheat the oven to 160 C / 310 F / 140 FAN / Gas 2.5. Roast for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Remove the duck from the oven and increase the heat to 180 C / 350 F / 160 FAN / Gas 4. Use the pastry brush to spread the honey mixture over the duck.
Return to the oven for another 30 minutes.
Transfer the duck to a serving plate and let it rest under foil in a warm place for 20 minutes before carving.

Nutrition Facts

Spatchcock Duck

Amount Per Serving

Calories 2058 Calories from Fat 1773

% Daily Value*

Fat 197g303%

Saturated Fat 66g413%

Polyunsaturated Fat 25g

Monounsaturated Fat 93g

Cholesterol 380mg127%

Sodium 897mg39%

Potassium 1066mg30%

Carbohydrates 10g3%

Fiber 0.4g2%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 58g116%

Vitamin A 854IU17%

Vitamin C 19mg23%

Calcium 65mg7%

Iron 12mg67%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notes

The total calorie and fat content is not accurate in this recipe as the majority of the duck fat is rendered from the meat.

Disclaimer: The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.

Detailed instructions for this recipe, including step by step photographs, hints and tips, can be found in the main article

Keyword flattened, spatchcock

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Food Safety

Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat.
Wash hands after touching raw meat.
Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods.
Never leave cooking food unattended.
Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds.
Always have good ventilation when using gas.

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Spatchcock Duck