3 for the taxidermist

[M.T. Pockets]

My son & I took it pretty easy on Saturday, we didn't get out hunting til about 1:00 for the pheasant opener. We walked some CRP on some river bottom and in an hour we got a rooster and a couple drake wood ducks. All were just perfect specimens and would have made terrific mounts. I cleaned them instead and am roasting them tonight for supper. Wood ducks are my favorite eating waterfowl, and phesant is always good. It was a great little afternoon.

[Dan Morris]

Dang, nice rooster!
Dan

[petey]

Nice birds MT!

You know this morning, I got the crap scared out of me as I shut the house door at 5:45, heading to work.

There was a rooster pheasant standing not 15 feet from the side door on a pile of wood that I spit over the weekend. It cackled as it took off. I guess I wasn't ready for that, that early in the morning. I'd say the PAGC stocked a few for the youth hunt. Oh well, I'm sure my dogs will be bringing a few back alive this week if those birds are brave enough to hang out on my property.

[Dom]

Waidmannsheil MT, nice pic. Looks like you enjoyed another nice day hunting, I can taste that rooster, Dom.

[VarmintSniper]

Carious how you cook your ducks?

Looked like a great day to me.

[M.T. Pockets]

Varmint Sniper, I've cooked ducks every which way known to man and a couple more.

Here are a couple of my favorites. (notice how I lean towards the simple methods).

- Skin the bird, Cut off the Breast at the wings so you have the bone on and put it in a crock pot with a can of mushroom soup and maybe a little milk. Cook on low for 12 hours. Cook as many in the pot as you like as long as they stay covered. It's that easy and is as good as any fancy recipe I've ever tried. You've got gravy too for some boiled garden potatoes.

Another method I use is to skin them and put them in a cooking bag with some poultry seasoning, and a stick of butter and put them in the oven at 275 or so for about three hours.

Finally, as good a method as any and simplest of all. I fillet the breast meat off and cut it in bite sized cubes, toss the cubes in a cast skillet with lots of hot butter and stir fry them. When they're about half done I sprinkle on some Lawry's seasoning salt, some garlic powder and lemmon pepper. Don't overcook ! and eat them while hot with your favorite beverage. (great method on pheasant, grouse also).

The legs don't go to waste. I put them all in a large freezer bag and at the end of the season I cook them in a crock pot all day, bone off the meat and put them in a stew.

A good way to make sure your ducks are good eating, is to let a lot of the bad eating ones fly. I try to keep it to Mallards & Wood Ducks. I've had some good teal, but once in a while a bad one. Personally, I don't care for any of the divers and I avoid spoonbills at all costs.