We tried something new the other night. We have seen this used on cooking shows and found some at the local grocery specialty store.
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| Classic rendered duck fat |
Rendered duck fat. Apparently it was something we had to try at least once. And now we see why!
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| Fingerling potatoes |
We bought some purple and yellow fingerling potatoes and just sliced them in half lengthwise and put them on a foil lined baking sheet.
2nd Man used gloves because the fat melted via body heat and he didn't want to lose half of it to moisturizing his hands (though I bet they would be nice and smooth, ha). He scooped it out and rubbed it all over the potatoes, turning them to coat all sides and then sprinkled it all with a bit of salt.
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| Duck fat roasted potatoes |
Then he put them in a 425 degree oven and roasted them for about 15 or 20 minutes, or until the fat started to turn them golden.
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| Steak with duck fat roasted potatoes |
We served them with steak and they were so delicious. Now this isn't 100% pure duck fat like you might get from a butcher, but that's our next thing to try. This was really really good and now we understand why "duck fat" is a magical ingredient.
Update: We forgot about sharing the "why". It does add a rich flavor but it's kind of hard to describe. It's almost like if you roasted potatoes plain and then coated them in butter and roasted them...it would be hard to describe that butter flavor. Duck fat is rich, adds a silky texture but has a delicate flavor, more of the elusive "umami" flavor as was mentioned below. Because it has a high smoke point you can roast at the higher temps without smoking and changing flavor and end up with the golden spots of color.
Anyone ever used it?
Or used fresh rendered duck fat?
Oh, dear, what happened to the neighbors ducks? :}
ReplyDeleteNever used duck fat but done some checking on the subject. http://www.thekitchn.com/good-question-what-to-do-with-3-74578
Ha! They are still safe and sound (for now, bwahaha!). No they are definitely safe. Great link it's definitely versatile.
DeleteThanks for the idea. I got a jar of duck fat, a jar of pork & duck terrine, and a jar of duck rillettes as a birthday present. Now I know what to with at least one of them!
ReplyDeleteWow, what great presents. Duck fat roasted potatoes are a DEFINITE first thing to try. You can do it this way or just google duck fat potatoes and you can find lots of ideas. Enjoy! (and happy belated birthday!)
DeleteI do it regularly. Each year I roast a couple of ducks and save and strain all the fat. We have delicious roasted duck for a few meals and then I have all that wonderful duck fat in the freezer. It makes a huge and delicious difference to roasted potatoes. (Even the highly seasoned duck fat from one of the recipes I use for the bird is incredible when used to coat potatoes)
ReplyDeleteDo you know we've never roasted a duck. We should do that and then have our own fat. Thanks for that idea and yay for delicious food!! :-)
DeleteNo duck fat in my house, but your potatoes look yummy. Quack quack!
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Ha, no problem we understand. Quack back!
DeleteI've never even seen it in stores, but have heard of it. Goat butter is my favorite butter in the world, so I'd probably stick with that.
ReplyDeleteGoat butter? Wha wha whaaat? Sounds intriguing. Thanks for the suggestion I bet we can find some of that somewhere in the town or nearby.
DeleteDuck fat is delicious. Great when making French fries.
ReplyDeleteThis was our first experience with it, we can't wait to do more. And yeah, wow I bet French fires ARE yummy with it!!
DeleteDuck fat is like the caviar of fats isn't it? I bought it once to use for roasted veggies and we loved it! It was rendered in a jar. But it's so expensive now...didn't realize there was a duck fat shortage here in Quebec, ugh...maybe next time I'm out, I'll ask the butcher if he sells it. Those taters look delicious! :)
ReplyDeleteGREAT way to describe it. It's pricey, it's kinda rare(ish) and it's delicious. Duck shortage? Wow!
Deletei use duck fat all the time. there is nothing like it! though you can render chicken fat when you roast them and it is very good too!
ReplyDeleteSince you sound experienced in it's use, can you tell me what exactly makes it so much better? Texture, flavor, ???? And what is the flavor? Or does it just add that umami non-flavor something extra we keep reading about but I still don't understand!! I'm quite curious ... thanks!!! ... another regular reader of this blog
DeleteIt was our first time but we fell in love with it for sure. Now we have some waiting in the pantry for the next adventure, ha. And chicken fat? Done the same way? Great suggestion. Thanks!!
DeleteBeachdaddy - I updated the post with an addendum at the end, thanks for the reminder that we didn't mention that, ha. Yep, it's hard to describe but umami is the great way, that mysterious "extra" flavor that you can't quite put your finger on.
DeleteNever, but I might.
ReplyDeleteI know you love roasted potatoes. It's very good!!!
Delete1st Man,
ReplyDeleteI've not used duck fat for cooking/baking. My ex-sister in-law (from France) would use the duck and the duck fat when cooking and everything she made turned out amazing.
Your meal looks amazing, I'm sure it was delicious :-)
It was delicious. I bet that food did turn out amazing. The French do use a lot of duck and duck fat. Thank you!!!
DeleteWe've owned ducks for years but although we eat their eggs we've never butchered one or used their fat for cooking. This summer we plan to. We do grow lots of fingerling potatoes though. Can I get partial credit?
ReplyDeleteYou can have all the credit sweet Donna!!! Sorry for your ducks but yay for your future eating. We love duck and while we rarely have it, we're going to keep this stuff around to experiment with. :-)
DeleteI always use a bit of duck fat for broth and then I cook vegetable soup. But I have not tried to cook fingerling potatoes, I'd like to do them as you did. Looks very tasty!
ReplyDeleteWow, in broth huh? I bet that is amazing. Another layer of flavor. Try these, you'll love them. Thanks!!!
DeleteMy Dad used to roast a Goose once a year & save all the fat to rub into his work boots. Never thought of eating it at the time but it sure made those boots waterproof.
ReplyDeleteGoose fat huh? Interesting!!! I think I've heard of waterproofing somehow like that. What a great memory to share. Thanks!!!
DeleteYummy! We never tried duck fat until we got ducks, but now it's one of my most prized fats.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it wonderful? We're newcomers but we'll always keep some around. Need to get some fresh 100% pure. Might be time to have roast duck.
Deletenext time you do it, try a little finely grated lemon peel added to them as well, apparently it makes them even better, Your post has reminded me to finally use the duck fat I had saved in the freezer from roasting a duck two christmasses ago,hope it is still ok.
ReplyDelete