Good Duck Recipe with stuffing

Take a four-five pound duck, split the bird down the belly, not through to the back, you will want to spread the duck with skin side up onto a roast pan. Then generously pat down all of the bird with kosher salt and place it on a roasting pan with drip pan under and leave uncovered on the bottom shelf of fridge for four days. This cures the meat to a degree and toughens the skin which will hold in juices. Bake it on 275 in the oven turning once but still uncovered until meat temp is 180. Flip over skin side up and take out of oven. Turn up oven to 450 and bake it long enough to crisp up the skin about ten minutes. It sounds over cooked but that is OK because you cured it. Then drain off fat into a bowl to save for sauteing potato or roasting vegetables. Cover the duck and move on. Saute in butter or olive oil a one cup celery chopped, one large onion and a few cloves of garlic chopped and small shallot with salt and pepper and turn oven to 375 while veggies are becoming watery. Add one pound of crumbled cornbread and 1 bag crumbled oyster crackers, two eggs, fresh sage and parsley chopped or dried to taste and salt and freshly cracked pepper with a quarter cup stock and a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Add some more butter or oil, mix with hands and place in a casserole dish bake until crispy on top. Options: You can add cooked ground sausage, bacon, soysage, apples, sweet potato, carrots, cooked rice or other grains, nuts, chestnut meat, dried fruits or farm raised raw oysters cut into bite sized pieces. Buy your oysters in October when in season and inexpensive and freeze for up to 3 months in their brine. Serve the duck with the bird skin up still "splayed" then place the dressing all around the edge of the platter. Serve with a wild cherry relish like cranberry relish but with cherries. Enjoy !!!!!

For a smoky duck try placing hickory chips, which have been soaked in water, in the bottom of the roating pan. But you will loose your drippings. You could also put the chips in another pan in the oven on the bottom shelf. Keep adding water.