How to Boil Duck in 5 Easy Steps

For many of us, duck still remains an occasional meal or even an exotic one that we only associate with special events. However, for other cultures like China, cooking duck is a long-lived tradition that dates back to 1206 and the Yuan Dynasty. But once you start looking for guidance on how to boil duck, it usually leads to recipes of roasted duck or boiling instructions that are complicated and designed for very specific taste buds. In this guide, it is all about simplicity yet quality in taste and nutritional value preservation. These five easy steps will not only show you instructions on how to boil duck, but they will also deliver duck skin that is flavorful without being too greasy. These ingredients and simple technique will also make the duck flesh moist and crispy. Let’s quickly find out how to boil duck in five easy steps that just might lead you to cooking duck way more often than you do now. Let’s go! Shall we?

How to Boil Duck (Step-by-Step)

Step 1: Cut Duck Breast into Pieces

So, how to boil duck? If you’re ready to begin this boiling affair, then sharpen your knife and get the cutting board out because it all starts with the cutting process. Place the duck legs aside, because we are only going to cut the breast.

Cutting it into at least 6 pieces will allow the duck to better absorb water and the flavors from the ingredients while also allowing for an easier readiness check!

Let’s roll to our next step, which will make you realize more and more why boiling and preparing the duck is way easier than you think.

Did You Know? Duck is a rich source of B vitamins.

Vitamin	Amount (% RDI)
Vitamin B3	24 %
Vitamin B2	16 %
Vitamin B1	12 %
Vitamin B5	11 %
Vitamin B6	9 %
Vitamin K	6 %
Vitamin B12	5 %
Vitamin A	4 %
Vitamin E	4 %
Folate	1 %

Step 2: Pour Boiling Water Over the Duck

Crisp and moist flesh is the next step in the quest to reveal how to boil duck. After cutting the breast, place it together with legs inside a container.

Once all the duck is there, simply pour your boiling water directly over the duck to add nice moisture and to prepare it for the next cooking stages.

The duck is now ready for the final part of the cooking process, but before that, we need to infuse critical ingredients to boost more taste and flavor to it.

Step 3: Bring 2.5 Liters of Water to Boil & Drop in the Ingredients!

Get your favorite pot ready while making sure it has the capacity for at least 2.5 liters of water. Once water is inside the pot, simply bring it to a boil.

Once the water is boiling, drop in the fresh ingredients one by one, starting with a whole onion and a carrot that is cut to multiple pieces. After that, continue with ½ tablespoon of salt, ½ tablespoon of black peppercorns, two pieces of bay leaf and last but not least, the star of the show: the duck!

Round out the third step by placing the pot lid on top and wait for the water to boil up again.

Did You Know? Selenium is the most profound mineral found in duck.

Mineral	Amount (% RDI)
Selenium	29 %
Phosphorus	16 %
Iron	15 %
Zinc	12 %
Copper	11 %
Potassium	6 %
Magnesium	4 %
Sodium	2 %
Calcium	1 %
Manganese	1 %

Step 4: Boil & Remove the Foam

Once the water is back to boiling, it is time to open the lid. You’ll notice immediately the glittering foam.

Scoop it up and remove the foam to keep the duck from being greasy and filled with too much fat. No need to put in the effort to completely remove it, but it definitely has to be managed to lower levels.

We are almost there! Check out step five for the final and probably easiest and most satisfying part of the whole cooking process.

Step 5: It’s Cooking Time!

Once the foam is removed, put the lid back on top of the pot and leave it to cook for approximately 40 – 45 minutes to let the duck absorb more nutrition and flavors from the additional ingredients as well as to let the meat cooked properly.

After the time passes by, remove the lid and make sure the duck is ready and cooked.

How to do that? Quite simple! Since the duck is submerged in hot water, you’ll need your tablespoon and knife. Hold the duck with the spoon and plunge the knife into any piece of the duck to check its readiness. The meat should be soft and easy to pierce through while the color patterns should be brownish.

How Long to Boil the Duck?

Before we summarize everything, let’s put together all the different stages of boiling to know the overall time and how long it takes to cook the duck with this method.

1. Step 2 – 0.5 liters of water is definitely enough for pouring over the duck: 5 minutes.
2. Step 3 – 2.5 liters of water in the pot will boil in 25 minutes.
3. Step 4 – Bringing hot water back to boiling will take 5 minutes.
4. Step 5 – As mentioned, the designated cooking time is 45 minutes.

Total cooking time: 1 hour 20 minutes

The times might differ a bit depending on your heat source, initial water temperature, and other things, but you can definitely plan your day and cooking time around these numbers!