Jack London Pressed Duck Recipe
Glen Ellen,
Sonoma Co., California.
YACHT ROAMER
November 5, 1914.
Editress Suffrage Cook Book:
Forgive the long delay in replying to your letter. You see, I am out on a long cruise on the Bay of San Francisco, and up the rivers of California, and receive my mail only semi-occasionally. Yours has now come to hand, and I have consulted with Mrs. London, and we have worked out the following recipes, which are especial “tried” favorites of mine:
[46]
Roast Duck
The only way in the world to serve a canvas-back or a mallard, or a sprig, or even the toothsome teal, is as follows: The plucked bird should be stuffed with a tight handful of plain raw celery and, in a piping oven, roasted variously 8, 9, 10, or even 11 minutes, according to size of bird and heat of oven. The blood-rare breast is carved with the leg and the carcass then thoroughly squeezed in a press. The resultant liquid is seasoned with salt, pepper, lemon and paprika, and poured hot over the meat. This method of roasting insures the maximum tenderness and flavor in the bird. The longer the wild duck is roasted, the dryer and tougher it becomes.
Hoping that you may find the foregoing useful for your collection, and with best wishes for the success of your book.
Sincerely yours,
Jack London.