Waterfowl Recipes

1 lb. ground venison
1 lb. ground pork
1 egg
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
3 tablespoons Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 onion, chopped
4 tablespoons butter
1 jar vodka sauce
½ cup heavy cream
16 oz. rigatoni

Combine first 8 ingredients in large bowl; mix thoroughly. Form into meatballs the size of ping pong balls; place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.

While meatballs are baking, sauté mushrooms and onion with butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add vodka sauce. Pour cream in vodka sauce jar, shake and add to saucepan. Stir and reduce to low heat. Add finished meatballs to sauce. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Cook rigatoni per directions, drain and mix with sauce and meatballs. Serve with your favorite sides.

1 lb. ground duck
1 lb. ground pork
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons steak or burger seasoning

Mix ingredients in large bowl. Form into half-pound patties; sprinkle with more seasoning. Refrigerate at least an hour. Bring grill to high heat on one side and low heat on the other. Grill burgers about 5 minutes per side on low heat; finish grilling 2 minutes per side on high heat. Dress with favorite burger toppings.

There are as many recipes for tacos as there are cooks, however, tacos are a great use of wild game, feed a crowd and can be easily customized to your liking. This recipe can be cooked on a grill or a cast iron skillet.

4 boneless skinless duck breast
¼ cup rum
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin

In a non-metallic bowl, combine Worcestershire, soy and seasonings. Filet each breast in half and place in the bowl; marinade for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

Start the coal or turn on your grill burner. Once the grill is hot, add the breasts. Cook for 2 minutes per side. Pull from the grill and rest for about 5 minutes. While resting, warm tortillas in a skillet or on the grill. 

Once the meat has rested for at least 5 minutes, slice the duck across the grain about ¼ inch thick. Serve each tortilla with duck and pickled slaw, with cilantro rice, Mexican street corn, or black beans on the side.

Cooks Lake Quick Pickled Slaw

2 red onions sliced
1 jalapeno sliced in rounds
1 carrot shredded
3 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ cup apple cider vinegar
½ cold water

In a bowl add the onions, jalapenos and carrots. In another bowl, combine sugar, cumin, water and vinegar. Mix well. Cover the vegetables with the mixture. Mix well, cover, refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Venison Chorizo Smoked Queso

1 lb. venison chorizo
2 lb. Velveeta
½ lb. cubed pepper jack
1 can Rotel
1 cups evaporated milk
2 diced jalapenos
1 onion, diced

In a skillet on medium heat, brown the chorizo. Once browned, place in an aluminum pan. Next, Saute the onion in another section of the aluminum pan. Cube the Velveeta and pepper jack, place in pan. Add the Rotel and jalapenos, then drizzle the milk over the pan. Place in a smoker around 225 degrees. Stir every 15 minutes or so, remove when melted. May take 30 minutes to 2 hrs.

2 lbs. goose breast
1 lb. bacon
Cavendar’s seasoning
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 yellow onion, sliced
8 oz. fresh baby portabella mushrooms, sliced
8 brioche buns
Horseradish mayonnaise
8 oz. sliced provolone cheese

Cut goose breast and bacon into 1- to 2-inch chunks and place in a freezer until meat becomes firm. Grind the meat together using an eighth-inch plate. If you don’t have a grinder, use a food processor or finely chop the meat using a very sharp knife.

Roll the mixture into a quarter-inch to half-inch layer on a sheet pan. Using a knife, pizza cutter or cookie cutter, cut into 2-inch squares or rounds and sprinkle top side with Cavendar’s. Set aside.

Mix mayonnaise, horseradish and Worcestershire; set aside.

Fry a few strips of fatty bacon in a skillet; remove the bacon and keep the fat. Over medium heat, sauté onion and mushrooms (I always like to add a little seasoning here, too!). Put a lid on the skillet and remove from heat.

In a hot skillet, cook patties about 2 minutes on seasoned side, then flip, season other side and cook 2 minutes. Place on brioche bun with a slather of horseradish mayonnaise mixture and top with mushrooms, onion and cheese.

2 Specklebelly geese, boneless skinless breast, legs and thighs
4 oz. chipotles in adobo sauce, canned
2 small red onions, chopped (reserve 1 for garnish)
5 tablespoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground cloves
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
3 cups chicken stock
¼ cup lime juice
½ cup  apple cider vinegar
10 corn tortillas
1 cup Cotija cheese
1 bunch cilantro
½ cup salsa verde
1 avocado, sliced (garnish)

Generously season breast, thighs and legs with ground cloves, paprika, cumin, black pepper, salt, onion powder and garlic powder. Place goose in a slow cooker and add 1 red onion, minced garlic, chipotles, bay leaves, chicken stock, lime juice and vinegar. Cover and cook on low setting for 6 hours or high for 4. Once meat is tender, remove leg and thigh bones, shred all meat with a fork and return to the cooker. Warm corn tortillas in a skillet. Top each tortilla with a helping of meat and garnish with Cotija cheese, cilantro, salsa verde and avocado. Best served with rice and beans.

Nothing is more iconic when it comes to duck appetizers than the duck popper. This popper recipe uses all the iconic ingredients.

1 lb. duck breast, stripped
1 bottle Worcestershire sauce
1 bottle Italian dressing
1 lb. cream cheese
Cajun or wild game seasoning
10 jalapenos, halved and seeded
1 lb. bacon

Marinate duck strips in Worcestershire and Italian dressing overnight. Soften cream cheese, add a dash of Worcestershire and seasoning; mix well. Fill each pepper half with cream cheese mixture. Put a slice of duck on the cream cheese and wrap with a half a slice of bacon; fasten with a toothpick. Bake in a glass dish at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes or grill indirectly until peppers have softened and bacon has cooked. 

Who says you can’t have Chinese buffet comfort food made at home with wild game? This quick recipe works well with chicken, pheasant, rabbit, and even ducks and geese. There are many recipes for sauces made from scratch but I prefer to use premade sauce to make this a quick and easy weeknight meal.

4 snow goose breasts
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon soy sauce
4 tablespoons corn starch
Oil for frying
1 bottle General Tso sauce
2 cups steamed rice
1 bunch green onions, chopped
Sesame seeds

Tenderize goose breast by running through a tenderizer or with a tenderizing mallet; cut into bite-size pieces. In a small bowl, mix egg yolks, soy sauce and corn starch with the goose pieces. Set aside at room temperature. Heat enough oil to fry the goose pieces to 350 degrees. Drop pieces in one at a time to keep from clumping. Fry about 2 minutes, drain and place in a bowl. Toss with warm General Tso sauce and serve over steamed rice. Top with green onion and sesame seeds. 

2 boneless, skinless snow goose breasts
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
Rice oil
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 bell pepper, sliced
4 oz. mushrooms, sliced
4 slices provolone cheese
2 hoagie loaves
Horseradish mayonnaise

Fillet snow goose breast in half, then slice a quarter-inch thick. Add Worcestershire, salt, pepper and garlic; whisk. Add goose and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Add enough rice oil to cover the bottom of a medium skillet. With heat on medium, add onion, pepper and mushrooms; sauté until soft. Increase to high heat and add goose. Cook about 4 minutes; top with cheese to melt. Place mixture on a toasted hoagie slathered with horseradish mayonnaise.

2 lbs. green onion sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
4 celery ribs, chopped
Chicken broth
1 family-size box dirty rice mix
1 family-size box jambalaya mix
4 duck breasts
Cajun seasoning
Vegetable oil

Brown sausage, onion, pepper and celery in a large skillet over medium heat. When cooked, add amount of chicken broth called for by the rice and jambalaya mixes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add rice and jambalaya mixes, then stir, cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender, about 25 minutes.

Season duck breasts with your favorite Cajun seasoning. Heat a large skillet to high with a little bit of vegetable oil. Cook duck breasts 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove from heat, wrap in foil and let rest about 10 minutes.

To serve, scoop a serving of rice into a bow. Thinly slice the duck breast and add to top. 

2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon oregano
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
6 boneless, skinless specklebelly goose breasts
2 cups beef broth
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 can chilies in adobo
1 cup quesadilla cheese
1 cup sour cream
20 flour tortillas
Rice oil

Mix paprika, oregano, black pepper, garlic powder and salt to form a rub; coat goose breasts. Sear all sides of the goose in a hot skillet. Place goose in an electric pressure cooker or slow cooker with beef broth, apple cider vinegar and chilies in adobo. For pressure cooker, cook on meat setting for 90 minutes. For slow cooker, set on high for 5 to 7 hours or until meat is tender and shreds with a fork.

Remove from liquid, cool, then shred meat into a bowl. Mix cheese, sour cream, and meat (chill this mixture to make the rolling process easier).

Spread about a tablespoon of the mixture lengthwise in a ready-to-cook tortilla; roll up tightly like a cigar. Firmly place on a tray with seam side down.

Heat about an inch of rice oil in a skillet to 350 degrees. Firmly place the tortillas seam side down in the skillet. Cook about 3 minutes, turn over and cook other side until crispy and golden brown. Place on paper towels to drain.