Now that waterfowl season is officially over, it’s time to start cleaning out the freezer and cooking some birds to enjoy further the rewards of a successful season. When I went to Colorado last October, to attend Lanny Oakley’s Ladies’ Adventure Weekend, we fought the elements of rains and winds – which caused record-flooding in the Durango area – to get a few ducks down and tagged. I think the fact that we struggled to get the ducks meant they tasted even better in what I’m calling Colorado duck wontons.
I hearkened back to a recipe we published here at The WON, by Kristy Crabtree, of Wild Game Cuisine, for goose wontons. Fellow adventurers Claire Sadler, Angie Perry and I went grocery shopping to get these ingredients:
When we returned to Lanny’s house, Claire and Angie field-dressed the ducks outside, and I started chopping up the ginger, garlic, pepper, green onions, water chestnuts and cilantro. I had to chop everything super fine, as we didn’t have a food processor on hand.
Mix Hoison sauce, soy sauce and rice vinegar into the bowl with the meat and veg. If you have a food processor, now’s the time to pulse. How much sauce? It’s your choice. This recipe is wild and free, as you need to be when you put it together. You want it wet but not runny.
At this point, you could store this concoction (covered) in the fridge and make the wontons at a later date. The mixture would even taste better, I imagine.
When you get ready to roll with making dinner (or appetizers) out of the duck mix, start a large pot of water boiling.
Prep the wontons by placing about a teaspoon of the mixture into the center of each wonton. Place a little bowl of water nearby, so you can fold the wonton into a triangle and dip your fingers before “gluing” the wonton wrapper closed. Pinch the borders.
Drop each wonton into the boiling water until it floats to the top. Carefully remove, and of course, sample at least one wonton before you serve. Make rice as a complement, and add chopped green onions for a little more zip.
The dish is … succulent. Tender and tasty and good for you – what more could you want? And also, if you get an opportunity to make wontons with friends with whom you spent time afield, it serves as another hunting memory to store up and cherish in the future.
Publisher/Editor Barbara Baird is a freelance writer in hunting, shooting and outdoor markets. Her bylines are found at several top hunting and shooting publications. She also is a travel writer, and you can follow her at https://www.ozarkian.com. View all posts by Barbara Baird
