Another venture out to the Great Wall Supermarket in Virginny today, and I bought a duck (specifically, a "headless" one). It was an absolute MADHOUSE; but then, Chinese New Year is upcoming. Sometimes it helps to pay attention to the calendar.

So, I need to cook this thing and would like some recommendations from the cooks in this group. I have roasted ducks before, but wonder if any of you possess some tips, tricks, or particular good sauces to offer. I don't have any way to do a sous vide recipe, and I don't have any truffles, either white or black, on hand, either. Other than that . . .

Thanks for all the great responses (sound of crickets). So, I combined several recipes and came up with something I want to share.

WARNING: those of you who like rare duck can stop reading now.

I found something on Epicurious which called for braising the duck. I was able to trim this enough to fit in my Le Cruiset pot and stuffed it with a quartered onion. Then, I also added the giblets and the wing tips and the left over onion. Poured enough boiling water over the duck to bring the water up to less than halfway and put it in a 325 degree oven. Turned it over after an hour and cooked it for another hour.

Took the duck out and put in a roasting pan and put it in the refrigerator. I then strained the liquid into a bowl and refrigerated that.

Day Two: Scraped the fat (and there was a LOT of it) off what was a very nice duck stock and used that to make a sauce. Roasted the duck at 500 degrees for about a half an hour. Cut it in half, sauced it (using an orange sauce) and Voila! Came up with something resembling duck confit/Peking duck. Very crispy skin (even after being sauced), and nearly fat-free. Nice duck stock and everything in one pot. Couldn't be better.

I believe this will be my go-to method from now on.

Boneless, skin on, duck breast at $13.99/lb at Whole Foods. Anyone know a source for organic duck breast besides Whole Foods that may not be as expensive? That seems kinda high.

Cheesetique! $9.95/lb and they are hormone free, antibiotic free, and free range. Had some last night and they were good!

Dang! You're right! I always go right for the bag of hanger steak in that fridge and forget to get anything else. 'cept'n cheese, of course.