Sous Vide Whole Duck

By Danielle on December 2, 2021, Updated March 5, 2023 34 Comments

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Impress your dinner guests this holiday season with a Sous Vide Whole Duck! The tender and flavorful dark meat and crispy skin makes this one a show stopper for Christmas dinner!

If you’re wondering how to sous vide a whole duck, this recipe includes all the tips and tricks including where to buy duck, why you should spatchcock it and how to get golden brown and crispy skin!

Overhead view of a sous vide whole duck that has been browned in the oven.

When we want to impress dinner guests or prepare something special for the holidays, we usually serve duck. This sous vide duck confit is so tasty and elegant, it’s truly restaurant quality.

This sous vide duck breast with orange glaze is a favorite to serve at dinner parties and these duck bites are the perfect delicious appetizer for any party! And to keep you warm at night, stewed duck is the answer.

Can you tell that I love to prepare duck using the sous vide? It’s just so reliable and yields the most tender and juicy duck! AND...you can use the leftovers to make this duck pizza.

So, while this roasted duck recipe is delicious and has been a Christmas staple for years, I’m changing it up this year and preparing my whole duck sous vide style!

Why this recipe works

Cooking a whole duck using the sous vide requires some prep work, but once it’s in the water bath, it’s pretty hands off. Your time and the oven are freed up to make all the side dishes to go with your duck, like these duck fat crispy smashed potatoes!
If the crispy duck skin is your favorite part, don’t worry! The duck gets a quick roast in the oven after it comes out of the water bath so the skin gets perfectly browned and crispy!
With the sous vide (and spatchcocking), the whole duck is cooked evenly throughout! The result is a rich, tender, juicy and flavorful duck. And the controlled temperature of the water bath ensures the duck isn’t overcooked or undercooked!

Side view of sous vide duck with crispy browned skin.

What is Sous Vide?

Sous vide is basically a method of cooking using what is called an immersion circulator. This immersion circulator circulates water in a temperature controlled water bath at a certain temperature to perfectly cook your food every time.

Because the temperature doesn't change, and it keeps your meat (or dessert, veggies, etc.) at the same temperature, your risk of overcooking becomes very minimal.

To learn even more about sous vide cooking, head over and read "what is sous vide cooking and the benefits of sous vide cooking."

What is the Water Displacement Method?

The displacement method is where you slowly submerge a ziplock bag in water pushing the air out of the top of the bag (the bag should be slightly open at the top to allow air to escape).

Use a clip (I use binder clips) to clip the bag to the side to keep it from floating and getting air and/or water inside.

Tools Used

You will also want to check out these posts on the best sous vide containers and the best sous vide bags for more information!

Other sous vide poultry recipes

Where can you buy whole duck?

If your local grocery store doesn’t sell whole duck (mine usually doesn’t), you have a few other options. If you live close to an Asian market, many of them sell ducks, or you can check with your local butcher shop. You can even buy duck online.

Ingredients

For the full list of ingredients and quantities, please see the recipe card below.

You’ll need a 3-5 pound whole duck for this recipe. Whole ducks normally come with giblets (heart, liver and gizzard pieces) and the neck stuffed inside. You’ll need to remove these innards before cooking the duck.

The duck is coated in a sauce which includes pomegranate juice and champagne vinegar. If you can’t find pomegranate juice, you can substitute cranberry juice. It adds a similar tart flavor and color to the sauce. For the champagne vinegar, white wine vinegar is a good substitute.

The duck is cooked with ½ cup of sliced fennel and 1 bunch of green onions, chopped into 2-inch pieces. Fennel has a unique flavor, tasting a little like black licorice, so I don’t recommend substituting it in this recipe.

As for the green onion, since the recipe calls for an entire bunch, it’s best to avoid a substitution here too. In a pinch, however, you can replace it with a mix of chopped chives and shallots.

Step by step instructions

Start by removing the spine of the duck (spatchcock or butterfly it). If you’re not sure how to do this, here is a helpful video on how to butterfly a duck.

Prick the skin all over and use a sharp knife to lightly score the skin on the breast side, making sure not to cut the meat.

Overhead view of a whole duck on a plate with the breast skin scored in a criss cross pattern.

Coat the duck in salt and let it sit, uncovered, in the fridge overnight.

Heat a sous vide water bath to 150F degrees.

Combine the remaining ingredients (except the fennel and green onions) in a bowl and mix to combine.

Coat the duck in the sauce and place in a vacuum seal bag (or ziplock bag if using the water displacement method) with the fennel and green onion. Seal the bag.

Place it in the water bath and let it cook for 12 hours.

Vacuum sealed whole duck in a sous vide water bath.

Remove the duck from the water bath and the bag (reserve the bag juice) and place on a roasting rack.

Roast in a 450F degree oven for 15-30 minutes, or until the skin has turned a golden brown. Be careful not to over-roast as the duck could dry out.

While the duck roasts, place the bag juice in a saucepan and simmer, skimming the fat and particles off the top as it cooks. Adjust the taste with salt.

Remove the duck from the oven and let cool slightly. Carve and serve it drizzled with the cooked bag juice.

Expert tips

Removing air from the sealable bag is essential for food safety as it keeps bacteria out of the bag.
To keep bacteria out of the bag, it's also essential to spatchcock the duck for this recipe. This will remove the cavity where air can be trapped.
Make sure the duck remains submerged in the water bath. If the bag floats, you can open it to let the excess air out, then reseal it. (This works for a vacuum sealed bag or a ziploc bag).
You can also prevent floating by using a sous vide sinker weight or weighing the bag down with something heavy.
Don’t forget to remove the innards in your duck! You can save them to make duck broth by following this crockpot chicken broth recipe or this Instant Pot chicken bone broth recipe. Just replace the chicken with duck.
It's important to salt the duck and let it sit uncovered in the fridge overnight. This helps dry out the skin so it gets crispy in the oven.
Be careful not to over-roast the duck after the water bath as it will dry out. You want to roast it just until the skin is browned and crispy.

Overhead view of a carved whole duck on a pan.

Common questions

Why do you need to spatchcock the duck for this recipe?

When you spatchcock or butterfly, you remove the cavity in the middle where air can sit while the duck cooks in the sous vide. You want to get as much air out of the bag as possible to avoid bacteria entering the bag. Spatchcocking also ensures the duck cooks evenly.

Why should you score the duck skin?

Scoring the skin on the duck breast helps to render the fat from the skin during cooking, which helps create the golden brown and crispy skin. When scoring, be careful not to cut too deeply. You want to lightly cut the skin, not the meat underneath.

What temperature should you sous vide a whole duck?

For the best results, set the temperature of your sous vide water bath to 150F degrees.

How long does it take to sous vide a whole duck?

At 150F degrees, the duck will only take 12 hours to cook in the water bath. Of course, spatchcocking the duck also helps speed up the process.

Can you sous vide frozen duck?

Since the duck is being spatchcocked and dried out overnight in the fridge, it will need to be defrosted first. This will take 1-2 days in the fridge.

Is it okay if cooked duck is pink?

Ducks are considered poultry, however, the meat is dark and tender like red meat. As such, duck may be slightly pink, even when cooked to an internal temperature of 165F degrees. Many people prefer their duck cooked medium or medium rare, with a touch of pink inside.

Side view of pieces of carved duck arranged on a pan.

Make it a meal

Here are a few of our favorite side dishes to serve with duck:

Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it turned out!