Stuffing No. 2 for Ducks

A short, sage-forward stuffing meant to be packed into a duck rather than baked on its own. The proportions are small, so the first decision is how much you actually need.

• YieldOne cup of crumbs plus aromatics makes something in the region of a cup and a quarter of loose stuffing, which is likely to be well short of what a 5-6 lb duck will hold. Judge the bird and scale up before you start rather than stretching it.
• Bread crumbsThe recipe does not specify soft or dry. Soft crumbs torn or rubbed from day-old bread suit this mixture better than the dry sandy commercial kind, which soaks up the butter and duck fat and can go pasty. Roughly 2 oz of torn stale bread will give you a cup.
• SageTwo minced fresh leaves is a light hand, appropriate to duck. If substituting dried, something on the order of 1/4 teaspoon of rubbed sage is in the right range; dried sage tastes drier and stronger, so taste before committing.
• ParsleyThe recipe does not say; chopped fresh parsley is the likely reading, and a teaspoon measured after chopping is a reasonable interpretation.
• ButterSoften it rather than melting it. Mixed cold into soft crumbs it stays in small pockets and bastes the stuffing from inside as the duck roasts.
• ShallotsShallot size varies a good deal, and three small ones may amount to less than three of the large modern sort; two modern shallots, finely chopped, is probably closer to the intent. Raw shallot in a stuffing that will roast an hour or more should soften fully, so there is no need to sweat it first.
• Stuffing inside the birdThe hinge for anything cooked in a cavity: the centre of the stuffing must reach 165F/74C, which on a duck usually lags well behind the breast. Pack it loosely, check it with a probe, or bake it in a separate dish and spoon it alongside.
• No cooking directions givenThis entry is a component only. Roast the duck to your usual method and time; the stuffing needs no pre-cooking.