By WDNR Conservation Warden Capt. Tyler Strelow
This recipe appeared in the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s May 2026 eNewsletter.
From One Hunter To Another Hungry One: Duck-And-Eggs Is The Perfect Protein Breakfast
What does a conservation warden know about being a chef? Well, outside of my profession, I help feed my four boys. Wait, there’s more to this food tale.
I am an avid waterfowl hunter with four boys who enjoy ducks all season. We enjoy our meals.
One of our fall favorites is our duck-and-egg breakfast. It seems these days, I hear about people looking for protein sources to support a healthy, nutritious diet. Enter the duck. I thought I would share this simple protein-packed breakfast with my fellow duck hunters.
Eating duck can be a controversial topic. When I talk to others about duck hunting and eating duck, I often get the scrunched-up facial expression — even from other hunters who usually tell me about an unpleasant dining experience related to waterfowl. “It’s all in how you handle and prepare them,” I tell them.
Consider this recipe and preparation from one duck hunter, me, to another — you. Please be careful when eating wild game, or any meat for that matter, as there are suggested cooking temperatures and preparation guidelines to avoid food-borne illness.
Duck Steak Rivals the Beef Sirloin
Duck steak is one of my family’s favorite foods. Duck is red meat and best prepared as other red meats. A foolproof way to turn a duck breast into something like and, in my opinion, better than a beef sirloin, is to follow these tips.
- Age your ducks if you can. Hang your harvest upright in a cold, dry place for a couple of days.
- Remove the breast portion of the meat so you have two boneless duck breasts. Rinse the meat and use paper towels to dry it.
- Season both sides with a steak seasoning (like garlic salt and pepper).
- Heat a skillet on the stove on medium-high. You can tell it is the correct temperature by placing a small bit of butter in the skillet. If it quickly starts to brown and smoke, the temperature is perfect.
- Place a pat of butter in the pan and quickly put the duck breast on the melting butter in the skillet.
- Put a butter pat atop each breast and cover the skillet. (It works best if the outer breast meat is down on the skillet and the inner breast is facing up. This helps the butter soak in.)
- Cook for no longer than 3 minutes, remove cover, flip, and cook uncovered for another 2 minutes.
- Remove from skillet and let stand for 3 minutes.
- Cook eggs and hashbrowns and add to the plate.
- Enjoy this perfectly cooked (medium, pink inside) entrée with your eggs and hashbrowns. It’s the ideal protein-packed breakfast to get you through another morning hunt or a long day at work.
These directions are for an average-sized mallard and will work for any duck. But if you are cooking a smaller duck, you will need to reduce the cooking time (such as teal 2 minutes, flip, and another minute). I enjoyed everything from mallards, shovelers, canvasback, and even coots like this, and they are all delicious.
One of my favorite parts of the hunt is sharing the bounty with others. Wild game cooking is a great way to introduce people to hunting and show them how much we, as hunters, appreciate the animal from the field to the table.
Please take the time to introduce someone new to hunting. I’ll see you in the marsh.
