“
A good spicy challenge strikes a balance between flavour and fear.” ~ Adam Richman
I love a good jalapeno popper. I love the rich cream cheese paired with buttery sharp cheddar. I love the, sometimes overwhelming, heat of the jalapeno. And I love the salty bite of bacon. It is easily my favorite grilled food.
I am such a fan of the grilled jalapeno popper that I tend to take other popular grilling items and transform them into jalapeno popper versions. For example, I never turn down a dove jalapeno popper. I also have been known to create a grilled shrimp jalapeno popper. None of these are novel ideas, but they are recipes that never disappoint.
This summer, I opened the freezer and noticed a few forgotten mallard breasts. I had just seen a recipe for duck jalapeno poppers while visiting some popular grilling websites I frequent, and of course I mentally fired up the charcoal and started cleaning jalapenos for duck poppers. Upon wandering outside to actually start the grill, I realized it was well over 100 degrees outside, and nothing sounded worse than standing in front of a sweltering grill slowly turning poppers. I retreated back to the air conditioning and started to reformulate my plan.
A little contemplation lead to the duck jalapeno popper quesadilla. All the beautiful grilled flavors of the popper, including the jalapeno, onions, cream and cheddar cheeses, and bacon but prepared in a crispy tortilla shell quesadilla style.
Instead of leaving the duck whole and wrapping it in bacon, I slow cooked it for a few hours, with bacon to add a little fat, and then shredded the meat. Add to the shredded duck all the popper fixing, grill it on the griddle or in the oven, and you have a fast, easy alternative to the popper! And you don’t even have to break a sweat doing it.
The full recipe is featured on huntinglife.com, which I am very excited to be able to be a part of. Check out the entire recipe here: Duck Jalapeno Popper Quesadilla!
Happy Hunting!
Ingredients
- Flour or corn tortillas
- 3 wild duck breasts, cleaned and skinless
- 6-7 slices bacon
- 1/2 cup water
- 2-3 jalapenos, finely diced
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 3 cups cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil or butter
Instructions
- In a crockpot, place the cleaned, skinless duck breasts. Cover with the half cup of water and place two slices of bacon over the top.
- Cook the breasts on low for 3-4 four hours, until the duck because tender and starts to fall apart.
- Using two forks, shred the duck breasts. Discard the bacon.
- In a medium bowl, cream together the block of cream cheese and two cups of the cheddar cheese.
- Prepare bacon by placing on a large baking sheet covered in aluminum foil and cooking in a preheated 400 degree oven for 12 minutes. Let bacon cool slightly and dice into small pieces.
- Finely dice onions and jalapenos.
- To construct quesadilla, take one tortilla and place about a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture on top. Spread it evenly over tortilla. Add a spoonful of shredded duck, diced jalapeno and onions, and bacon crumbles. Top with more cheddar cheese and cover with second tortilla.
- Preheat a grilled to medium heat. Melt about a teaspoon of butter or cooking oil. Once oil is hot, place quesadilla on hot griddle and cook for two to three minutes, until the cheese has started to melt and tortilla is slight browned. Flip quesadilla and cook additional two to three minutes on second side.
- Repeat with remaining quesadillas. Serve with chipotle sour cream and salsa.
- Enjoy!
