Duck

(All Recipes have Gluten-Free Options)

Marmalade Duck (with Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Lentils) Serves 4

This is one of those impressive dishes which looks like you’ve been slaving away in the kitchen for hours, but it is, in fact, super easy. The sweetness of the potatoes complements the duck beautifully. The recipe is from Raymond Blanc’s ‘Simply Raymond’ cookbook (I’ve slightly changed the cooking instructions as I prefer to cook the duck in the oven rather than on the hob).

4 boneless duck breasts (approx. 160g each), skin on

4 tablespoons orange marmalade

1 tablespoon water

Dash of red wine vinegar

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Score the skin of the duck breasts, through the fat but not all the way through to the flesh, and salt them.
2. Place the breasts in a dry frying pan, skin side down, over a low heat to render down most of the fat, this may take as much as 10-15 minutes. When the fat is rendered, turn up the heat to crisp up and brown the skin (about 2 minutes). Finally, turn over to sear the underside for minute or so.
3. Place the duck breasts on a baking tray in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile in a small saucepan, warm the marmalade. Add the water and a dash of red wine vinegar. If the sauce looks too thick, add a little more water. Taste and season with salt and pepper accordingly.
5. Carve each duck breast and place the slices on plates with the marmalade sauce spooned over. Serve with the ‘Roasted Sweet Potato & Lentils’ (recipe below).

Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Lentils

3 sweet potatoes

400g tin green lentils, drained and rinsed

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

2 generous pinches of sea salt

4 turns of ground black pepper

2-3 handfuls of spinach

1-2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

A handful of coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)

1. Peel the sweet potatoes and chop each of them into 8-10 pieces.
2. Lay the sweet potatoes in a roasting tin, add the oil, sea salt and black pepper, and toss the potatoes so that they are evenly coated.
3. Roast the potatoes in a preheated oven, 160’c, for 20 minutes. Remove the tin from the oven, turn the potatoes, add the crushed garlic and return to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes. The potatoes should be slightly golden on the edges and just cooked through.
4. Finally, remove from the oven and while still hot add the lentils and spinach. Gently toss. The lentils will warm through and the spinach will wilt a little. Finish with a dash of vinegar and sprinkle with parsley, if using.

Sweet Duck Legs, Plums & Star Anise (Serves 4)

This is one of those recipes which the whole family will love, young and old. There is very little preparation but you do need to do it well in advance to allow the duck take on the flavours of the marinade – overnight would be good! The dish is then slow-cooked; the duck meat will melt in your mouth!

4 fat legs of duck

4 tablespoons soy sauce

3 teaspoons five-spice

A handful of star anise

½ stick of cinnamon

1 tablespoon olive oil

1-2 fresh chillies, deseeded and sliced

14-16 plums, halved and destoned

2 tablespoons demerara sugar

1. Place the duck legs in a large sandwich bag with the soy sauce, five-spice, star anise, cinnamon stick and olive oil. Give it a good mix and allow to marinate for a minimum of 2 hours but to really get the flavours going you could keep it in you fridge for up to 2 days (*see note above).
2. When you are ready to cook, place the chillies, plums and sugar in the bottom of a high sided roasting dish or casserole pan, then pour over the marinade mixture from the bag. Mix it all together with your hands, then place the duck legs on top.
3. Place the tray in a preheated oven, 170’c fan, for 2 to 2½ hours.
4. Remove the star anise and cinnamon stick, then taste the sauce to see if it needs seasoning with a little more soy sauce. Serve with roast potatoes or rice; you could even shred the duck and serve with Chinese pancakes!

Roast Duck, Melon and Blackberry Salad (Serves 4)

All too often duck legs are a cut of meat that are overlooked, but as Nigel Slater shows in this recipe, they are super easy to roast and are extremely tasty. This recipe makes a delicious, light supper.

125ml white or red wine

4 duck legs

A little olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

10 juniper berries

1 tablespoon sea salt

750g ripe melon

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

150g blackberries

1. First, make the herb rub. Put the thyme leaves and juniper berries in a mortar, add the sea salt and grind coarsely.
2. Place a wire rack over the top of a roasting tin, then put the duck legs on the rack. Moisten them with a little oil, then rub with the thyme and juniper salt.
3. Roast the duck in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 20 minutes, then remove briefly from the oven and pour the wine into the tin, then return to the oven. Lower the heat to 180’c and cook for a further 40 minutes. Keep an eye on the progress of the duck, topping up with a little more wine or stock as necessary.
4. Meanwhile, remove the peel and seeds from the melon then cut the flesh into thin slices and place on a serving dish.
5. Remove the duck from the oven, check for tenderness, and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing the skin and flesh from the bones.
6. Make the dressing by placing the roasting tin over a moderate heat, pour in the red wine vinegar and stir, letting the dressing bubble, scraping the tin as you go. Toss the duck meat into the warm dressing then tuck the meat among the melon. Scatter over the blackberries and serve.

Roast Duck Breasts with Sour Cherry Sauce (Serves 4)

This is one of those recipes which shouts ‘impressive’ yet is incredibly easy to cook. The original recipe, from Delia Smith’s ‘Winter Cookbook’, calls for a whole duck to be roasted which can be a bit of a faff, fortunately the sauce works just as well with roasted duck breasts!… I like to serve the duck quite pink, but if you prefer them more well done cook for a little longer. This recipe is delicious with ‘Concetta’s potatoes’ and ‘Buttered Savoy Cabbage’ or ‘Stir Fried Swiss Chard’ (recipes here)

4 duck breasts

5 tablespoons of Morello cherry jam (with a high fruit content)

40g dried sour cherries

425ml red wine

Sea salt and black pepper

½ teaspoon cornflour (optional)

Watercress to garnish (optional)

1. Measure the wine into a small saucepan and add the cherries to pre-soak, leave to one side.
2. Score the skin of the duck breasts, through the fat but not all the way through to the flesh, and salt them.
3. Place the breasts in a dry frying pan, skin side down, over a low heat to render down most of the fat, this may take as much as 10-15 minutes. When the fat is rendered, turn up the heat to crisp up and brown the skin (about 2 minutes). Finally, turn over to sear the underside for minute or so.
4. Place the duck breasts on a baking tray. Pass 1 tablespoon of the jam through a sieve and brush it all over the skin of each duck breast as a glaze. Then place the duck breasts in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 8-10 minutes (see note above). Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
5. Whilst the duck is resting, put the saucepan with the wine and sour cherries over a medium/high heat and let it bubble and reduce to about two-thirds of its original volume, then add the remaining 4 tablespoons of jam and season with salt and pepper. Whisk and allow to bubble and reduce for another 2 minutes (if you prefer a thicker sauce whisk in a little cornflour).
6. To serve, slice the breasts and spoon some of the sauce over each portion. Garnish with watercress (if using).

Pan-Roasted Duck Breast with Spiced Peaches (Serves 4) 

This is a beautiful looking dish, the colour of the peaches totally lifts the plate. Despite looking like a rather complex recipe it is actually very straightforward; you just need to have two frying pans on the go and read the recipe through first! If you are serving it to guests it is a good idea to prepare the peaches, sauce and duck beforehand (to stage 6) and then when your guests arrive, just oven cook the duck and finish off the sauce. You could use nectarines if peaches aren’t available. This is a recipe which I have taken from Daniel Galmiche’s cookbook, ‘French Countryside Cooking’. I like to serve this dish with my staple side dishes, ‘Sautéed Spinach with Garlic’ and ‘Concetta’s Potatoes’ (both recipes are here).

100g caster sugar

1 inch piece of cinnamon stick, broken

4 unripe peaches or nectarines

4 duck breasts

2-3 teaspoons Szechuan peppercorns

50g unsalted butter

1 shallot, chopped

4 tablespoons sherry vinegar

125ml chicken stock

Sea salt and black pepper

1. First place the Szechuan peppercorns in a dry frying pan over a high heat and ‘roast’ for a few minutes until aromatic. Then crush using a mortar and pestle. Set aside.
2. Cut the peaches in half (I find it is easier to skin them if they are cut them in half before cooking). Put the sugar in a large pan with the cinnamon stick and 750ml water, cook over a medium heat, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Add the peaches and poach for about 5 minutes. Remove the peaches and reserve 125ml of the syrup. When the peaches have cooled, skin them, removing any stones, cut each half into slices. Set aside.
3. Season the duck breasts on both sides with salt and pepper, then sprinkle the crushed Szechuan peppercorns over the skin. Place the breasts in a dry frying pan, skin side down, over a low heat to render down most of the fat, this may take as much as 10-15 minutes. When the fat is rendered, turn up the heat to crisp up and brown the skin (about 2 minutes). Finally, turn over to sear the underside for minute or so. Remove the duck breasts from the pan to a baking tray (keep to one side), pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the frying pan.
4. To make the sauce, return the pan with the tablespoon of duck fat to the hob, heat gently over a medium heat, then add the shallot and cook for 5 minutes until softened, then pour in the sherry vinegar and deglaze the pan, stirring to remove any caramelised bits on the bottom. Add the stock, bring to the boil, then simmer, stirring for 5 minutes until reduced by half.  Set the pan to one side.
5. In another frying pan, melt 25g of the butter over a medium heat. Add the peaches and cook for about 5 minutes, turning occasionally until they are golden brown and slightly caramelised. Remove and leave to one side. Add the cinnamon and the 125ml of reserved poaching syrup to the pan. Cook over a medium heat, until then syrup turns a caramel colour and has slightly thickened. Return the peaches to the pan, toss gently in the syrup, then remove from the heat – cover with foil and leave to one side.
6. To finish cooking the duck breasts, place the baking tray with the duck, in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 8-10 minutes (depending on their size). Remove from the oven and rest for 5 minutes, before cutting into thick slices.
7. Meanwhile return the pan with the peaches and syrup to the stove and gently reheat. Remove the peaches from the syrup, put to one side and keep warm, reserving the syrup.
8. Finally, gently reheat the sauce (with the shallots), then add the remaining 25g butter, swirl around to make a shiny sauce and add the juices of the rested duck and the reserved peach syrup, bring to the boil so that it thickens slightly.
9. To serve, place each sliced duck breast on a plate surrounded by the peach slices and with the sauce spooned over.

Smoked Duck Salad with Orange & Pomegranate (Serves 4)

This is great as a starter, but is equally good as light supper dish. If you can’t find ready cooked smoked duck breasts locally, you can buy them online, I would recommend those from Farmison & Co.

2 ready cooked smoked duck breasts (see note above)

2 oranges

1 pomegranate (or fresh pomegranate seeds)

Handful of walnuts

1 bag mixed salad leaves

Dressing:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons walnut oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Juice and zest of an orange

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Place the walnuts on a baking tray and bake in a preheated oven, 180’c, for about 7-10 minutes (keep a eye on them!).
2. If using a whole pomegranate, seed it. Peel one of the oranges, slice it into segments (remove any pith), and juice and zest the other.
3. Whisk together the dressing ingredients, seasoning to taste.
4. Slice the duck breasts
5. Divide the salad leaves between 4 plates, add the orange segments, pomegranate seeds and walnuts. Place sliced duck in the centre and drizzle with the dressing.

Duck Breasts with Pomegranate & Walnuts (Serves 4)

This is such an easy, quick recipe but it looks so special that one would think you had spent hours in the kitchen – definitely my kind of recipe!! I like to serve it with sautéed spinach, which is super quick to make, and depending on time and the occasion, either with dauphinoise potatoes, I prefer the recipe without cheese for this dish, (recipes here) or steamed potatoes. The garnish of the coriander leaves and pomegranate seeds is very important, as they give the dish a lovely fresh, sweet tangy finish! I like to serve the duck quite pink, but if you prefer them more well done cook for a little longer.

4 duck breasts

2 medium onions, finely chopped

125g walnuts, roughly chopped

6 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

2 cloves garlic, crushed

200ml chicken stock

Coriander leaves to garnish

Pomegranate seeds to garnish

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Score the skin of the duck breasts, through the fat but not all the way through to the flesh,and salt them.
2. Place the breasts in a dry frying pan, skin side down, over a low heat to render down most of the fat, this may take as much as 10-15 minutes. When the fat is rendered, turn up the heat to crisp up and brown the skin (about 2 minutes). Finally, turn over to sear the underside for minute or so.
3. Place the duck breasts on a baking try and place in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 8-10 minutes (see note above)
4. Meanwhile remove half the duck fat from the frying pan, add the onion with a pinch of salt, cook until soft and lightly golden. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute or so.
5. Add the chicken stock, pomegranate molasses, walnuts and some seasoning to the pan, simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Once the duck is cooked allow it to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
7. Serve on plates with the sauce and sprinkled with pomegranate seeds and coriander leaves.

Duck Breast with Raspberries, Dauphinoise Potatoes and Tenderstem Broccoli (Serves 4)

Duck breasts are a great midweek meal as they are so easy to cook – just brown in a frying pan to render the fat and then place in the oven for about 8-10 minutes! The raspberry sauce in this recipe is lovely, as it has a slightly sweet, tangy flavour which complements the rich meat of the duck perfectly. I like to serve the duck breasts quite pink, so if you prefer them more well done cook for a little longer than I have specified in the recipe. For a really special meal serve this dish with Dauphinoise Potatoes, I also like to serve Tenderstem Broccoli as it cuts the sweetness. The sauce calls for crème de cassis, which is something that you may not have lying around the house, but it is worth investing in, as it will keep for a very, very long time in your cupboard; I’m sure like me you’ll make this recipe again plus having it in the house gives you the perfect excuse to make a Kir Royale cocktail (recipe here). This duck recipe is also from my well used edition of  ‘The Food of France’.

4 duck breasts

2 teaspoons sea salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

4 teaspoons demerara sugar

250ml red wine

150ml crème de cassis

1 tablespoon cornflour

250g raspberries (defrosted if frozen)

Black pepper

1. Score the skin of the duck breasts, through the fat but not all the way through to the flesh.
2. Place the breasts in a dry frying pan, skin side down, over a low heat to render down most of the fat, this may take as much as 10-15 minutes. When the fat is rendered, turn up the heat to crisp up and brown the skin (about 2 minutes). Finally, turn over to sear the underside for minute or so. Remove the duck breasts from the pan, pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Keep this pan to one side to make the sauce.
3. Meanwhile mix together the sea salt, cinnamon and demerara sugar.
4. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the browned duck skin, pressing it down with your hands. Season with black pepper.
5. Place the duck breasts on a baking tray and place in a preheated oven, 200’c fan, for 8-10 minutes.
6. To make the sauce, mix together the red wine and cassis in a jug. Pour about 100ml of the liquid into a small bowl and mix in the cornflour, then pour this back into the jug and stir.
7. Return the pan (with the remaining 2 tablespoons of fat) to the heat and pour in the red wine and cassis. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until it has thickened and some of the alcohol has burned off. Add the raspberries and simmer for another minute to warm through. Check the seasoning, remove and keep warm.
8. Remove the duck breasts from the oven. To caramelise the sugared skin place under a really hot grill for a minute or so (don’t leave them too long otherwise you will overcook the duck meat – I actually use a kitchen blowtorch to caramelise them, so if you have one, I recommend using this).
9. Allow the duck to rest for 5 minutes before slicing, serve with a little sauce over the top and the rest served separately in a jug. Accompany with Dauphinoise Potatoes (recipe here) and Tenderstem Broccoli.