Chefs Ideas for Duck
Whole Duck
Prick the skin all over, this helps to release the fat. Rub with olive oil, salt and pepper, inside and out. You can place orange, cherries, garlic, onion or anchovies in the cavity to add flavour. Place on a rack in a baking dish, breast side up. Put into a preheated oven, 220oC for 20 mins. Pour off the fat and turn it upside down and put it back in the hot oven for 20 mins. Again pour off the fat, reduce the oven to 200oC, turn the duck breast side up and bake for a further 30 mins. Wrap in foil and allow to rest for 20 mins while you make a sauce by pouring off the excess fat from the pan juices and adding stock, wine/fruit juice and other flavours.
Duck Marylands
If roasting, prick legs all over, season and place in the oven, set at 180oC for 30 minutes. To spice up rub the legs in a mix of ground coriander, cumin, pinch of cloves and 2 pinches of aniseed combined with a little peanut oil. If slow cooking in a sauce, there is no need to prick the skin, cook at 150oC for 2 ½ hours.
Duck Breasts
Score the breasts in a criss cross pattern deep enough to just be able to see the meat. Heat a little oil in a pan and when very hot sear the skin side until brown and crisp and then turn over and sear meat side for a minute. Set aside ready to go into a preheated 225oC oven for 10 minutes to complete your dish (whether it be for a warm salad or Asian stirfry). The following uses Dry Ideas Dried Sour Cherries and a fruit glaze, such as Spiced Cherry & Port and takes very little effort to produce a restaurant meal at home.
Place the seared breasts (one per serve) in an ovenproof dish and coat with glaze (teaspoon per breast)
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and then wrap in foil for further ten minutes before slicing.
Sauce:
After searing breasts pour off most of the fat
Add 2 cups of red wine to pan and boil flat out til reduced by half
Then add cup cream and reduce til sauce thickens then add cherries and set aside
Note: If using dried cherries soak them in some of the red wine for a couple of hours before making sauce - you will need 6 cherries per serve. The sauce quantities above will serve 6.