Duck Bigarade Recipes

CLASSIC FRENCH DUCK A L'ORANGE

Steps:

• Use a needle or sharp knife point to pierce the skin of the fat ducks all over, taking care to not pierce the meat itself; go in at an angle. This helps the fat render out of the bird. Salt the ducks well and preheat the oven to 325°F.
• Put the ducks in an ovenproof pan. I rest them on celery leaves to prop them above the level of the pan; this helps them crisp better. If you want, surround the duck with some root vegetables. Roast for 90 minutes.
• Take the pan out and increase the heat to 425°F. When it hits this temperature, put the birds back in the oven and roast until the skin is crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, boil the vinegar and sugar in a small pot until it turns brown. Pour in the stock little by little, stirring all the while. Set aside.
• Shave the peel off the oranges, grating some fine and keeping the peel of 2 oranges in large pieces. Juice 2 oranges. Cut segments from the other 2 oranges. Here is a tutorial on how to do that.
• When the ducks are ready, remove them from the oven and let them rest on a cutting board.
• Finish the sauce. Bring it to a simmer, then add about 1/2 cup of orange juice and the large bits of peel. Simmer 5 minutes. Whisk together a little of the sauce with the starch, and, when it's mixed well, stir it into the saucepot to thicken. Add the Grand Marnier and enough salt and orange bitters to taste. Swirl in the butter one tablespoon at a time.
• To serve, carve the duck and arrange on plates. Give everyone some orange supremes and pour over the sauce. Garnish with the grated zest, and serve with good bread, mashed potatoes or celery root, or polenta.

DUCK BIGARADE

Steps:

• Remove the duck breasts from the refrigerator, salt them well, and set them aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Pan sear the duck breasts. You may have to do this in batches. When the breasts are cooked, set them aside skin side up on a cutting board and let them rest, tented with aluminum foil, while you make the sauce.
• To make the sauce, pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pan and place the pan over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour into the pan and stir to combine and make a roux. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes, until it is the color of coffee with cream.
• Add a pinch of salt and stir to combine, then slowly stir in the stock, orange juice, liqueur, and vinegar. Everything will spatter at first, but it will calm down. Add any accumulated juices from the duck to the sauce. Let this boil down until it is a little thinner than the consistency of Thanksgiving gravy. Add the sugar, then taste and adjust with salt. If you want a more refined sauce, pour it through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.
• To serve, slice the breasts. Spoon some sauce on each plate and top with breast slices. Garnish with the orange zest and orange slices.

BIGARADE SAUCE RECIPE

Steps:

• Remove the zest from half of the orange, cut into ¼ inch strips and reserve. Squeeze the juice from the orange and save that too.
• Heat up a sauce pan over medium heat. When hot, add the butter and then the shallots. Saute the shallots until translucent, about 3 minutes.
• Add the orange juice, vinegar and orange liqueur (optional). Let this reduce for 2 minutes.
• Add the demi glace and reserved orange zest to the sauce pan. Let this simmer and reduce down until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoons.
• Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper.
• Strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth.
• Serve with duck, chicken or trout.

CRISPY DUCK CROWN WITH BIGARADE SAUCE

Steps:

• Pare the zest from the lemon and two of the oranges and set aside. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and all the oranges and set aside.
• Place the sugar and wine vinegar into a fairly deep frying pan and allow to dissolve over a low heat. Turn up the heat a little and continue to cook until you have a deep golden caramel.
• Heat another frying pan, add a splash of rapeseed oil and quickly brown the duck wings. As soon as the vinegar syrup has formed a caramel, add the citrus juice together with the browned duck wings. Continue to cook for a few minutes giving the pan a good shake before pouring into the stock. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and simmer gently for 45 minutes - skimming the surface as necessary to remove any scum.
• Meanwhile, cut the citrus zests into fine julienne, add to a pan of boiling water and blanch for one minute before draining thoroughly.
• Pass the sauce through a fine sieve into a clean pan and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the zests and the sauce is ready to serve.
• Place the honey and a pinch of salt into a saucepan with four tbsp of water. Bring to the boil and then turn off the heat (don't reduce the liquid otherwise the glaze will become too syrupy and might burn).
• Paint the glaze over the duck crowns and set aside for 20 minutes.
• When ready to cook, pre-heat the oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6. Place the duck crowns breast side up on a rack in a roasting tin and roast in the pre-heated oven for 10 minutes before lowering the temperature to 180°C /Gas mark 4. Continue to roast for a further 30 minutes until the skin is crisp and deep golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes before carving.