Duck In Honey And Sage Sauce With Rhubarb Relish Recipes

DUCK IN HONEY AND SAGE SAUCE WITH RHUBARB RELISH

Steps:

• For the relish, place the onion, rhubarb, currants, sugar and water into a saucepan and simmer 30 minutes until tender.
• Stir in the balsamic vinegar and cool.
• Melt the butter in a skillet and lightly fry the duck pieces on both sides.
• Add the shallots and cook until soft.
• Carefully remove the duck pieces and keep warm.
• Strain off any excess fat.
• Add the wine to the shallots and bring to the boil; stirring, then add the honey and lemon juice.
• Stir until the honey has dissolved, then add the sage, lemon rind and seasoning.
• Stir in the cream and heat through thoroughly.
• Return the duck pieces to the skillet, cover and simmer very gently for 15 minutes, or until tender.
• Place the duck pieces on a warm serving dish.
• Remove the lemon rind from the sauce and spoon over duck pieces.
• Serve garnished with the rhubarb relish and accompanied by minted new potatoes and green peas.

RHUBARB-SOY MARINATED DUCK WITH RHUBARB COMPOTE

Steps:

• Place the rhubarb, soy sauce and ginger in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 8 minutes. Strain. Place half of the soy mixture in a shallow glass or ceramic dish. Add the duck breasts and marinate for 1 hour, turning the breasts from time to time.
• Heat the oil in a medium-size cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the duck and sear until well browned but medium rare in the center, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet and keep warm. Add the remaining soy mixture to the skillet and deglaze the pan.
• Cut the breasts on the diagonal into thin slices. Fan the slices out on each of 4 plates and spoon the sauce over them. Divide the compote among the plates and serve immediately.

PEKING DUCK WITH HONEY AND FIVE-SPICE GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine honey, soy sauce, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes.
• In a large saucepan, bring 4 quarts water to a boil. Meanwhile, remove giblets and neck from duck cavity and discard (or reserve for another use). Cut off excess fat from cavity and neck area, then cut off tail. (This helps balance the duck vertically over the beer can.)
• Using your fingers, carefully separate the skin from the breast meat through the bottom of the breasts and work your fingers upward to separate the skin from the meat (be careful not to tear skin). Next, separate the skin from the backbone through the neck and working your way down until you reach the legs. (Scissors are helpful, but be careful to avoid piercing the skin.) Transfer duck to a rack set in the sink.
• Using a ladle or measuring cup, pour half of the boiling water evenly over top of the duck. Flip duck and pour the remaining water evenly all over second side. Tilt duck to drain all water from the cavity, then pat dry with paper towels.
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder with 1 teaspoon salt, the black pepper and 1 tablespoon of the glaze. Rub the mixture inside the cavity. Stand duck vertically by inserting beer can into cavity and place in a roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Using a pastry brush, brush the remaining glaze all over the duck and sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Place duck in the refrigerator, uncovered, until the skin feels dry and leathery, 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees with rack in bottom third of oven. Remove duck from refrigerator, and add 1 1/2 cups water to the pan. Wrap wing tips and tips of drumsticks with foil to prevent burning, then loosely tent duck with foil. Roast for 15 minutes. Decrease temperature to 350 degrees and roast, tented with foil, until skin is mahogany and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes more, adding more water to the pan if needed.
• Leaving duck on the can, transfer duck vertically to a cutting board and let rest for 15 minutes. Carve the crispy skin from the back and legs of the duck, and slice into strips.
• Carefully remove duck from the beer can and return to cutting board. Carve off the breasts and legs; thinly slice the breasts and shred dark meat.
• Carefully strain pan juices into a small bowl and pour off all the fat. In another small bowl, whisk together the hoisin, sesame oil and up to 1/4 cup of the pan juices to form sauce.
• To serve, spread 1 tablespoon prepared sauce on each tortilla. Top each with some scallions, cucumbers, duck meat and crispy skin. Roll up and enjoy warm.

ROAST DUCK WITH A HONEY SOY BASTING SAUCE

Steps:

• Note: I never measure the basting sauce exactly, I think this should be about right, but do adjust for taste if I am a little off.
• Wash duck under cold water and remove any missed feathers.
• Combine all the basting ingredients and boil over a high heat for about 2 minutes. Keep sauce warm while basting, stirring occasionally.
• Place duck in a roasting dish, brush with basting sauce. Bake in a slow oven (130°C) for about three hours, bast several times while cooking. (I like to do this slow to stop the skin from burning.).
• Turn the oven up to 170-180 and continue to roast for a further 30-45 minutes until skin is browned and crisp and duck is cooked through.
• As the duck is finishing off, mix a little water with cornflour, turn up the heat on stove, add cornflour to basting sauce and stir until mixture thickens. (I say 1-2 teaspoons of cornflour, the amount will depend on how much of the sauce has been used during cooking and how much it has reduced by.).
• Serve Duck with basting sauce.

DUCK BREASTS WITH REDCURRANT & ONION RELISH

Steps:

• Gently fry the onion, apple, garlic, ginger and chilli, if using, in a pan with the oil for about 10 mins until softened. Pour in the vinegar and bubble down until reduced by half. Add 100ml water and sugar to taste. Cook until reduced by two thirds and thickened. Stir in the redcurrants and balsamic vinegar, and cook for another 5 mins. The relish can be made up to a week ahead and stored in the fridge.
• Using a sharp knife, slash the fat of the duck breasts in a criss-cross, cutting almost through to the flesh. Rub the skin with salt and five-spice powder.
• Heat a heavy-based frying pan, until you can feel a gentle heat, then place the duck, skin-side down. Cook for 5 mins on a low to medium heat until the fat begin to melt. Spoon over the duck and season.
• When the skin begins to brown and crisp, after about another 2 mins, tip out the excess fat. Flip over the breasts and cook for another 5 mins on the flesh side. This will give you medium-rare duck. If you prefer well done, cook for a further 3 mins or so. Remove from the heat, allow to stand for 5 mins then slice diagonally. Serve with watercress salad and the relish.