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Re: Cooking duck breasts


Clair
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I now cook mine like this, it's fool-proof and Mr Cat (who is French) says it's as good as anything you'd eat in a restaurant...

Remove the duck breasts from the fridge an hour before you cook them.

Put a heavy frying pan on a medium heat to warm up, and also turn the oven on to a very low heat.

Score the breast fat deeply with a sharp knife, grate a little pepper over the meat side, and sprinkle with a tiny bit of rosemary.

When the pan is good and hot, add the breasts, fat-side down.  The pan should be hot enough to sizzle, but not so hot that fat spits everywhere 

Leave to cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the fat has melted down by about half, and is well browned,(you should tip the molten fat from the pan several times during the cooking).

Turn the breasts over in the pan, smear a little honey over the fat-side, and leave to cook for about 3 minutes.

Remove breasts from pan, wrap with tin-foil, put in oven to keep warm, and turn the oven off.

De-glaze the frying pan with some port, then add a little more honey and stir until liquid.

Remove the breasts from the oven, open the foil and add any juices to the pan.

Slice breasts thinly and top with the port and honey sauce.

 

 

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Cat...pardon me for saying that 10 mins absoluterly max!

Deglazing the pan...the honey...perfect but you get a burnt sugar type effect and there is nothing to deglaze.....Duck breast is something I cook every week for guests.This time of the year with elderflower fritter...in a month or so with roasted peach.Rosemary/?A little mis-matched with duck...but I guesse it is personal.

 

 

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Don't knock it until you've tried it Jon [:)]

The honey doesn't burn, the pan is not hot enough, it gently caramelises, and then dissolves into the port.

My brother in law is a professional chef (and he's French) and he loves it.

 

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.

It is the old fashioned method of cooking...no complaints about that.

The juices from the duck only disperse from the breast when it rests....then you get the jus....which makes a sauce.

I remember Marco P W in my kitchen delasing the pans...as we all did in those days [duck however is so so fatty] and he used to finnish off the sauce with a little butter...and say Monty old bear.....when what here ment was monte au beurre.

I am sure that your brother in law is a good chef and that his reciepe is good.....but by now I think that I know what I like and how to match my flavours....did not get 3 AA rosettes for not being able to understand cooking!Where does your relative work?

 

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Oh dear Jon, I didn't mean to upset you.   I'm sure your cooking is fab.

My brother in law (it's not his recipe by the way) is also an award winning chef, listed as one of les meilleures adresses in northern France.

Surprisingly, I did already know where jus comes from and how to deglaze a pan, but it was very kind of you to take the time to explain it to us all.

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Still having glut of blackcurrants from last harvest in the freezer, I would be very interested in anyone's recipe for using them in a sauce for duck (or pork, I guess). My searches have been unfruitful ( pun acknowledged!)

Pouyade

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[quote user="Cat"]

I now cook mine like this, it's fool-proof and Mr Cat (who is French) says it's as good as anything you'd eat in a restaurant...

Remove the duck breasts from the fridge an hour before you cook them.

Put a heavy frying pan on a medium heat to warm up, and also turn the oven on to a very low heat.

Score the breast fat deeply with a sharp knife, grate a little pepper over the meat side, and sprinkle with a tiny bit of rosemary.

When the pan is good and hot, add the breasts, fat-side down.  The pan should be hot enough to sizzle, but not so hot that fat spits everywhere 

Leave to cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the fat has melted down by about half, and is well browned,(you should tip the molten fat from the pan several times during the cooking).

Turn the breasts over in the pan, smear a little honey over the fat-side, and leave to cook for about 3 minutes.

Remove breasts from pan, wrap with tin-foil, put in oven to keep warm, and turn the oven off.

De-glaze the frying pan with some port, then add a little more honey and stir until liquid.

Remove the breasts from the oven, open the foil and add any juices to the pan.

Slice breasts thinly and top with the port and honey sauce.

 

 

[/quote]

That's pretty well what we do but with chopped fresh thyme in place of the rosemary and cider rather than port. But that's Normandy for you!

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I wont go into how I would cook a duck breast as it already looks quite heated... You can grill them, fry them or fry and roast them... all seem to have quite similar results...

the thing is to be able to serve it according to your guests taste, fat rendered, and not chewey.

In reference to berries n stuff... I add some quince in at the end to make a red wine/quince sauce...

Personally, if someone asks for it well done then any finesse is gone and you just shove it in the oven for 10 mins longer... as it wont taste good anyway.

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Once you have sealed the duck properly it has...obviously began to cook....

I feel that after pink...or lets say very pink the juices have escaped and the meat tastes dry.

Fortunately since we have been here no one has needed their duck well done.

Every cook, every chef has their own ideas....however.

Duck with its very distinct and intense flavour does not benefit by the addision of herbs...[too strong]

Sweetness[in moderation..ie honey and port or maderia as a sauce is perfect.

 

 

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[quote user="jon"]

.....but by now I think that I know what I like and how to match my flavours

[/quote]

Food for me is like wine, the best is the one I like the most be it 3 Euros or 300 Euros. Its interesting to try different things but I do get upset at chefs dictating what we should eat (that's a general comment not aimed at Jon in particular). Also what they might consider a good 'match' of flavours may not be mine. I also take the attitude that its me whats paying so if I want a rack of lamb with rum and raisin ice cream on top that's what I should get.

I once ate in a very expensive restaurant and the desert was apple pie with cream. I asked if I could have custard instead and was given a terrible look by the waitress who went off in a huff and got the chef who called me a heathen, blinking cheek, never went back again, their loss not mine.

I do my Duck in the oven, about 20 mins at 175 deg then rap it in foil with a mix of honey and 5 spice for about 10 minutes (in the warming trolley). I eat a lot of duck as it has little or no cholesterol and prefer it to steak. You can saute potatoes in the fat from the duck, very nice too.

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I do agree with what you say.

It is about taste....and what is wrong with custard!

Nothing....especially when you are paying.

Here we are on a forum...free speach...I hope...and, of course without any intention of upsetting each other!

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I've roasted our own ducks a few times, whole, with just an orange inside. They were good.

But what I enjoy most is smoked duck's breasts, which I buy from a deli. Has anyone ever smoked the meat themselves? Then you slice very finely and serve with a salad.

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Ooh, I love smoked duck breast, served with watercress, yum [:)]

Never tried smoking it myself though, and I'd have to go a long way to find a deli in these parts.  I get mine from Leader-Price.

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[quote user="Patf"]

Has anyone ever smoked the meat themselves? Then you slice very finely and serve with a salad.

[/quote]

Funny enough no but I bought a 'smoker' from Lakeland two weeks back. Had a go at Salmon (it was on special offer) smoked with aplle wood and found it rather nice. Quite different to what you buy in a packet and really best eaten straight away. Mrs 'Q' said about smoking duck breast and I am keen to give it a go so any recipes would be most welcome.

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That's the one, birthday present and all that.

Most smoking recipes seem to require soaking in brine for a long time then leaving to dry before smoking. For the Salmon I had to soak it for 24 hours which makes the flesh the colour smoked salmon is (not the smoking strange enough). I then had to smoke it for about an hour. The recipe never said if it was a dry or wet smoke so I went the dry route on my first attempt, will try a wet smoke next time.

I did find THIS recipe for smoked duck which requires 3 to 4 hours soak. I am not to sure I understand the 'cold smoking' bit either i.e. what it is, I didn't know wood smoked at around 25 deg C? The biggest problem seems to be time, most recipies seem to take a couple of days from start to finish.

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FWIW, the way I do smoked duck breasts is:

A. Take the skin off - lets the smoke get all over it

B. Smoke for 2 - 3 hours (cold smoking, over oak)

C. Leave for a day or so (allows the smoky flavour to soak in a bit)

D. Cook as normal

Sensational!

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