Don't forget to duck

A duck has more fat, a larger frame and less meat than a chicken of the same weight, so one should allow 500g of raw weight per person. A good quality young duck has a creamy skin and a plump breast.

Duck breasts are available from some supermarkets. Checkers and Woolworths, for example - and are often more economical to buy and cook than the whole duck.


TIPS FOR COOKING DUCK

When roasting a whole duck, pierce the bird all
over with a skewer so that the fat gets released during cooking.

Drain off the fat halfway through the cooking time. Do not discard this fat as it is delicious to use in roasting potatoes.

When cooking duck breasts, score the fat in a diamond pattern, place fat-side down in a pan and cook over a medium high heat until the skin is crispy and much of the fat has been released. Drain off this fat before adding any sauce to the pan.

Duck breasts are best served medium rare and still a little pink inside.



TAMARIND ROAST DUCK WITH PEARS

2kg fresh duck

½ orange, cut into 4 wedges

salt and freshly ground black pepper

80ml honey

30ml freshly squeezed orange juice

30ml tamarind puree

4 ripe pears

Rinse duck inside and out under running water and pat dry with paper towel. Lightly pierce the skin all over.

Fill the duck cavity with the orange wedges. Tie the legs together with string. Season duck all over with salt and pepper and place on its side in a large roasting pan. Roast in oven at 200?C for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and drain off excess fat. Return to oven and roast for a further 20 minutes. Drain off fat again. Reduce heat to 180?C.

Combine honey, orange juice and tamarind in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes.

Arrange pears around the duck, brush duck and pears with glaze and return to oven. Roast for a further hour, basting every 15 minutes, until the pears are tender and the duck is browned all over and cooked.

TO SERVE: Carve duck and serve with pears and vegetables.

Find tamarind puree at Chinese supermarkets.



GLAZED DUCK WITH BULGAR WHEAT SALAD

4 fresh duck breasts

20ml pomegranate molasses (available from Woolworths)

30ml honey

5ml toasted caraway seeds, crushed


Salad:

250g bulgar wheat

600ml hot vegetable stock

salt and freshly ground black pepper

410g can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

45ml olive oil

2 red onions, halved and finely sliced

15ml pomegranate molasses

100g dried sour cherries (available from Westpack)

handful fresh mint, chopped

handful fresh parsley, chopped

100g pistachio nuts, shelled, toasted and roughly chopped

60ml pomegranate seeds

Using a sharp knife, diagonally score skin of the duck breasts. Set aside.

Mix together the pomegranate molasses, honey and caraway seeds.

Rub the mixture evenly over the duck breasts.

Heat a non-stick griddle pan on high and cook the duck, skin-side down, for 2-3 minutes to caramelise
the skin. Turn over and cook a further for 2 minutes.

Transfer duck to an ovenproof dish and bake at 200?C for 8-10 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Duck breast should be slightly pink in colour. Remove and
set aside to rest.

SALAD: Put the bulgar wheat into a large bowl and pour over the stock. Cover with cling wrap or a plate and set aside. After five minutes, fluff with a fork. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in the chickpeas. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes until softened.
Stir in the pomegranate molasses and cherries and cook for a further 5 minutes, until the onions begin to
caramelise. Remove from heat and stir into bulgar wheat mixture. Stir in mint, parsley, and nuts.

TO SERVE: Spoon the salad onto a serving plate and arrange slices of duck on top. Pour over any cooking
juices from the duck and sprinkle over pomegranate seeds.



PEKING DUCK

1 lemon, sliced

1,2 litres water

50ml honey

45ml soy sauce

150ml rice wine or dry sherry

2kg fresh duck, washed and dried


Chinese pancakes:

500ml flour

180ml hot water

10ml sesame oil


To serve:

2 Lebanese cucumbers, julienned

1 bunch of spring onions, cut into strips

2 carrots, julienned

Combine lemon, water, honey, soy sauce and rice wine in a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

Place duck on a wire rack in a roasting pan and baste with mixture several times to ensure it is well coated. Set the uncovered duck aside for 4-5 hours to dry out.

To speed up the process the duck can be placed in front of a fan.

Once the duck is dried, the skin should feel like parchment paper.

TO ROAST: Put the duck, breast-side up, in a roasting pan. Add 150ml water to pan and roast at 200?C for
15 minutes. Reduce heat to 180?C, and cook for a further 1? hours.

Allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting into pieces and serving with the pancakes.

PANCAKES: Put flour in a large bowl and mix in the hot water until a dough is formed. Add more water
if mixture is too dry. Knead well until smooth. Wrap dough in cling wrap and rest for 30 minutes.

Sprinkle a little flour on the work surface and knead dough for a further five minutes.

Divide into 18 equal pieces.

Working with two pieces, roll each into a ball. Dip one side of a ball into sesame oil and place the oiled side on top of another ball.

Take a rolling pin and roll both pieces simultaneously into a 15cm circle. (You’ll have two pancakes divided by sesame oil.)

Cook the double pancake in a non-stick frying pan over low heat until it has dried on one side. Flip over and cook the other side.

Remove from the pan, peel pancakes apart and set aside.

Repeat until all dough is used up.


TO SERVE: Put a pancake on each plate, spread with hoisin sauce, and top with slices of duck, cucumber, carrot and spring onion. Roll up.



ROAST DUCK WITH CHERRY SAUCE

2.5kg fresh duck

salt and freshly ground black pepper


Sauce:

1 orange

juice of 1 lemon

30ml brandy or port

400g can of red cherries

15ml cornflour

sugar to taste

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Wash the duck inside and out and pat dry. Prick the skin all over to allow the fat to run out.

Sprinkle lightly inside and outside with salt and pepper and place on a wire rack in a roasting pan. Roast in the oven at 180?C for 1? hours or until the meat is tender.

Twice during the cooking time, remove excess fat from the roasting pan. (If desired, store fat in the fridge to use later to roast potatoes.)

Allow duck to rest for 15 minutes before carving. Cut up the duck into neat portions, discarding the carcass
and excess skin.

Put on a serving plate with a little cherry sauce. Serve with sautéed potatoes and vegetables in season.

CHERRY SAUCE: Finely grate the rind and squeeze the juice from the orange. Combine all ingredients for
the sauce in a small saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sauce becomes thick.

Season to taste with a little sugar if necessary and salt and pepper.

• This article was originally published on page 13 of The Star on April 22, 2010

Source : Babynet