Autumn has crept up on us, and now Gressingham Duck have gifted us with a selection of sumptuous duck recipes to get us through the suddenly chilly evenings.
This whole glazed and roasted Gressingham Duck is perfect for a cosy night in – or even for a slightyly unconventional Christmas dinner (it’s never too early to plan!)
Whole Roast Gressingham Duck with a Honey & Cardamom Glaze
Prep/cooking/resting time: 20 minutes per 500g of duck plus an extra 20 minutes and 30 minutes resting time (E.g. If your duck is 1.25kg cook for 70 minutes and then rest for 30 minutes, giving a total time of 1 hour 40 minutes)
Serves 4
Ingredients
* 1 Gressingham Duck
For the glaze:
* 3 tbsp honey
* 1 tsp dry sherry
* 1 tsp cracked black pepper
* Juice of 1 orange
* 5 cardamoms, husks removed and seeds crushed
For the vegetables:
* 1 Savoy cabbage
* 1.5 kg Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks for roasting
* 3 x sprigs of rosemary
* 150g duck fat
* 1 tsp cumin seeds
* 1 bulb of garlic split into cloves
Method
1. Pre-heat oven to 200°C, Fan 180°C, Gas Mark 6. Remove all packaging from the duck and remove the bag of giblets (if included) from the cavity. Weigh the duck.
2. Prick the skin around the duck legs and season with salt and pepper.
3. Place the duck on a rack in a baking tray big enough to allow you to also fit the potatoes, and add the duck fat (or vegetable oil if you do not have duck fat). Place the duck in the oven. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes per 500g, plus 20 minutes extra.
4. Meanwhile prepare the glaze by mixing all the ingredients together and gently warm in a small pan. Then leave aside in a warm place.
5. Prepare the cabbage: peel off the leaves, discard any that may be spoilt and remove the core. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Blanche the cabbage by plunging the leaves into the boiling water and then into a pot of cold water. Drain well, slice thinly and set aside.
6. After the duck has been cooking for 45 minutes, place the potatoes into the roasting tray around the duck, then add the rosemary, garlic and cumin seeds. Baste with the duck fat and season. Turn the potatoes once during cooking.
7. Ten minutes before the end of cooking take the glaze and paint all over the duck with a pastry brush.
8. When the duck is ready, remove from the oven and carefully take out of the tray and place in a warm resting place for approximately 30 minutes.
9. Then take the potatoes from the tray and put into another roasting tray, baste with the duck fat and return to the oven to finish cooking.
10. Pour off all the fat from the liquid left in the tray, and save for another cooking opportunity.
11. You should be left with just the juices to create the sauce. Pour into a saucepan and place onto the hob, bring to the boil, add a generous dollop of butter and simmer.
12. When you are ready to serve, quickly fry off the cabbage in some butter for 2-3 minutes.
13. Test the sauce for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Remove the potatoes from the oven. Your meal is now ready to serve.
If it feels too soon to start planning Christmas, then why not give this simple-yet-sophisticated dish a go for just you and your loved one – the perfect romantic dinner.
Roast Gressingham Duck Legs with Redcurrant Jus, Seasonal Greens and a Chive and Olive Oil Jacket
Serves 2
You will need:
2 Gressingham Duck®
Small sprig thyme
1 garlic clove
2 small baking potatoes (cleaned and wrapped in foil)
125 g tender stem broccoli
125g green beans
Handful fresh chives
200ml good red wine
1 tablespoon redcurrant jelly
500ml chicken stock or 1/2 stock cube mixed with 500ml hot water
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
A knob of butter
2 sprigs fresh redcurrants (for garnish)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
Method
1. Pre heat oven to 160°c.
2. Dry the duck leg with absorbent paper. Season well and sear the duck legs on both sides in a hot frying pan with no oil, until browned. Leave the legs skin side down and add a dash of oil to the pan along with a sprig of thyme and a clove of garlic.
3. Cover the pan with tin foil and place in the oven (if your pan is not all metal then transfer to a baking tray and do the same). Place the potatoes in the oven at the same time. Check both the duck and potatoes after 45 minutes for tenderness and adjust cooking time accordingly.
4. While the duck is cooking prepare the jus and vegetables. Place the red wine, redcurrant jelly and balsamic vinegar into a small saucepan and reduce until it starts to get sticky and dark. Add in the chicken stock and reduce by 2/3. Whisk in a knob of butter and then take off heat. Blanche the vegetables in salted boiling water, drain them and set aside.
5. When the potatoes are ready, slice off the top of each potato and scoop out the filling with a teaspoon and into a bowl. Mix the potato with the chives, 2 tablespoons olive oil and salt and pepper. Place the potato back into the ‘jacket’
6. When you are ready to serve place the potato back into the oven for 5 minutes and quickly reheat the jus and the vegetables. Divide everything onto 2 plates and garnish with the fresh redcurrants. It’s time to be seductive!
Or if you fancy a fresh autumnal twist, try your duck with this warming seasonal variation:
Duck breast with Roasted Vegetables, Spinach, Garlic & Thyme
Ingredients
* 4 Gressingham duck breasts
* 4 medium size raw beetroots
* 1 small butternut squash
* 1 head of garlic, cut in two
* 1 bag washed baby spinach
* 2 sprigs of thyme
* 4 tablespoon olive oil
* 10g unsalted butter
* Salt and pepper
Serves 4
10 minutes preparation
40 minutes cooking
Method
1. Start by Pre-heating your oven to 180oC, Fan 160oC, Gas Mark 4
2. Peel the squash then remove the seeds and cut into wedges. Place in oven proof dish and add the thyme, garlic, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper and cook until tender (around 30 minutes)
3. While the squash is cooking boil the beetroot in a pan until tender. Drain and when cold peel the skin and cut into quarters, then place in an oven proof dish with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper, and bake for 10 minutes
4. While the beetroot and squash is cooking, place the duck breasts in a pan and cook on a medium heat without oil for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown. Pour off the fat regularly and seal the other side for 30 seconds
5. Next, remove the breasts from the pan and place them skin side up on a rack in a roasting tin in the middle of the oven for 10-18 minutes depending on how you like your duck cooked. Once the breasts are cooked, leave them to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
6. Remove the beetroot and butternut squash from the oven and add the spinach. Divide all of the vegetables on to the plates, slice the duck lengthways and place on the vegetables, pour the juices on the cutting board over the top of each breast
Gressingham has lots of recipes along with “how-to” videos on their website www.gressinghamduck.co.uk – so get cooking!
