Pan-Roasted Duck Breast with Orange Sauce and Tourne Potatoes
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 4 servings
- Total: 1 hr 30 min
- Active: 1 hr 30 min
Ingredients
Orange Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Reserved duck bones and necks
1 onion, cut into large dice
1 carrot, cut into large dice
2 celery stalks, cut into large dice
2 lemongrass stalks, bruised and cut into 3-inch pieces
2 cloves garlic
2 fresh bay leaves
1 small bunch fresh thyme
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
Juice of 2 navel oranges (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
Duck:
4 duck airline breasts from 2 whole ducks, bones and neck reserved for sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
2 whole star anise
One 2-inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced
1 small bunch fresh thyme
Parsley Salad:
1 cup flat-leaf parsley stems
1 navel orange, supreme
Juice of 1/2 navel orange
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Tourne Potatoes:
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
16 Yukon gold potatoes
1 small bunch fresh thyme
Directions
- For the sauce: Place a large sauté pan or rondeau over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and duck bones and necks and deeply brown on both sides. Add the onions, carrots, celery, lemongrass, garlic, bay leaves, thyme and a large pinch of salt and stir. Add the wine and stock and simmer for at least 1 hour, allowing the flavors to meld.
- Meanwhile, place a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the sugar and vinegar and bring to a simmer, whisking to dissolve the sugar. Add the orange juice and continue to simmer the gastrique until syrupy, 8 to 10 minutes. You should have around 1/2 cup.
- When the stock mixture is ready, strain it and add 1/2 cup to the gastrique, whisking to combine. Simmer until reduced by half, 10 to 15 minutes, then keep the sauce warm.
- For the duck: While the sauce is reducing, score the skin on the duck breasts in a crosshatch pattern using a very sharp knife and being careful not to cut into the meat. Season the breasts on both sides with salt and pepper and place skin-side down in a cold large sauté pan coated with a drizzle of olive oil.
- Place the pan over medium-low heat and slowly render most of the duck fat, 8 to 10 minutes. When the skin is deep golden brown and crisp, flip the breasts over and briefly brown on the other side. Place the star anise, ginger and thyme into the rendered fat and then baste the breasts until they have finished cooking, 3 to 5 minutes for medium. Transfer to a cutting board and keep warm. Reserve the duck fat in the pan for the potatoes.
- For the parsley salad: Combine the parsley stems and orange supremes in a medium bowl. Toss with the orange juice, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and set aside.
- For the potatoes: Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and salt it generously. Meanwhile, tourne the potatoes. Trim each end so it’s flat. The length of each potato should be roughly 2 inches. Using a paring knife or bird’s beak knife, make 7 slices the length of the potato until you end up with a football shape. Put each potato in cold water after you tourne it to prevent oxidation.
- Add the potatoes to the boiling water and boil until crisp-tender, 6 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and pat dry.
- Place a sauté pan over medium heat, add the reserved duck fat and heat until shimmering. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl, then add 1 tablespoon of the fat back to the pan. Add the potatoes and cook, turning often, until light golden brown on all sides. Turn the heat down to low. Season with salt and pepper, then add the thyme and continue to cook, turning the potatoes occasionally, until tender.
- Add the breasts to the pan, then pour off any excess fat. Remove the pan from the heat, add the Grand Marnier and flambe. When the flame goes out, return the pan to the heat, add the reserved sauce and heat through. Stir in the parsley and butter, season with pepper, then remove from the heat. Thinly slice the breasts, flesh-side up, against the grain. Place the potatoes on a platter, followed by the sliced duck, fat-side up. Drizzle with the sauce and top with the parsley salad.