I have really been looking forward to this week’s French Fridays with Dorie as I love duck and I hardly ever cook it at home. I had no idea it could come together so quickly. Although, I think the reason I never make duck at home is that a). it seems expensive — my frozen duck breast was about 1lb and $14 and b.) jwa’s not crazy about duck. But, I made this anyway (haha!) and he liked it and so did I.
Notes:
1. I sliced the breast in half before cooking, figuring it would cook a little faster (more in line with the directions). So, each piece was about 8 oz.
2. I did the 8 minutes on the skin side and then let them go for about 4.5 minutes on the 2nd side and I got nicely medium-rare duck.
3. A splatter screen was a really valuable thing to have here.
4. Honey, balsamic and lime juice FTW!!!
5. On the side we had roasted sweet potatoes and a kale, lemon and Parmesan salad.
6. Great Tuesday night meal! I think the sweet potatoes took the longest amount of time to make.
7. Excuse the blurring, but I did manage to get some duck fat on my camera lens!
8. Am I the only one who saved the poured-off duck fat for roasting potatoes this weekend?
On to the photos and here’s a link to everyone’s posts.
Scored duck, ready for the pan.
Skin side down in the hot Dutch French oven.
The back-up players.
Mmmmm…duck fat…
Balsamic, honey and lime juice.
Duck after a brief rest in the 250 degreee toaster oven.
All the accumulated resting juices…destined for the pot.
Almost ready.
Plated and ready to eat!
I was wondering if the fat could be saved – it seemed wrong to be discarding it.
A splatter screen is a very beautiful thing & certainly cuts down on the clean up 🙂
I am SO stealing your idea to save the duck fat for potatoes when I make this. That’s teh type of thing I wouldn’t think of until after the fact. My supermarket said duck wasn’t in season yet, so I couldn’t get my hands on any. Boooo! Yours looks amazing.
Very lovely looking meal you have there. 🙂
awww! I should have saved some duck fat! Glad you liked it too!
Another splatter screen devotee here! I think we ought to categorize this as Celebration Weeknight Meal because of the cost. Your pairing of sweet potato sounds fantastic. Harvest time!
I so agree. The splatter guard was invaluable. I loved this recipe, but I was already a huge fan of duck. I saved the duck fat for potatoes too! Can’t wait to make them.
Your duck looks delicious. Fantastic photos. I love duck and have only made it at home one other time, it was nice to know that my restaurant indulgence could be replicated at home for a fraction of the cost (though definitely not a budget meal). Happy French Friday!
Looking at yours make me hungry now 🙂 I regretted giving this a miss 🙁 That was really a good piece of honey glazed duck breast you have there and thanks for those lovely photos ! Happy French Friday !
Cher: We had the fat a few days later (I refrigerated it) with some potatoes. I used the duck fat like I would olive oil. very good! 🙂
Eileen: You should! The only duck I could find was frozen — both breasts and whole duck.
SoupAddict: Thanks! 🙂
Alice: I’m glad you liked it as well. This one is a keeper 🙂
ComeUndone: Thanks! Hooray for splatter screens!
Betsy: Hope you liked the duck fat potatoes as much as we did 😉
Confessions: Thank you! Happy French Friday to you too!
Elin: You should give this one a try sometime!
if i recall, fubon usually has duck pretty cheap…it doesn’t come with any florid statement regarding the duck’s provenance, but it’s cheap. haha.
Chris: Oh, thanks! I didn’t even think of checking there. Since I saw frozen breasts at New Seasons, I just grabbed one. Next time, checking Fubon first!
Some things are worth the splurge and this is one of them, right? Who deserves a nice meal more than us? lol. I have even been known to splurge on a tub of duck fat at the butchers now and again. It keeps in the fridge a long long time and NOTHING, i repeat, NOTHING is better for roasting potatoes or veggies (brussels sprouts!) in. Good job. I finally got around to this for cook’s choice and it is surely a winner.
Trevor: Exactly! 🙂 Ohhhhhh…Brussels Sprouts. That sounds delicious! 🙂