Duck Breasts With Roasted Plums Recipes

ROASTED DUCK BREAST WITH PLUM SAUCE

Steps:

• For the sauce, fry the shallot in the oil for 5 mins or until softened but not coloured. Add the plums and sugar, stirring for a few mins until the sugar has dissolved. Add the red wine and stock, then simmer for about 15 mins, stirring occasionally, until softened and slightly thickened. Keep warm or leave at room temperature for up to a day before reheating to serve.
• Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180C/ 160C fan/gas 4. Score the skin of the duck breasts with a sharp knife and season well with salt and pepper. Heat a non-stick frying pan and place the duck breasts in, skin-side down. Fry for 6-7 mins, then turn and add the thyme, star anise and butter. Allow this to melt, basting the duck with the juices, then transfer everything to a small roasting tin and finish in the oven for 5-6 mins for pink or 10-12 mins for well done.
• When the duck is ready, baste again with the juices, then rest for 5 mins while you finish everything else.
• To serve, thinly slice each duck breast on a chopping board. Arrange on each plate along with a spoon of the Creamed potatoes, some of the plum sauce and the Buttered spinach.

BLACK-PEPPER-ROASTED DUCK BREASTS WITH GRILLED PLUMS

Steps:

• Using sharp knife, score skin of duck breasts in crisscross pattern (cut skin only; do not cut through meat), spacing cuts 1 inch apart. Sprinkle duck breasts on both sides with 1 teaspoon thyme, 1 teaspoon pepper, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and chill.
• Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Toss plum halves, olive oil, sugar, 1 teaspoon thyme, remaining 1 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Grill plum halves, cut side down, until grill marks appear and plums begin to soften, about 4 minutes. Turn plums over and grill, skin side down, until skin begins to soften but plums still retain their shape, about 4 minutes. Transfer plums to bowl. Cover with foil and let stand while cooking duck.
• Heat 2 large skillets over medium-high heat. Add 2 duck breasts, skin side down, to each skillet. Cook until skin is crisp and golden, about 7 minutes. Turn duck breasts over and cook to desired doneness, about 8 minutes longer for medium-rare. Remove from heat and let duck rest 5 minutes.
• Thinly slice duck crosswise. Divide among plates. Place 2 plum halves alongside each serving. Drizzle any plum juices from bowl over. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons thyme and serve.

GARLIC ROASTED DUCK BREAST

Steps:

• Place duck breast skin side-down on a cutting board. Cut a small slit from top to bottom, 2/3 of the way through the duck breast. Season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Place duck breast skin side-down in the hot skillet; cook until browned, about 30 seconds. Flip and repeat on the other side.
• Transfer duck breast to a clean work surface, skin-side down. Place 3 or 4 garlic strips inside the slit. Place rosemary sprig over garlic; top with remaining garlic strips. Place skin side-up in a baking pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 120 degrees F (50 degrees C), about 10 minutes. Cover with aluminum foil. Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

DUCK BREASTS WITH ROASTED PLUMS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Arrange plums, cut side down, in a baking dish. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar, if desired; set aside. Score skin of duck breasts in a crosshatch pattern, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Season with salt and pepper.
• Place breasts skin-side down in a cold medium skillet. Place over medium-high heat until most of the fat has rendered and the skin is dark golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Pour off fat, and turn duck breasts, meat-side down.
• Place duck and plums in oven. Roast until meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the duck registers 125 degrees, about 10 minutes. Remove duck and plums from oven. Remove duck from skillet, and cover to keep warm. Let rest for 10 minutes.
• Slice each breast half into 12 thin slices. Place 6 slices on each plate. Garnish each plate with 2 plum halves. Drizzle with any accumulated juices from the bottom of the baking dish.

SLOW-ROASTED DUCK BREAST WITH PLUM SAUCE

Steps:

• Score the skin: Using a sharp knife, score the skin in a cross-hatch pattern (try not to cut the meat).
• Marinate the meat: overnight or longer, max. for 2 days. Prepare a small pot - the meat should be almost completely submerged in the marinade, you can also use a thick ziplock bag. Whisk the ingredients for the marinade (red wine, honey, soy sauce, vinegar, jam, and spices), bring them to boil then leave to cool. Add the duck breast, skin-side up, cover, and put in the fridge.
• On the second day: Preheat the oven to 212°F / 100°C.
• Sear the meat: it's best to use an oven-proof pan but if you don't have such pan, just use a regular skillet then transfer the meat to a small baking dish.Remove the meat from the marinade, pat dry thoroughly with paper towels. Place in a cold (!) pan, skin-side down. Turn on medium-low heat and cook for a couple of minutes or until the skin is browned and the fat rendered. Don't cook it over too high heat, the fat needs to be rendered slowly. It's good to weigh the meat down so that the skin that be browned uniformly - you can place a loaf pan on top of the meat and put an olive oil bottle on top to weigh it down. Turn the breast on the other side and cook briefly, until the meat is browned. Leave a tablespoon of fat in the pan and discard the rest.
• Bake: Place the duck breast in a small baking dish (I used a 20 cm/8-inch oven-safe pan). Pour in the marinade. Cut the plums in half, remove the stones, arrange them around the meat. Place the dish in the oven.
• Bake in a preheated oven for about 55-60 minutes or less, to your desired doneness. After this time the duck should be around 150°F (66°C). It should come to the 'well-done' temperature (160°F/71°C) while resting. If you prefer your duck breast medium, bake it for about 45 minutes, to 60°C / 140°F. Medium-rare is 52°C / 125 °F . The baking time will depend on how long you've seared the meat in the pan and how big your duck breast is (it's best to use a grill thermometer to measure the temperature!*).It's important to cook the meat to a temperature and not to time, you can measure internal temperature with an instant thermometer (stick it into the thickest part of the meat). Well-done duck breast (safe for kids to eat) should be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 71°C / 160°F. Remember that after removing the meat from the oven, its internal temperature will continue to rise.
• Remove the dish from the oven. Transfer the meat to a plate, cover it tightly with aluminum foil, and leave to rest for 5-10 minutes.
• Prepare the sauce: If the plums are very soft, remove them from the sauce, but leave harder fruits in (very soft plums will fall apart completely while reducing the sauce). Cook the sauce for about 5 minutes over medium heat until thickened. Discard cardamom capsules, star anise, and cinnamon stick.
• Serve: Cut the duck breast into thin slices against the grain*, pour the sauce over, serve with cooked rice and roasted plums. Optionally, sprinkle with coriander leaves and sesame seeds.
• Enjoy!

ONE-PAN CORIANDER-CRUSTED DUCK, ROASTED PLUMS & GREENS

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and put the coriander seeds on a plate. Score the skin of the duck breasts as many times as you can with a small sharp knife, then season with salt and press the skin into the coriander seeds. Heat an ovenproof frying pan and add the breasts, skin-side down. Put a heavy pan on top to weigh them down, and cook for 7-8 mins to render the fat, occasionally draining off the excess.
• Add the plums and pak choi to the pan, flip the breasts over and add half the stock. Transfer to the oven and cook for 4-5 mins. Remove the duck breasts from the pan and transfer to a plate to rest along with the pak choi.
• Return the pan with the plums to the heat and add the honey, soy, vinegar and remaining stock. Bring to the boil and continue to cook until syrupy. Carve each duck breast into four chunks. Arrange two halves of pak choi over each plate, and nestle the chunks of duck breast and the plums among the greens. Drizzle with the sauce, then sprinkle over the chilli flakes.

SEARED DUCK BREAST WITH PLUMS AND PORT

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, 1/4 cup of the port, the shallot, ginger, red pepper flakes, cumin and pepper. Stir to combine.
• Trim away the silverskin from the meat side of the duck breasts and trim away any excess skin and fat along the edges. Score the skin by making diagonal cuts just through the skin at 1/8-inch intervals. Put the duck breasts, skin side up, on a large rimmed plate and pour the marinade over them. Marinate, turning the breasts over once or twice during the process, for 1 hour at room temperature.
• To cook the plums and make the sauce:.
• Heat the butter in a small sauté pan over medium-high heat until hot. Season the plums with salt and pepper and cook, tossing them occasionally, until they are browned, about 5 minutes. Using a flexible spatula, transfer the plums and most of the butter to a plate. To the pan the plums were cooked in, add the remaining 1 cup of port and the chicken stock. Remove the duck breasts from the marinade and pour the marinade into the pan as well. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until reduced by almost half. Add the browned plums to the sauce and continue to cook over lowest heat until the plums are tender (the time it takes for all this to happen is about the same time as it takes for the duck to cook).
• To cook the duck:.
• Pat the duck breasts dry with paper towels. Heat enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the duck, skin side down. As the meat cooks, fat will render. Pour this fat off, using a large spatula or plate to hold the breasts in place. Keep pouring off the fat as the duck cooks, adjusting the heat if the skin begins to burn (use your nose to detect any burning, as the sugar in the port as well as the soy sauce will blacken the skin). While the duck cooks, check on the sauce; if it seems to be reducing too much, remove from the heat.
• Turn the duck over when almost all of the fat in the skin has melted away and the skin is dark and crispy, about 12 minutes. Cook an additional 2 minutes on the flesh side. Take the pan off the heat and let the duck rest in the pan off the heat for at least 5 minutes before slicing it. At this point you can heat up the plum sauce over low heat, if you had to take it off the heat earlier because it was in danger of becoming too reduced.
• To serve:.
• Remove the duck breasts to a cutting board, skin side up. Pour any juices (but not the fat) from the sauté pan into the pan with the plums. Slice the breasts across the grain into thin pieces, about 6 slices per breast. Place the duck slices neatly on each plate. Spoon some sauce and plums onto each plate.

ROAST SPICED DUCK WITH PLUMS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 4. Toast the star anise and coriander seeds in a dry pan until aromatic. Tip the toasted spices into a spice grinder with 2 tsp sea salt and grind into a fine powder (or crush using a pestle and mortar). Put the spice salt in a bowl, add the sugar, mix well and set aside.
• Lightly score the skin of the duck in a criss-cross pattern and heat the oil in a large casserole. Using a pair of tongs to turn it, brown the duck well on all sides, pour off the excess fat, then sit the duck breast-side up and season all over with the sugar and spice mix. Pack the plums around the outside, then scatter over the bay and pour over the vinegar and stock.
• Roast in the oven for 2 hrs or until the duck is golden and the plums have broken down. Turn the oven right up for 10 more mins to crisp up the skin. Take the duck out of the pan to rest for 10 mins and spoon the excess fat off the plums. Carve the duck and serve with a good spoonful of plums.