Mint Chilli Gressingham Duck Recipes

GRILLED DUCK BREAST WITH MINTED PEAS

Steps:

• Shell the peas and set aside. Chop the mint and blend into the butter. Pat the duck dry with kitchen paper and place on the oiled rack of a grill pan (or place a small cake rack in a roasting pan). Use a long sharp knife to score the skin of the duck in a diamond lattice pattern. Sprinkle the skin with salt and dried herbs. (If you wish, the duck, peas and mint butter can now be covered and set aside in a cool place for a couple of hours until ready to cook).
• Preheat the grill to very hot. Grill the duck breasts skin-side up for 10 minutes (watch carefully as you do this because the hot fat can splatter) until the skin is browning and has yielded most of its fat - carefully pour this off and reserve for roasting potatoes. Turn the duck over and grill on the flesh side for 5-10 minutes, depending on how rare you like the meat. Turn off the heat and allow the duck to rest while you prepare the peas.
• Cook the peas in boiling salted water for 3-5 minutes or until the peas are just tender and still bright green. Drain in a colander and return to the hot pan with the mint butter. Toss the peas until evenly coated with the butter.
• Serve the duck breasts whole or sliced with the minted peas, accompanied by buttered new potatoes.

MINT & CHILLI GRESSINGHAM DUCK

Steps:

• Preparation
• Score each duck breast six to ten times. Season with salt and pepper and rub in the five-spice powder. Pour over a little olive oil and sprinkle on the thyme.
• Cooking the dish
• Pre-heat an oven to 200C/Gas mark 6. Place the duck breasts skin-side-down in a non-stick pan on a low to medium heat. Cook for six to eight minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and crispy, before pouring off any excess fat and flipping over the breast. Cook and seal the breast on this side for around 30 seconds before removing from the heat. Turn the breast back onto the skin-side and place into the pre-heated oven for around six minutes for medium rare duck. Remove the duck from the oven and leave to rest for five minutes.
• Serving
• Once cooked, place on a chopping board to rest“ allowing the cooking juices to run over the board. In the meantime, chop the mint, chilli and add the lemon juice and a splash of oil. Mix together with the duck and cooking juices on the board. Slice the duck breasts, pouring over any remaining juices. Serve with a salad and some crusty bread to mop up the juices.

VIETNAMESE GRESSINGHAM DUCK

Steps:

• Preparing the dressing
• Combine and mix all of the ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
• Cooking the noodles
• Cook the noodles (as per the packet instructions), before plunging into cold water and draining.
• Preparing the salad
• Combine and mix all of the salad ingredients, minus the noodles, lime wedges and coriander, in a bowl and set aside.
• Preparing and cooking the duck
• Pre-heat an oven to 200C/Gas mark 6. Score the skin on the duck breasts six to eight times with a sharp knife and season on both sides with salt. Place the duck breasts skin-side-down in a non-stick pan on a low to medium heat. Cook for six to eight minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and crispy, before pouring off any excess fat and flipping over the breast. Cook and seal the breast on this side for around 30 seconds before removing from the heat. Turn the breast back onto the skin-side and place into the pre-heated oven for around six minutes for medium rare duck. Remove the duck from the oven and leave to rest for five minutes.
• Putting everything together
• Set aside two tbsp of dressing (for garnishing later). Place the duck breasts and their juices into the remaining dressing and mix. Set aside for five minutes before removing the breasts from the dressing and placing them on a chopping board.
• Take the drained noodles and toss them with a little oil and lightly season. Add the dressing and salad and mix well before dividing onto serving plates. Finely slice the duck and place on top of the salad. Drizzle the remaining dressing on top and garnish with lime wedges and coriander.

DANISH KRINGLE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cut 1 cup butter into flour until crumbly, leaving pea-sized chunks. Stir in sour cream, and mix well; dough will be very sticky. Form dough into a ball. Cover tightly, and refrigerate 8 hours, or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet. Prepare the filling by combining 1 cup butter, brown sugar, and 1 cup chopped walnuts.
• Divide dough into three equal parts; return two parts to the refrigerator to keep cold. Quickly form 1/3 of the dough into a rectangle, and flour lightly. On a heavily floured surface, roll out to approximately 12x17 inches. Position lengthwise on the work surface. Along the long edges of the dough rectangle, use a sharp knife to cut 4 inch long angled lines about 1/2 inch apart. Spoon 1/3 of the filling along the length of the rectangle's uncut center. Alternating from one side of the dough to the other, fold each 1/2 inch wide strip towards the center, crisscrossing the filling in a braid-like fashion. Lightly press together the ends of the strips to seal. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the remaining walnuts. Repeat with remaining ingredients to form 3 braided danishes. Arrange danishes on prepared baking sheet.
• Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown. Cool for approximately 30 minutes. While the danishes are cooling, prepare the icing: mix confectioners sugar and water until smooth. Drizzle in fine streams over warm danishes.