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| Lavender Honey & Orange Glazed Duck Breasts |
At present, my intrepid sous chef
is only concerned about one kind of duck challenge: the Oregon Ducks’ upcoming showdown with the
Stanford Cardinal. No, he is not an
Oregon Duck by education or geography. In
fact, since childhood he has been a USC Trojan fan (and later a USC law school
graduate). But he loves the Ducks’ style
of play: fast, fast and faster.
I am not a football fan, but I am a
fan of great recipes that can be prepared quickly during the halftime of some
important college or professional football game. This week’s
French Friday’s with Dorie challenge of
20-minute Glazed Duck Breasts fits the bill (pun intended).
During football and Holiday seasons I’m
looking for quick and easy meals and rapidly tire of home delivery and drive
through.
So the thought of making such a
cosmopolitan dish as duck breasts was very appealing.
There are lots of waterfowl in the Palm Springs area owing
to the proliferation of water features on the over 100 golf courses and the quintessential
backyard pool to cool oneself during the long and arduous summers. But what is flying, quacking and generally messing
sea and land locally is not necessarily found in our markets. I had once seen duck breasts at Bristol Farms
in Rancho Mirage and so there the quest for the Holy Duck Grail began and
ended. Of course, there were no duck
breasts available at that time, but the fowlmonger did have a nice 5-pound duck
that we could have. A look of
consternation passed between me and my sous chef that was noticed by the fowlmonger. After some pleading, he graciously butchered
the beast into two de-boned filets, two legs and some other parts that were
best left with him. Had we tried this at
home, Dorie’s 20-minute recipe would have likely included an unproductive hour
of preparation and the risk of losing one or more digits.
As an aside, Dorie’s recipe did not specify whether the duck
breast should be boneless and whether or not fresh was preferred over
frozen.
For ease of preparation and
speed, I assume boneless is the correct choice, and I always prefer fresh to
frozen, except for my margaritas and daiquiris.
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| My first duck - The veggies were roasted in duck fat and unbelievably good! |
Duck is something I often order at swank restaurants.
However, my only previous foray into cooking
duck at home was in September when I could not resist a whole duck from the
Bristol Farms in South Pasadena.
I went
for inspiration and instruction to my ”cooking bible,” Joel Robuchon’s
The Complete Robuchon.
This book has no photos, but provides very
detailed instruction on how to cook, and for that reason alone I can commend
this book for your cooking library.
The
roasted duck was delicious and pretty simple to prepare.
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| Scored Duck Breasts - Chef & Sous Chef tied in final score! |
My two small, but expensive, duck breasts at the ready, I
scanned Dorie’s recipe and was so shocked at its simplicity I had to read it
again. Indeed it was simple, except for
one thing. I had never “scored” a duck
breast and did not know how to do it. The
entreaty to my sous chef was met with sarcastic comments about “the Ducks’
score at will” and “I should stick to my own species.” When he had calmed, he demonstrated the
technique on one breast and I did the other.
A good, sharp knife is essential for this task and be sure not to cut
into the meat in the process.
After a good scoring, the duck breasts were ready to sizzle
in my Dutch Oven. Dorie mentioned that using
a Dutch Ovens helped contain the splattering duck fat. This was an excellent tip that saved my
stovetop from looking like a grease bomb had exploded! It’s amazing how much fat can come from two
duck breasts. For those without a Dutch
Oven or equivalent, a splatter screen is a good alternative.
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| At the beginning |
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| Flipped for the last 3 minutes in Dutch Oven |
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| Duck Breasts after a 5 minute rest |
Over medium-high heat, I cooked the duck breasts for 8
minutes on one side and then flipped them over and cooked for another 3 minutes.
No butter or oil was needed for the duck
breasts render enough fat.
When done, I
took the duck breasts from the Dutch Oven, loosely wrapped them in tinfoil and
let them rest in a pre-heated oven for 5 minutes at 250 degrees.
The resting period gives you time to prepare your
accompaniments.
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| Fresh local oranges, juicy and sweet! |
After the duck breasts had rested in the oven, it was time
to apply glaze all over and return them to the Dutch Oven to warm each side for
30 seconds at low heat. The recipe calls
for a glaze consisting of honey, balsamic vinegar and lime juice, simple
ingredients that are normally at home.
Turns out I had everything but plain honey, so I had to improvise. At hand was a lavender infused honey I use in
making a cocktail I adore, the San Permis, created and served at Sapphire
Restaurant in Laguna Beach. The San
Permis is the perfect brunch substitute for a Mimosa and is made with lavender
infused honey, cava (Spanish Sparkling), and Cointreau (orange liqueur). The drink’s combination of honey and orange liqueur
inspired me to substitute orange juice for the lime juice. The combination of the lavender honey,
balsamic vinegar and orange juice is a winner.
It makes a great glaze: fruity,
sweet and fragrant and matches well with the duck breasts slightly robust
flavor. Magnifique!
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| Lavender Infused Honey |
We earlier had a sumptuous lunch and neither of us wanted a meal
with all the trimmings.
So I sliced the
duck breasts, added them to an arugula salad and drizzled on some of the sweet
smelling glaze elixir that I had fortuitously saved.
The result was spectacular.
An entrée salad made in 20 minutes that was
as good tasting as it looked.
The duck
breasts were crispy on the outside and moist and pink on the inside.
A perfect complement to the spicy arugula
that glistened with a captivating sheen from the glaze.
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| Glazing the duck breast |
Our duck breast ended up becoming an entrée salad –
completely accidental, but a great happenstance that will be made again.
No more mundane chicken salads.
Moist, rich tasting duck breasts that can be
made in 20 minutes are a miracle dish for the chef held hostage by football
most evenings.
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| Magnifique! Dinner in 20! |
The recipe for my inspiration, the San Permis:
San Permis
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| San Permis at Sapphire Restaurant Laguna Beach |
Cava (Spanish Sparkling Wine - Chilled)
1 ounce Cointreau
Lavender Infused Honey (honey, lavender, orange zest)
Coat inside of Champagne glass with lavender infused honey. Pour in Cointreau. Top off with chilled Cava.
To read other Dorista's French Friday with Dorie experiences:
