We love how beautifully rhubarb pairs with duck! Wow your dinner guests with this perfect spring recipe.
Crispy duck with tangy rhubarb sauce
Ingredients:
2 cups chopped fresh rhubarb, about 240 g
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce
6 thin slices ginger
2 tbsp lime juice
2 duck breasts, about 400 g each
1/4 tsp salt
Method:
Boil rhubarb with sugar, fish sauce and ginger in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to medium and gently boil until rhubarb is very soft and mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Scrape into a food processor or blender. Purée until smooth. Whirl in lime juice.
Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
Lay duck breasts, skin-side up, on cutting board. Using a sharp knife tip, cross-hatch skin and fat in a diamond pattern (see below). Sprinkle with salt. Season with fresh pepper.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium. Place duck, skin-side down, in pan. Cook until skin is golden and crisp, draining fat occasionally into a small bowl, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat if browning too quickly. Transfer duck, skin-side up, to prepared sheet. Roast in centre of oven until medium-rare, 8 to 10 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with rhubarb sauce.
Serves 4 | Prep 25 min | Total 50 min
How to prep a duck breast:
It’s essential to “cross-hatch” a duck breast before cooking it. This allows the fat beneath the skin to be rendered completely, and it lets the skin become crispy and delicious.
Using a sharp paring knife, make a series of diagonal cuts about 1/2 in. apart, all the way across the breast. Cut through the skin and partway into the fat layer. Turn the duck breast and make another series of cuts, perpendicular to the first set, creating a grid pattern. Cook according to the recipe.
Courtesy Claire Tansey
Photo courtesy of Erik Putz