This dish could be served as a large main course for 2 or as a smaller course for 4.
Recipe Courtesy of
Christian Albin
Chef
The Four Seasons
99 East 52nd Street
New York, NY 10022
212-754-9494
1 six- to 7-pound duck
2 oranges (for garnish)
1 ounce fresh ginger (about 1 inch)
Zest of 1/2 orange
2 cloves garlic, halved
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons black peppercorns
1 recipe Green Peppercorn Sauce (recipe follows)
1 recipe Orange Sauce (recipe follows)
1. Rinse duck well under cold water. Pat dry with a paper towel. Remove giblets from cavity, and reserve for sauce. Using a chef’s knife, cut off wings and ankle joint. Set aside for sauce. Remove excess fat from the tail cavity, and discard. Cut off excess skin from neck, and discard. Using a paring knife, make small 1/4-inch incisions on the back of the duck. This will allow for the fat to render during cooking.
2. Hang the duck, or place on top of a wire rack set over a baking sheet, in the refrigerator, until dry, for 3 days.
3. On the second day, use a chef’s knife to cut the skin and pith away from the oranges. With a paring knife, carefully cut sections from orange. Set aside for garnish. Peel ginger, and cut into thin rounds. Slice orange zest into long thin strips. Combine ginger, orange zest, garlic, honey, soy sauce, and peppercorns in a large bowl. Stir to combine. Let stand overnight, and strain. Using a wooden spoon, press solids to remove all of the liquid, and set aside for marinade.
4. Remove the duck from the refrigerator, and place it breast-side-up in a large shallow pan. Brush the duck with half the marinade. Let rest for 20 minutes. Rub the duck with the remaining marinade, covering completely. Transfer duck to refrigerator, and let stand overnight.
5. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Fill a roasting pan with 1/4-inch of water,
and place on the lowest oven rack. (This will create steam and
will catch fat as it is released from the duck during cooking.) Arrange
oven rack in center of oven. Place duck directly on rack, and roast
until dark brown and slightly puffed, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Remove from
oven. Let rest for about 20 minutes, carve, and serve with
sauces and Sautéed Vegetables (recipe follows). Garnish with orange
sections.
BASIC DUCK SAUCE
Makes 1 cup
This serves as the base for Green Peppercorn and Orange sauces.
Reserved duck neck, wings, and giblets (see recipe above)
3 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1 carrot, peeled, roughly chopped
1 onion, skin on, roughly chopped
2 cups red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken stock
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a large roasting pan, place reserved neck, wings and giblets. Add the celery, carrot, and onion to pan and roast until deep brown, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from the oven. Transfer to a medium saucepan.
3. Deglaze roasting pan with 1 cup red wine. Stir well, being sure to loosen any of the bits that have cooked onto the pan. Set aside.
4. Add tomato paste to the vegetable mixture in medium saucepan, and
stir to combine. Sauté over medium heat until paste begins to color,
about 45 to 60 seconds. Add flour, stirring continuously. Sauté
until the flour taste has cooked out, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 cup red
wine. Add reduced red wine and bits from the roasting pan. Add chicken
stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid has
reduced by half, about 35 to 40 minutes. Strain mixture through a fine
sieve into a bowl, and discard solids. You should have about 1 cup of the
basic sauce.
GREEN PEPPERCORN SAUCE
Makes 1 1/8 cups
1 cup red wine
2 shallots, skins removed, and finely chopped
1 tablespoon green peppercorns in brine, crushed
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon brandy
1/2 cup Basic Duck Sauce (recipe above)
Combine 1 cup red wine and shallots in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-high
heat until liquid has almost disappeared, about 5 to 7 minutes. Just before
the sauce has finished reducing, add the crushed green peppercorns. Reduce
heat to low, and add heavy cream, brandy, and 1/2 cup Basic Duck Sauce.
Stir to combine and cook until just hot. Remove from heat, adjust for seasonings.
Set aside.
ORANGE SAUCE
Makes 1 1/3 cups
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
1/2 cup Basic Duck Sauce (recipe above)
Coarse salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
In a small saucepan, combine marmalade, orange juice, Grand Marnier,
and red-wine vinegar. Cook over medium heat and reduce by half, about 8
to 10 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of Basic Duck Sauce. Remove from heat,
adjust for seasonings. Set aside.
SAUTEED VEGETABLES
Serves 2 to 4
Fiddlehead ferns and ramps are available in specialty produce markets in spring and early summer.
2 small carrots, peeled and cut in half crosswise, then cut in half
lengthwise
1 baby turnip, ends trimmed, cut in half
1 small yellow beet, ends trimmed, peeled and cut into quarters
1 small purple potato, washed, and cut into quarters
1 bunch ramps, bulbs only, plus 2 reserve leaves
5 to 7 fiddlehead ferns, washed, ends trimmed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Coarse salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1. Julienne the reserved ramp leaves; set aside. Bring a stockpot of salted water to a boil. Add carrots, turnip, and beet, and blanch until just tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add potato, ramps, and ferns, and blanch for an additional 2 to 3 minutes.
2. In a medium sauté pan, heat olive oil and butter over medium
heat. Remove vegetables from stockpot with a slotted spoon and transfer
to pan. Sauté until there is just a hint of color, about 1 to 2
minutes. Stir in julienned ramp leaves. Season with salt and pepper, and
remove from heat. Serve with duck.
Yield: Serves 2 to 4
SOURCES
Madagascar Green
Peppercorns
$7.50 for a
3.52-ounce can (#130072)
Balducci’s
424 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10011
212-673-2600 or 800-225-3822