Duck a l’Orange

Serves: 4

 

Ingredients:

 

5 pound duck, cleaned and plucked, with giblets

 

1 small onion, peeled and thinly sliced

 

4 large-6 medium naval oranges 

 

4 tablespoons Turbinado sugar

 

¼ cup Balsamic vinegar

 

1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch

 

1 teaspoon freshly peeled and grated ginger

 

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

 

4 cups white rice

 

½ tablespoon chopped, flat Italian parsley

 

 

Directions:

 

In the morning of the day before, remove giblets from duck and any fat pockets from the skin.

 

Reserve liver. Place all other giblets and fat in a 3 quart saucepan with 4 cups of water.

 

Bring giblets to a boil.

 

Reduce heat to low, cover tightly and cook for 12 hours. Check occasionally to make certain that there is always at least 2 cups of water.

 

At the end of 12 hours strain stock from giblets. Simmer stock until reduced to two cups.

 

Chill stock.

 

Preheat oven to 425° F.

 

Remove the zest of 4 oranges in strips.

 

Remove any white pith from the strips by scraping with a sharp knife.

 

Roughly chop the orange zest.

 

Loosen the skin over the breast of the duck from neck to tail area to form a large pocket.

 

Spread ¼ of the orange zest inside the breast pocket.

 

Divide sliced onion between duck cavities.

 

Truss the legs and wings securely to the duck body.

 

Place trussed duck on a rack in a roasting pan, back side up.

 

Place duck in oven for 15 minutes.

 

Remove duck from oven. Turn duck over (breast side up) and return to oven for 15 minutes.

 

Reduce heat to 385° F.

 

Remove duck from oven and turn over (back side up) and return to oven for 15 minutes.

 

Continue to rotate the duck every 15 minutes until the skin is crisp and the interior temperature of the duck (as taken at the interior of the thigh, not touching the bone or thickest part of the breast) is a minimum of 165° F.

 

When turning, check to be certain that the fat accumulating under the rack is not touching the duck. If it does, remove some of the fat and reserve in a bowl. Chill the bowl of fat.

 

 

Chef’s Note:  Duck fat is a healthier fat, full of flavor and useful in the preparation of sauted onions, fried potatotes, and many other foods.

 

 

Mince the remaining orange zest.

 

Place orange zest and 1 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring water to a boil.

 

Reduce heat and simmer zest for 15 minutes, uncovered. Watch to be certain the zest does not go dry.

 

Strain zest, discarding water. Chill zest until ready to use.

 

Juice oranges to make 1 cup of juice.

 

 

Chef’s Note: A medium orange generally yields approximately ¼ cup of juice. Larger oranges will naturally yield more juice.

 

 

Carefully (removing all pith and creating whole segment pieces) segment the remaining oranges to make at least 2 cups of skinless segments. Chill in a covered dish.

 

Place sugar and vinegar in a minimum 1 quart saucepan.

 

Stir sugar and vinegar over medium- high heat until sugar is dissolved.

 

Remove from heat.

 

Scrape off any fat that has accumulated at the top of the duck stock and reserve.

 

Add duck stock to sugar and vinegar. Stir to combine.

 

Add cornstarch to orange juice and stir until cornstarch is dissolved.

 

Return saucepan of sugar, vinegar, and duck stock to medium heat. Add cornstarch and orange juice. Whisk until clear and thickened. Sauce should coat the back of a spoon and thread from spoon.

 

Add ginger and blanched, minced zest. Stir.

 

Chill sauce until duck is done.

 

 

Cook’s Note: Sauce can be made ahead of cooking the duck and chilled until the final steps.

 

 

When duck is done, carefully place on a platter and tent. Duck can be returned to the oven that has been turned off with door left ajar. To do so requires the use of an oven-proof platter.

 

Remove fat from drippings in the bottom of the pan. Reserve and chill fat.

 

 

Scrape all drippings from bottom of pan. Strain and add liquid to sauce.

 

 

Chef’s Note: At this point, the sauce should have a bright, orange scent and flavor. It should balanced, not “sweet.”

 

 

Heat sauce.

 

While sauce heats, remove duck from oven, take off tent and discard trussing string.

 

Duck may be placed on a bed of rice on a serving platter with orange segments artfully arranged around/atop duck. Garnish lightly with parsley.

 

Remove sauce from heat and quickly whisk in room temperature butter. 

 

Some gravy may be ladled over the duck.  The remainder may be placed in a gravy boat and served on the side.

 

Serve.