Duck Breast From the Pan
There are hundreds, if not thousands of recipes on the Internet for preparing the breast of a duck, and virtually all of them will title themselves "Pan Seared." But this is wrong.
According to the Escoffier Complete Glossary of Cooking Terms for the Culinary Arts:
"Sear: to seal in the juices of meat by quickly browning it on all sides in a very hot pan"
This is how a beef steak is prepared. This is how a veal chop is prepared. This is not how a duck breast is prepared.
To properly cook a duck breast, you use no added fat and you cook it over low heat, starting in a cold pan preferably made of cast iron. There really isn’t a valid cooking term to describe this methodology which might explain why so many amateur chefs erroneously call it seared. Or, they may, in fact, be erroneously searing it. I give credit to the Serious Eats website for telling the truth and showing me how to cook a simple duck breast.
I present this methodology with four sauces that can be made à la minute in the pan.
Duck Breast From the Pan
Ingredients
- 1 duck breast
- 1 cast iron skillet
- 1 of 4 sauces from the recipes below
Instructions
- Score the fat side of the breast with a very sharp knife, cutting through the skin and fat layer only; do not cut into the meat of the breast. Make a diamond pattern by scoring in opposite directions diagonally across the skin.
- Season both sides of the duck breast with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Place a cast iron skillet on the stove. Do not add oil to the pan.
- Place the duck breast in the pan, skin side down.
- Turn the heat on between low and medium low.
- Listen. In about three minutes, you'll begin to hear the duck breast sizzle a bit. You want the sizzling sound of a babbling brook. In other words: gently sizzling.
- Leave it alone. It's going to take a good 10-15 minutes before the skin of the duck begins to show signs of a crispy, golden brown. Don't rush it.
- If grease is splattering everywhere, you're cooking it too hot and too fast.
- While the duck meat is cooking, spoon the hot duck fat over the skin to further crisp it.
- Once the skin is browned and crispy, flip the breast over, and cook only for another 2-3 minutes for a medium rare, which is not only perfectly safe for duck (unlike chicken), it is actually preferable. The longer you cook duck meat, the tougher it will become.
- Remove the duck breast from the heat, tent with aluminum foil for 10 minutes while you prepare one of the pan sauces below.
- Slice the duck against the grain into equal-sized slices, fan out on a dinner plate and spoon your sauce on top and around the meat.
- De-glaze the pan with the juice of one navel orange, scraping up all the delicious brown bits.
- Add to the pan two tablespoons of whole grain mustard (like, Maille)
- Add two tablespoons of maple syrup.
- Add 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme.
- If more liquid is needed, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup chicken stock.
- Stir well and bring to a simmer for a couple of minutes allowing it to reduce slightly.
- Place 1/2 of a finely minced, medium-sized shallot into the hot duck fat, and sauté for 3-4 minutes over medium high heat until slightly caramelized.
- Add 1/2 cup ruby port wine and bring to a simmer for a couple of minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Finish with two pats of cold butter at the end, stirring until the butter melts and the sauce further thickens.
- Place a teaspoon of fresh, grated ginger in the hot fat and sauté for a moment.
- Add a teaspoon of finely minced garlic and sauté a moment more.
- Add a dash of chili paste.
- Add a tablespoon of lime juice.
- Add 3-4 tablespoons of soy sauce.
- Add 1/2 cup of chicken stock.
- Bring to a simmer and add 3-4 tablespoons of honey.
- Allow the sauce to reduce and thicken slightly. Sprinkle a few toasted sesame seeds over the duck as you ladle on the sauce.
- Add 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic to the hot duck fat and keep the garlic in motion so it does not burn.
- When the garlic becomes fragrant, add 1/2 cup of dry red wine to the pan and scrape up all the brown bits.
- Add 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar.
- Add 1/2 teaspoon of ground rosemary.
- Simmer for 4-5 minutes to reduce the volume of liquid by half.
- Add a two pats of cold butter at the end, stirring until the butter melts and the sauce further thickens.
