Duck, Duck, Goose
Duck and geese are having a renaissance as cooks discover that diverse breeds, species, and cuts of meat offer an exciting range of flavors and textures. Here are a few creative recipes from local chefs your family will go wild over.
Holy Tequila: Cuban Mojo Marinated Duck Confit
Ingredients (Mojo Marinade)
4 fresh duck quarters
3 cups Naranja Agria (sour orange)
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
2 bay leafs
2 ounces garlic
2 ounces oregano
1/2 cup olive oil
Directions
In a bowl, combine all ingredients except for the duck quarters to create the Cuban mojo marinade. Pour the marinade over the four duck quarters and marinate for 12 hours.
Ingredients (Ginger Butternut Squash Risotto)
2 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup diced onion
1 ounce fresh garlic, chopped
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (garnish)
Directions
In a medium deep pot, sweat onions and garlic with bay leaf, then add rice and cook for one minute. Deglaze with dry white wine. Let wine reduce by half then start adding chicken stock in layers and 1/4 cup butternut purée (recipe below) until chicken stock is absorbed. Lastly, add dry cranberry and heavy cream.
Ingredients (Ginger Butternut Squash Purée)
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and roughly chopped
2 ounces ginger, peeled
1 bay leaf
Ingredients (Confit)
4 cups duck fat
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon pepper
1 bay leaf
Ingredients (Balsamic Molasses Reduction)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup apple cider
Directions
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place duck quarters in a medium-sized baking dish. Add confit with bay
leaf. Cook for two hours. To finish duck, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place duck in roasting pan and roast for 12 minutes. Drizzle balsamic-molasses reduction over the duck and garnish with toasted pine nuts.
Charbar Co: Duck Burger
Ingredients (Cherry Jam)
1 1/2 pounds dried tart cherries
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 orange, juice and zest
Directions
Rough chop the cherries and add them to a medium saucepan. Add all other ingredients and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat and let simmer until mixture becomes thick. Set the jam to the side and let cool.
Ingredients (Sweet Potato Cakes)
1 sweet potato
1/4 cup flour
2 ounces bacon, cooked and chopped
Directions
Shred the potatoes using a box grater. Press shredded potato in a towel to remove excess water. After removing the water, add 1/4 cup flour and the bacon to the mixture. Form potatoes into 4-inch disks. Heat a saute pan over medium heat and add oil to just cover the bottom of the pan. Cook patties on both side until browned and cooked all the way through. This will usually take about 5 minutes per side. Remove from heat.
Ingredients (Duck Burger)
2 duck leg and thigh quarters
1 bunch Swiss chard
4 ounces drunken goat cheese
12 ounces ground beef
2 brioche buns
2 duck eggs
Directions
[1] Remove the skin from the duck. Remove all of the meat from the bone and chop it into small pieces. Combine the duck meat and hamburger meat until well combined. This will yield two 8-ounce patties.
[2] Remove the Swiss chard from the stem and rough chop. In a saute pan, wilt the chard over medium high heat and then add 4 ounces of white wine and salt and pepper. Once tender, remove from the heat and set aside.
[3] To crisp the duck skin, heat fryer to 350 degrees. Cook the duck skin until crispy. This should take about 5 to 7 minutes.
[4] To make the burger, grill patties for 4 minutes per side for medium. Once the burger is cooked to your desired temperature, put the goat cheese on it and remove the burgers from the grill and put them on the brioche. Add the wilted Swiss chard to the burger, then put the sweet potato cake on top of the chard. Then place the fried duck skin on top. Take a sunny-side-up duck egg and place it on top of everything. The final step is putting the cherry jam on the top bun before placing it on the burger.
LOCAL Life Test Kitchen: Roasted Goose
Ingredients
1 10-pound domestic goose
1 teaspoon dried marjoram, crushed
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 cup honey
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2-3 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1-2 tablespoons chicken broth
1 orange, sliced
2 sprigs of parsley
Directions (Goose)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rinse the goose and pat dry with paper towels. Remove excess fat from cavity and neck. Sprinkle body cavity and rub the outside of the skin with marjoram and pepper. Skewer neck skin to the back and tie legs to tail. Twist the wings under the back and prick entire surface of the goose with a fork. Place goose, breast side up, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Roast, uncovered, for 3 hours or until it is at 180 degrees; it may take longer than 3 hours. Baste the goose with 1/3 cup of Ginger Honey glaze during the last 15 minutes of roasting. Add vinegar or broth to remaining glaze. Reheat glaze to serve as a sauce. Cover goose and let sit for 15 minutes before carving. Garnish with sliced orange and fresh parsley.
Directions (Ginger Honey Glaze)
In small saucepan, stir together honey, mustard and ginger. Heat through. After glazing goose, stir chicken broth into remaining glaze before passing as a sauce.
