Rich, full-flavour duck breasts are
perfect for special occasion entertaining.
Although a relatively expensive meat
a little goes a long way especially when it is thinly sliced and tossed in a
salad. In
this delectable dish the pan-fried meat is combined with mushrooms, roasted
sweet potato wedges, crisp salad leaves, red onion and toasted almonds.
Orange
segments add just the right note of sweet-sourness although juicy ripe mangoes
will also complement the duck well. If you want to save on cooking time or ring
the changes, replace the duck with smoked chicken breast.
INGREDIENTS:
500 g duck breast
sea salt and freshly milled pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
2
DRESSING:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp orange juice
sea salt milled black pepper
(Serves 4)
CHECKLIST:
heavy frying pan, chopping board, cook’s knife, paper towels, shallow baking
dish.
STAGE 1:
Rinse
duck breasts and dry well with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt, pepper,
thyme and half the mustard.
Place
duck breast skin side down, on a heated non-stick pan and sauté about 10
minutes. Turn down heat and brown the other side for 8 minutes or until
cooked as desired. Set aside to cool.
How
well you cook the duck breasts is personal preference. However, chefs would
say they are at their best served medium to rare.
Duck
works well when combined with fruits such as oranges, mandarins or pineapple
in winter or mango and melon in summer.
Smooth olive oil and plain yoghurt
dressing in place of red wine counteracts the acidity of the fruits.
STAGE 2: To
divide an orange neatly into segments cut a slice from the top and base of
the range and sit it on a board. Using a smallish sharp knife cut off
remaining skin, working around the orange and slicing from top to bottom.
Remove all the pith. Hold the orange in your hand and carefully separate
the membranes to extract each segment. Do this over a bowl to catch the
juice and add it to the dressing.
Vary
the nuts to suit; toasted almonds add crunch, unctuous cashews add substance
and pretty pistachios are more luxurious. Toast nuts in a moderate
oven until fragrant and slightly browned.
STAGE 3:
To
prepare sweet potato wedges: Preheat oven to 180°C.
Peel sweet potato and cut into wedges. Place in a shallow oven dish.
Sprinkle with thyme and paprika (optional), salt and 15 (1 tbsp) olive oil.
Bake for about 30 minutes until soft and serve warm.
STAGE 4:
Whisk
together dressing ingredients until creamy.
To assemble salad, slice duck thinly and arrange on a
large platter with sweet potato wedges, salad leaves, onion, oranges and mushrooms.
Sprinkle with dressing. Add toasted almonds just before serving.
COOK'S CLASS