Stuffed Duckling Food

GRILLED STUFFED DUCKLING

Steps:

• Bring water to a boil in a saucepan; remove from heat and stir couscous into the water. Cover saucepan and let stand until water is absorbed completely, about 10 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork.
• Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, mushrooms, and serrano peppers; cook and stir until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Mix in the cooked couscous and cayenne pepper.
• Fill the duckling's cavity with the couscous mixture. Spread 1 tablespoon butter in a thin layer over the duckling's skin. Rub skin with basil, salt, and pepper. Wrap in aluminum foil.
• Preheat grill for medium heat, about 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Lightly oil the grate.
• Place duckling on grill and cook for about 30 minutes, turning once. Remove foil; continue grilling, turning occasionally and basting with butter each time. Cook until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, 25 to 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C).
• Remove the duckling from the grill, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing. Spoon out the couscous and serve alongside the duckling.

ROAST DUCK WITH APPLE DRESSING

Steps:

• Rinse duck and pat dry; rub with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning.
• Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and celery in butter until tender. In a medium bowl, combine with apple and cornbread crumbs. Mix together to make dressing (if necessary, add a little water to moisten).
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Fill the duck's cavity with dressing, and sew shut with kitchen twine. Rub outside of bird lightly with olive oil, and place in a shallow roasting pan or 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 80 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C.)

STUFFED DUCKLING

Steps:

• In a large skillet, saute onion in butter until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the bread cubes, rice, basil, rosemary, sage, parsley flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add the raisins, pecans and enough broth to moisten; toss gently., Sprinkle duck cavity with remaining salt. Lightly stuff bread mixture into duck. Place breast side up on a rack in shallow roasting pan. Prick skin well with a fork., Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 1-3/4 to 2 hours or until a thermometer reads 180° for duck and 165° for stuffing. Drain fat as it accumulates during roasting. Cover duck with foil and let stand for 20 minutes before removing stuffing and carving.

ORANGE-STUFFED CHRISTMAS DUCK

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Put the duck on a rack set over a roasting tin and prick the skin all over with a skewer. Season well. Halve one of the oranges and squeeze some of the juice into the duck cavity and the tin, then stuff the cavity with both of the halves. Pour 100ml water into the tin and roast for 20 mins per 500g (about 50 mins). Turn the oven up to 220C/200C fan/ gas 7 and roast for another 20 mins until the duck skin is crispy and golden.
• Put a small pan of water on to boil. Using a peeler, pare the zest from the remaining orange. Scrape any pith off the zest using a small, sharp knife. Add the zest to the water and gently boil for 8-10 mins, then drain, slice thinly into strips and set aside. In the same pan, dissolve the brown sugar with the balsamic vinegar. Cut the pared orange in half, juice it and pour the juice into the pan. Add the Grand Marnier and 1 tsp butter. Bubble until it has reduced by half and is dark and syrupy. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange zest.
• Once the duck is cooked, wrap it in foil to keep warm and put it on a board to rest. Spoon off the fat from the roasting tin and discard. Pour any remaining duck juices into a wide, shallow saucepan. Tip in the stock and bring to the boil. Add the wine and simmer for 2-3 mins, then add half the orange sauce and stir well. In a small bowl, mix the cornflour with 2 tsp cold water, then stir into the gravy. Season, add 1 tsp butter and whisk together. Pour into a warm gravy jug.
• To serve, brush the remaining sticky orange glaze over the duck, then put the duck on a board and garnish with the watercress. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and add 1 tsp butter. Once the butter has melted, tip in the spinach and cook for 1-2 mins until it has wilted. Season and tip into a warm serving dish.

ROASTED DUCK WITH SAGE & ONION STUFFING & APPLESAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220°C.
• Stuffing:.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan. When the foaming subsides, add the chopped onion. Saute on a gentle heat for around 10 minutes. Cook until translucent, avoid browning.
• Take pan off heat and add all remaining ingredients.
• Mix well with your hands to incorporate the egg. If the mixture seems a little too dry, add a touch of water. If too moist, add some more breadcrumbs. It should hold its shape easily.
• Duck:.
• Cut neck off duckling, and put aside for future use in gravy (below).
• Put the stuffing inside the cavity of the duck. Close up the flaps of the cavity, securing them with toothpicks.
• Cover the duck with melted butter, and season generously with salt and pepper.
• Place the duck breast-side down (to make all the juices run into the breast, making for a more succulent final result) on a rack. Then place rack & duck in a roasting tray.
• Add a little water to the bottom of the roasting tray to prevent burning.
• Place tray in oven. Cook at 220°C for 15 minutes.
• After the 15 minutes, reduce the heat to 180C, and cook for a further 30 minutes.
• After the 30 minutes, turn duck breast-side up and continue cooking for another 60-70 minutes (still on 180°C), checking on occasion that it does not burn/is not browning too much.
• Note: While duck is cooking, make your gravy and apple sauce.
• If duck is getting too brown/dark, reduce heat to 160°C, or cover the extremities of the duck with aluminum foil.
• At the end of the cooking time, remove duck from oven. Place in a warm spot (perhaps atop an unused part of the stove) and cover with aluminum foil until serving time.
• Gravy:.
• Chop neck from (above) duckling into pieces with a meat cleaver.
• Put the pieces of neck and oil in a saucepan over the heat and allow some of the duck fat to render.
• Add roughly chopped vegetables, herbs, bay leaf, peppercorns, and salt and fry for 20 minutes on medium heat, stirring regularly.
• After the vegetables and duck neck have achieved a good brown color, add enough water (or stock) to barely cover the contents of pot.
• Bring slowly to the boil, skimming any scum (bubbly impurities that gather at the surface) that appears.
• When gravy has come to the boil, reduce to a gentle simmer, and continue to skim scum from time to time. Keep on gentle simmer for as long as possible for the best flavor, adding a touch more water or stock from time to time if needed.
• When the duck (above) gets close to being cooked, strain the gravy through a fine sieve to remove the vegetables, herbs, etc. Push down hard using the back of a spoon so as to extract as much juice as possible. Discard vegetables (or feed to your chickens/compost heap!).
• In a clean pan, bring the strained gravy to the boil, stirring occasionally.
• When gravy has reduced by a third, thicken with cornflour dissolved first in a small amount of cold water (3-4 tablespoons). Make sure to quickly stir gravy once cornflour is added to ensure good dispersion of cornflour & smooth gravy consistency.
• Season the gravy with salt and pepper according to your personal tastes.
• You could also add some of the pan juices from the roast duck once it has finished cooking - just stir in well.
• Apple Sauce:.
• In spaces where duck and gravy are cooking & able to be left alone for a bit, prepare apple sauce.
• Peel and core the apples. Roughly chop them.
• Place apples in saucepan with all other ingredients (except lemon juice).
• Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer, cooking until the apples collapse (should take around 30 minutes). Stir frequently to prevent burning/sticking.
• When cooking has finished, take off heat and add lemon juice. Stir.
• Serving:.
• Place gravy in a sauce boat.
• Place apple sauce in a bowl/boat.
• Carve the duck.
• Enjoy!
• This dish is excellent when served with additional accompaniments like roasted new potatoes, pumpkin, minted peas, blanched green beans, honeyed carrots, etc.