Crispy Roast Duck With Lavender Honey Recipes

Steps:

• A day before roasting, remove the giblets and neck from the cavity of the bird and discard. If necessary pluck any stray pinfeathers off the duck with tweezers. Trim the neck flap and excess fat from around the cavity. Rinse and dry the bird well. Set the duck on a rack on a baking sheet, and refrigerate, uncovered, for 24 hours.
• Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Pierce the duck's skin all over (including the back), every 1/2-inch, with a skewer or small knife. Season the cavity with salt and pepper and stuff with 3 strips of the orange zest and the onion. Set the duck on a rack in a roasting pan, and pour a cup of water in the pan. Roast the bird for 3 hours, removing the duck from the oven every hour to prick the skin again.
• Meanwhile, make the glaze: Combine the remaining orange zest, molasses, honey, coriander, pepper, orange juice, vinegar, and garlic in a small saucepan. Heat, stirring, over medium-high heat until warm. Remove glaze from the heat and set it aside at room temperature while the duck cooks.
• Remove the duck from the oven and carefully, pour off the excess fat from the pan. (If desired reserve this fat for frying potatoes or wilting greens.) Raise the oven temperature to 450 degree F. Return the duck to the oven and roast until crisp and brown, about 30 minutes more.
• Let the duck rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before carving. Brush the duck's skin with glaze 4 to 5 five times during the resting period. Carve the duck and transfer pieces to warm serving platter. Serve the remaining glaze at the table to drizzle over the duck, if desired.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
• Trim ducks: with a sharp knife, cut away excess fat and skin from both ends of ducks. (Render fat for another use or discard.)
• Salt cavity of each duck. Prick each duck all over with a fork, about 30 times. Place them on a rack set in a large roasting pan and roast 1 hour. Prick ducks all over and turn on one side. Repeat pricking ducks all over and turn onto second side. Repeat two more times. After four hours, increase heat to 350 degrees F.
• Continue to roast 30 to 90 minutes more, pricking and turning once, according to taste: 1) For very juicy, slightly crisp ducks: Roast 15 minutes, prick and turn, and roast 15 minutes more. 2) For juicy, crisp ducks: Roast 30 minutes, prick and turn, and roast 30 minutes more. 3) For slightly drier, very crisp ducks: Roast 45 minutes, prick and turn, and roast 45 minutes more.
• Remove ducks to a carving board and let them sit 15 minutes, loosely covered. Simply cut ducks in half and serve half a duck per person; or carefully remove breast and legs from bone, making sure to keep skin intact, and cut them into 1/2-inch wide pieces. Generously season with salt and pepper before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season duck inside and out with salt and pepper. Put olives and lavender inside duck and truss or close with a skewer. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add duck and saute on all sides until skin is golden brown. Transfer to a rack in a roasting pan. Mix 2 tablespoons of the honey with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Brush over duck and roast until juices run clear when duck is pricked deep in thigh about 45 minutes. About halfway through the roasting time, combine 1 tablespoon of pan drippings with the remaining 2 tablespoons of honey, and brush over duck. When duck is cooked, remove it from oven and let rest to 15 minutes in a warm place before carving and serving.;

Steps:

• Make the glaze: in a small bowl, combine the honey, boiling water, and pepper; stir to blend and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 275°; season ducks with salt and pepper.
• With a kitchen fork, prick skin about ¼ inch deep all over, particularly in the fatty area around the thighs and wing area; do not pierce the meat.
• Place duck breast-side down on a rack in a roasting pan; pour boiling water over them; roast for 2 hours.
• Turn the duck breast-side up and brush with the glaze.
• Roast for another 1 to 1 ¼ hours, or until the legs wiggle easily; transfer to a carving board and let cool.
• Using heavy poultry shears, quarter the ducks-cut the backbones out to make this easier.
• Place the duck quarters in plastic bags and refrigerate.
• About 45 minutes before serving, preheat the oven to 375°; place the duck, skin-side up on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes, or until the duck is cooked through and crisp.
• Meanwhile, make the sauce-in a small skillet, melt butter over med-highheat.
• Add in shallots; saute for 2 minutes or until softened.
• Add in demi-glace, honey, and vinegar; turn up heat to high, and reduce the sauce to a light glaze, about 3 minutes.
• Whisk the remaining 1 tablespoons butter into the sauce to thicken it and add a sheen; season with salt and pepper.
• Place the duck on a platter and spoon over a little sauce; serve the remaining sauce on the side.

Steps:

• Remove the duck's giblets and wash them. Cut off any greenish parts from the livers and discard, then roughly chop the rest. Quarter the crops (the gullet), slicing any very red flesh away from the white sinew, which should be discarded. Put all bits and pieces into a large roasting tin.
• Cut off the parson's nose from each duck and add to the tin. Remove the wings: hold and pull on a wing, turning the skin back so you can see inside to where the wing is attached to the shoulder bone. Cut between the bones to release the wing, then cut around it from the skin side to remove it. Repeat with all wings and add them to the tin.
• Turn one of the ducks on to its breast. Cut down each side of the backbone, using a very sharp, sturdy kitchen knife and/or game scissors. Remove the backbone, then turn the duck the other way up and cut down each side of the breastbone, keeping the blade close to the bone so you don't cut away any breast meat. Put all the bones into the tin and repeat with the other ducks.
• Remove any lumps of fat from inside the duck and set aside. Cut off any flappy bits of skin and discard. Wash the duck halves then pat very dry. Prick the skin all over, especially the thick, fatty areas, then sprinkle with fine sea salt.
• Preheat the oven to 230C/Gas 8/fan oven 210C. Arrange the duck halves skin-side up on a rack set inside a large roasting tin. Roast for 11⁄4-11⁄2 hours, or until the skin is crisp and dark golden. You will need to drain off the fat that accumulates once or twice: pour it straight into the tin if you're going to roast potatoes, otherwise into a heatproof bowl.
• Leave the duck to rest for 10-15 minutes, serve with the gravy and veg (see 'Goes well with' recipes, right).

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Finely grind 2 teaspoons fresh or 1 teaspoon dried lavender blossoms, thyme, sea salt and peppercorns in spice grinder or with mortar and pestle. Remove fat deposits and giblets from duck cavity, reserving liver. Trim excess skin and fat from neck area. Rinse inside and out; pat dry. Cutting through skin and fat (but not flesh) of duck breasts, score in crisscross pattern. Rub inside and outside of duck with herb mixture; return duck liver to cavity.
• Place duck, breast up, on rack in roasting pan. Roast 2 hours. Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 375°F. Transfer duck to plate. Pour pan juices into 4-cup glass measuring cup; spoon off fat. Return juices and 1 tablespoon fat to pan. Add broth and wine. Return duck to pan. Brush with 2 tablespoons honey.
• Roast duck 20 minutes, basting once with pan juices. Brush with 2 tablespoons honey; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender. Roast duck until deep golden and thermometer inserted into innermost part of thigh registers 180°F, about 5 minutes longer.
• Transfer duck to platter. Remove liver; mash finely in small bowl. Spread liver over baguette slices. Add 1 teaspoon fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender to roasting pan. Place over medium heat. Boil juices until thick enough to coat spoon, whisking often, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Slice duck and serve with baguette slices and pan juices.

Steps:

• Bring a full kettle or medium pot of water to a boil (at least 2 quarts).
• Meanwhile, remove giblets and neck from the duck cavity and reserve for another use. Trim any excess fat from around the duck cavity and the neck. Place duck, breast side up, on a rack in the sink. Pour half of the boiling water all over the top of the duck to tighten the skin. Flip the bird and pour remaining boiling water over the back.
• Once the duck is cool enough to handle, using the tip of a very sharp paring knife, prick duck skin all over to help release the fat, especially where the skin is thickest, and be careful not to pierce the meat. It can be helpful to hold the knife nearly parallel to the bird. After piercing the skin, use the knife blade to score the duck breast in a crosshatch pattern (making deep cuts into the skin only, and not into the breast meat). Flip the bird and score the back as well (you don't need to prick the back). You may need to sharpen your knife along the way, as it's much easier to make clean cuts into the skin with a sharp knife. Using a clean kitchen towel or paper towels, thoroughly pat duck dry, including inside the cavity.
• Season the duck all over, including cavity, with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine garlic, chopped herbs, citrus zest and coriander, if using, and make a paste. Rub garlic paste all over duck, inside and out. Place duck, breast side up, on rack in a roasting pan, stuff cavity with herb sprigs, and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.
• When it's time to cook the bird, heat the oven to 450 degrees. Roast for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully prick duck skin all over the top of the bird using a sharp paring knife. (You don't need to prick the back of the duck.) Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue roasting until skin is golden brown and crispy, and the internal temperature at thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 1 hour to 1 hour 45 minutes longer. Using tongs, gently tip duck to drain any liquid from the cavity. Transfer bird to cutting board to rest for at least 10 minutes. Carve and serve.