Roast Duck With Apple-Onion Sauté

From the book The Basic Gourmet by Diane Morgan, Dan Taggart, Kathleen Taggart, and Georgia Vareldzis

Introduction

We have found a perfectly wonderful way to roast a duck. It is simple and it accomplishes two important elements. First, the long roasting allows for an almost complete rendering of fat, making the duck meat tender, but not tummy-churning rich. Second, a finish under the broiler gives a crisp, tasty skin. Most ducks these days are found in the freezer section of your supermarket, so plan your purchase three or four days in advance to allow for a slow defrost in the refrigerator. We have embellished the recipe with a simple little sauté for some color and textural contrast. Fruit flavors always marry well with duck.

Ingredients

Apple-Onion Sauté

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove neck and giblets from the cavity of the duck. (Save these—except liver—for making stock). Rinse duck thoroughly inside and out and dry with paper towels. With a paring knife cut away visible large pieces of fat around the opening to the cavity. Sprinkle duck lightly with salt and pepper, inside and out.
2. In a 12-inch frying pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add duck and brown on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer duck to a rack placed in a roasting pan with sides at least 1 inch deep. Place in the oven and roast for 2½ hours. Baste the bird with chicken stock about every ½ hour.
3. Remove all but about 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan used to brown the duck. Heat fat until hot and add onions. Cook slowly over medium-low to low heat until onions are very tender and nicely browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Add apple slices and continue to cook until apples are soft, about 10 more minutes. Add salt, pepper, thyme, and cranberries and sauté to blend the flavors, about 2 more minutes. Turn off heat and set mixture aside until the duck is done.
4. Remove duck from oven and preheat the broiler. Add about 2 tablespoons of any remaining chicken stock or water to the apple-onion mixture and place over low heat. Place duck about 6 inches under the broiler to brown and crisp the skin. Watch closely; brown is what we are aiming for, not charred. Remove duck to a carving board and carve as directed for Roast Chicken. Serve each portion o duck with a spoonful of the apple-onion mixture.

Notes

• If you are not able to find either dried cranberries or dried cherries, use dark or golden raisins. The mixture will be a little sweeter and less tart, but still yummy.
• Ducks really do not have a lot of meat on them; that’s why we specify a 5-pound duck to feed 2 or 3 people. If you have lots of other items on the dinner table, you may stretch it to serve 4, but if you have the oven space, you may want to roast 2 ducks. Any leftovers are heavenly.

This content is from the book The Basic Gourmet by Diane Morgan, Dan Taggart, Kathleen Taggart, and Georgia Vareldzis.