Honey roasted duck on couscous with cashew nuts

1 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
3 3.5 lb barbary ducks
1 tablespoon Orange flower honey; (clear)
3 Sage leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 ounces Couscous
2 Good pinches saffron stamens
1 Nodule fresh ginger root
2 Green chillies
2 ounces Cashew nuts
6 Spring onions
½ teaspoon Salt
1 Shallot
1 Clove garlic
2 tablespoons Extra virgin oil
1 tablespoon Sesame oil
1 tablespoon Caraway leaf or parsley
1 tablespoon Soy sauce

Directions

Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7. Cut the ducks into portions. Take off the breasts along the breastbone, running knife along carcass for a clean finish. Cut off the legs at the hip joint and reserve for confit. Render fat for confit. Crush bones and make in to stock or pop them in the freezer and make it at a more convenient time.

Make an incision in each breast near the fillet and insert half a sage leaf. Season the breasts. Heat a cast iron pan or skillet until hot. Sear the fat sides of the breasts until the fat starts to crisp.

Remove and then with a sharp, fine knife, make vertical slashes close together through the skin of each breast. This is easier to do neatly when the skin is crisp. Return breasts, skin side down, to skillet and cook to release the fat and crisp skin. It will now be golden.

Drain well and then smear a little honey over the surfaces of the skin. Sit breasts in a roasting tin skin sides up. Roast in a hot oven for 7-8 minutes, depending on how thick the breasts are. Rest in a warming oven for a further 15 minutes to relax the flesh and evenly spread the cooking heat.

The breasts will now be lightly pink and moist.

To make the couscous, heat ¾ pint water and add the salt and saffron stamens until boiling. Pour the couscous in to a bowl. Add the boiling water and stir gently. Leave for the grains to swell and become fluffy having taken up the colour and flavour of the saffron, about 10 minutes.

Finely chop the onion and garlic. Roast the cashew nuts in the oven for 2-3 minutes until golden. Peel and finely shred the ginger. Cut off the tops, membranes and seeds from the chillies and chop finely. Peel and thinly slice the spring onions, also using a little of the green stems.

Fork up the swollen couscous In a wide based pan, heat olive oil and fry onion, garlic, chilli and ginger until softened. Add spring onion and cashew nuts and then quickly add the couscous. Sprinkle on the sesame oil, stirring with a fork. Season. Make very hot. Stir in a little freshly chopped caraway, or parsley leaf and 1tbsp of soy sauce.

Serve on plates with the duck breasts sliced horizontally and laid on top to allow the juices to drip through.

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