Christmas duck recipes | Jamie Oliver poultry recipes (2024)

FAQs

How does Jamie Oliver cook a duck? ›

Peking duck – a famous Chinese dish originating from Beijing, prepared since the Ming Dynasty era. It is prized for the thin, crispy skin, with authentic versions of the dish serving mostly the skin and little meat, and eaten with pancakes, scallions, and hoisin sauce or sweet bean sauce.

Heat a large cast-iron pan on low for 3 minutes. Lay the duck breasts in, skin side down, and gradually increase the heat to medium. Add the skin trimmings into the pan. Sear skin side down for 3 to 5 minutes or until most of the fat has rendered and the skin is golden brown, flipping the breast over occasionally.

A simple salt brine makes almost any duck a delight to serve on the upcoming holiday table. In many cases, soaking or marinating your meat only masks the flavor. It does not change it. But a salt brine draws out blood and other imperfections to make the meat milder.

Soaking ducks in various liquids is a common “cure” for the taste that seems offensive to many. Some soak duck breast in milk, wine, bourbon, salt water and probably a bunch of other stuff.

The journey towards perfectly roasted or baked duck breast entails commencing with a searing process. This initial step sets the foundation for achieving the ideal oven-roasted duck breast—a tantalizingly golden and crisp exterior juxtaposed with a succulent, flavorful interior.

To get a crispy skin on your duck breasts, cook skin side down in a hot pan on a medium heat until golden brown. Then simply put in the oven for the required cooking time, skin side up.

The boiling water helps pull the skin taut, making it easier to score in a crosshatch pattern. That, in turn, allows the fat to render out as everything roasts. The result is a perfectly cooked duck with pink, juicy meat and burnished, crunchy skin.

Basic Brine

Heat 2 cups of the water in a saucepan over medium heat. Add salt, brown sugar, and pickling spices. Stir until the salt is dissolved. Add this mixture to the remaining water and cool completely in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours before soaking the duck or goose meat.

Duck breast fillets can be brined for six to 12 hours. If you're short on time, just a few hours in the brine will always help. Once brined, give your ducks a rinse with cold water, pat dry and start your favorite recipe.

Can you marinate duck too long? ›

Most recipes for marinating meat and poultry recommend six hours up to 24 hours. It is safe to keep the food in the marinade longer, but after two days it is possible that the marinade can start to break down the fibers of the meat, causing it to become mushy.

Whole duck is usually roasted in one of two ways; Chinese-style where the skin is dried and lacquered as it cooks, or in the same way as a roast chicken in a hot oven. Roast duck however, unlike chicken, needs considerable help in de-fatting or it will taste greasy.

The USDA recommends 165°F (74°C) internal temperature for all poultry. But because duck is not a common carrier of salmonella and its meat is more akin to lamb or beef, Hank Shaw, author and chef, says that “Rare-to-medium is the mantra” when it comes to duck breast.

Cover and roast in oven for 2 hours. Remove the aluminium foil and continue cooking uncover for 30 to 40 minutes to make the skin crispy and brown.

Ducks are generally roasted uncovered and usually do not need to be basted with fats. Cook for 20–30 minutes to brown, then reduce heat to 190°C for the remainder of the cooking period. Allow 30–45 minutes per kilogram, according to age and size.