Mon, 3 December 2018
RECIPE: Joe’s Christmas Duck Breast with sweet cranberry sauce on gratin potatoes
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
4 boneless Irish duck breast fillets, skin on and scored
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
100ml balsamic vinegar
100ml red wine
100ml chicken stock
300g brown sugar
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
400g cranberries (frozen or fresh)
2 tablespoons butter
METHOD
Season the duck with salt and pepper.
Place the duck skin side down on a cold pan and switch n heat to medium.
Brown the duck breast, skin side first, then flip over and cook for 1- 2 minutes
Place duck on a baking tray and cook in oven at 180c 3-4 minutes.
Remove any excess fat from the pan.
Increase heat, To the pan add the balsamic vinegar and red wine and cook until reduced by half. Add the stock and reduce by half again, then add brown sugar, rosemary and cranberries and cook for 3 minutes.
Strain into a bowl and whisk in the butter to finish.
Place the duck breast on a round of gratin potatoe, and drizzle the sauce around, along with some fresh whole Cranberries as a garnish
RECIPE: Joe’s Gratin Potatoes
1kg Peeled sliced potatoes
600ml carton double cream
2 garlic clove, peeled and halved
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 shallot, diced
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 4/fan oven 140C.
Rub the butter all over the surface of a gratin dish, about 18x28cm/7x11in.
Lay the potato slices on a clean tea towel and pat dry.
Keep them covered with the tea towel while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Pour the cream into a saucepan. Add the garlic, thyme and shallot.
Slowly heat the cream and just as it is about to reach boiling point and you see bubbles appearing around the edge of the pan, remove it from the heat.
Strain the liquid into a large jug, sprinkle in the nutmeg and keep warm.
Layer half the potato slices in the dish, slightly overlapping the slices and sprinkling with a little salt and freshly ground pepper between each layer.
You don’t have to be too neat with the lower layers, but keep some of your best slices for later, so the top looks good.
Pour half the hot milk and cream over the potatoes, then finish off layering the rest of the potatoes (arranging them a bit more carefully this time).
Pour over the rest of the hot milk and cream.
Bake for about one hour, until golden and tender.
Remove from the oven, place a piece of parchment on top and the place a dish with a weight and leave over night to press.
In the morning, remove from the fridge and portion out using a round disc cutter, place on a buttered tray and re-heat in a oven of 180c for 20 minutes.
