Seared Peking Duck

Instruction​

• Cook to 120 degrees

• Using a boning knife, trim extraneous skin/fat around the duck breast and remove any visible silver connective tissue 

• Score the skin in a crisscross design, cutting through the skin completely without piercing the meat

  • Make sure to cut all the way through the edges to stop the duck breast from buckling when it cooks

• Season heavily with salt and let this sit at room temperature for 15 minutes

  • This will draw out moisture to ensure crispy skin while cooking​

• Pat the duck as dry as possible with a paper towel, then re-season with salt and pepper

• Set a stainless steel skillet on high

• Once fully heated, add the duck skin-side down, then immediately reduce heat to low

  • This high heat will ensure the duck doesn't stick, then the low heat will allow more fat to be rendered slowly

• It can take 5-15 minutes for the fat to render, so start checking the fat after 5 minutes.

• Once the skin/fat side is thin, tilt the pan and use a spoon to scoop out as much of the rendered fat from the pan as possible

  • This can be stored for later cooking - it's great to use in potatoes!

• Crank up the heat to high to finish the crisping the fat side of the duck, while basting the flesh with the remaining juices

• Turn the heat back down to low and flip the duck breast over

  • If the heat is too high when you flip it to the flesh side, the meat will toughen

• Cook the flesh side for 1-2 minutes until browned​

• Transfer the meat onto a resting plate and let it rest for 5-10 minutes to allow the muscle to relax and juices to redistribute

• While the meat is resting, you can click the button below to make a delicious Red Wine Pan Sauce with the juices and duck bits remaining in the pan.

  • Zest your orange and add this to your pan sauce​

  • You can also add a splash of orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier