Duck a l'Orange

🥘 Ingredients

• apricot jam
  2 unit
• arugula
  4 oz
• butter (1 TBSP)
  4 tbsp
• chicken stock concentrate
  2 unit
• dijon mustard
  4 tsp
• duck breasts
  24 oz
• olive oil
  4 tsp
• orange
  2 unit
• paper towels
• potatoes
  24 oz
• red wine vinegar
  3.333 tbsp
• shallot
  1 unit
• sliced almonds
  ½ oz
• sour cream
  4 tbsp
• sugar (1 tsp; 1½ tsp for 4)
  2 tsp
• thyme
  ¼ oz

🍳 Cookware

• large pot
• large pan
• small bowl
• zester
• large bowl

1. 

   1

   Wash and dry all produce. Dice potatoes into ½-inch pieces. (TIP: For a smoother texture, peel potatoes first.) Place in a large pot with a few thyme sprigs (you'll use the rest in step 3) and enough salted water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, ⏱️ 20 minutes . Remove and discard thyme sprigs. Reserve ½ cup potato cooking liquid, then drain and return potatoes to pot. Keep covered off heat until ready to mash.

   potatoes: 24 oz, thyme: ¼ oz
2. 

   2

   Meanwhile, pat duck breasts dry with paper towels ; season all over with salt and pepper. Place, skin sides down, in a large pan over medium heat. Cook, carefully reserving fat in a small bowl as it renders, until skin is crisp, ⏱️ 20 minutes . TIP: Lower heat if skin begins to brown too quickly. While duck cooks, halve, peel, and thinly slice half the shallot (whole shallot for 4 servings). Toss sliced shallot in a separate small bowl with half the red wine vinegar (you'll use the rest in the next step), sugar , and a big pinch of salt and pepper.

   duck breasts: 24 oz, paper towels, shallot: 1 unit, red wine vinegar: 3.333 tbsp, sugar: 2 tsp (1 tsp; 1½ tsp for 4)
3. 

   3

   Strip thyme leaves from remaining sprigs until you have 1 tsp (2 tsp for 4 servings); roughly chop leaves. Using a zester , zest orange until you have 1 tsp (2 tsp for 4). Halve orange; squeeze juice from one orange half into a third small bowl. Peel remaining orange half; dice into ½-inch pieces. (For 4, squeeze juice from two orange halves; peel and dice remaining orange.) To bowl with orange juice, add apricot jam , chicken stock concentrate , half the orange zest, and remaining vinegar.

   orange: 2 unit, apricot jam: 2 unit, chicken stock concentrate: 2 unit
4. 

   4

   Once skin is crisp, flip duck and cook to desired doneness, ⏱️ 5 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board to rest. Add chopped thyme to same pan over medium heat and cook until fragrant, ⏱️ 30 seconds . Stir in orange juice mixture and bring to a simmer. Cook until thickened, ⏱️ 3 minutes . Stir in butter until melted. Turn off heat.

   butter: 4 tbsp (1 TBSP)
5. 

   5

   Heat pot with drained potatoes over medium-low heat. Mash with sour cream and 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4 servings) until smooth and creamy, adding splashes of reserved potato cooking liquid as needed. Stir in reserved duck fat to taste. Season with salt and pepper. Keep covered off heat until ready to serve.

   sour cream: 4 tbsp
6. 

   6

   In a large bowl , combine shallot pickling liquid, dijon mustard , a large drizzle of olive oil , remaining orange zest, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss with arugula , pickled shallot, diced orange, and sliced almonds . Season with salt and pepper. Slice duck crosswise. Divide between plates along with salad and mashed potatoes. Spoon sauce over duck and serve.

   dijon mustard: 4 tsp, olive oil: 4 tsp, arugula: 4 oz, sliced almonds: ½ oz