Roast duck with redcurrants, nasturtium and radicchio

  • medium
  • 4
  • 60 minutes
Not yet rated

Duck and redcurrant is a classic sweet and savoury flavour combination, and Scott Smith builds on that with bitter radicchio and peppery nasturtium. The sauce is what really brings this dish together, and you'll need a good duck stock for that. We'd recommend buying a whole duck, taking the breasts off and using the carcass to make your own – you can check out our stock-making guide here.

First published in 2019

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

  • 2 large duck breasts, approximately 300g each
  • 200ml of red wine
  • 150g of caster sugar
  • 300ml of reduced duck stock
  • 200g of redcurrants
  • 25ml of sea buckthorn juice, or lemon juice
  • 150g of butter
  • 150g of nasturtium leaves
  • 150ml of rapeseed oil, not cold-pressed
  • 1 radicchio, cut into strips
  • 2 tbsp of cider vinegar
  • salt, to taste

Method

1
Start by making a duck sauce. Pour the wine and sugar into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the duck stock and reduce by one-third, then add the redcurrants and turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes then add the sea buckthorn (or lemon) juice. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter. Season and keep warm
  • 150g of butter
  • 200ml of red wine
  • 150g of caster sugar
  • 200g of redcurrants
  • 25ml of sea buckthorn juice, or lemon juice
  • 300ml of reduced duck stock
2
Heat the rapeseed oil in a small pan to 70ºC, then transfer to a blender. Add 120g of the nasturtium leaves (reserve the rest for garnish), blend thoroughly, then pass through a sieve. Chill the oil and keep in the fridge until ready to plate
3
Preheat an oven to 210ºC/gas mark 6½. Trim the duck breasts and place them into a cold ovenproof frying pan, skin-side down. Put the pan on a medium-high heat and allow the duck fat to render and continue to cook for about 6 minutes until the skin has become crisp and the meat is cooked one-third of the way up the side of the breast. Turn the breast over and place the pan in the oven for 6–8 minutes, depending on the size. Remove from the pan and allow the duck breast to rest for at least 12 minutes. Drain the fat into a bowl
4
Dress the radicchio in a bowl with the cider vinegar, a little salt and a tablespoon of the reserved duck fat
  • salt, to taste
  • 1 radicchio, cut into strips
  • 2 tbsp of cider vinegar
5
Carve the duck in half lengthways and place a slice on the plate. Sauce the meat and the centre of the plate with the duck sauce, being generous with the redcurrants. Place the radicchio and the remaining nasturtium on and around the duck, and finish with the nasturtium oil
First published in 2019

Scott Smith’s modern Scottish cooking has made him one of the country's rising culinary stars. Employing preservation techniques like pickling and fermenting to get the most out of every ingredient, he shines a constant light on the incredible quality of Scottish produce.

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