Magret de Canard et Haricots Verts

My favorite cuisine has to be French and perhaps this is because the French do an excellent job with duck. Whether it is duck breast, duck confit, or duck à l'orange, my go-to dish at a French restaurant will always be duck. While strolling in Beacon Hill on Friday, I came upon a specialty grocery store, Savenor’s, which carried excellent high-quality cuts of meat, and decided to pick up something I do not typically find: a duck breast, along with some baby yukon golds, haricots verts, and a single orange. This decadent recipe is excellent for a romantic date night comparable to a fancy dinner date.

The beauty of cooking with duck is all the duck fat that you can harvest from rendering it properly. This flavorful resource can be utilized to elevate the other elements of your dish, this time being the haricots verts and the potatoes. This recipe was inspired by Gordon Ramsey’s technique for cooking duck breasts.

You’ll need:

two 1 pound magret de canard
haricots verts
baby yukon golds
rosemary
salt and pepper
an orange
cast iron skillet

Rendering the Fat

The key to rendering the duck fat is starting with a cold pan and a cold duck and slowly raising the heat to medium to melt all of the fat out. If you started at a high heat, the fat would become locked in. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Then score the duck skin, season both sides with salt and pepper, and place it on the cast iron skillet, completely dry (do not use additional oil). Heat the pan at low and as the fat begins to liquify into the pan, gradually raise the heat to medium until you have rendered the majority of the fat out (about ten minutes). Meanwhile, dice the potatoes into cubes and pull any stems off of the haricots verts. After the fat is rendered, flip the breast and sear the flesh side before flipping it back over once golden. Tilt the pan and spoon out the duck fat into a container before putting the whole cast iron skillet into the oven.

Before you sear the flesh side, wait for the fat to be rendered (the coating of oil in the pan)

Making Use of the Duck Fat

I’ll admit that this is not the most appealing header, but the duck fat is really the star of the show here. You can opt to use the duck fat for future use within the next two weeks, but I chose to incorporate this into the side dishes. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper, and then cook the potatoes on all sides in a coat of duct fat (I used about 3/4ths of the amount I had). To expedite the potato cooking process, you can either pre-boil them for ten minutes and thoroughly dry them, or cook them in the skillet with a lid on medium-high heat for about 25 minutes, while ensuring a golden crisp. With the remaining 1/4th of the duck fat, I sautéed the haricots verts with pepper and garlic powder. As for the duck in the oven, the amount of time you leave it in there really depends on the internal temperature you choose to achieve. Medium rare is about 135 degrees Fahrenheit, and took me about 15 minutes in the oven.

Plating

Like steak, the duck breast needs to rest to properly soak and distribute its flavorful juices. By cutting prematurely, the juices will leak out and you risk losing the juiciness and flavor. Allow the duck to sit until room temperature for about 5-10 minutes. With a sharp knife, cut thick slices against the grain for better heat retention. Serve in a tight fan with a rosemary garnish and orange slices to pay homage to the flavors of the classic duck à l'orange.

You can tell that the fat successfully rendered in the center of the breast where there was more contact with the pan versus the ends of the breast. Amend this by ensuring flushed contact of all surfaces of the skin to the pan, and rotating the brea… — You can tell that the fat successfully rendered in the center of the breast where there was more contact with the pan versus the ends of the breast. Amend this by ensuring flushed contact of all surfaces of the skin to the pan, and rotating the breast for a more consistent heat distribution.