Sunday, September 10, 2006
Roast Mallard with Wild Mushroom Gravy
After all these (hopefully mouth-watering) pictures, I feel it is finally time for me to share another recipe with you. Unfortunately, my life has not calmed down at all. I'm still trying to juggle my job, my dissertation and my private life and as I'm hoping to get a promotion in the not too distant future, the former has taken over again. But at least I am no longer letting this drag me down. In fact, after a relaxing weekend I'm in good spirits again and ready to cook up a storm.Dinner tonight was a reflection of this mood. When I went to the market yesterday I found something new: One of the meat stalls had two
wild ducks, or mallards as they called them, hanging from their canopy. This, I was told, is their sign that the Irish game season has started and fresh venison and game birds are now available. Luckily, they also sold them plucked and cleaned. Not that I would not do my own plucking if I had to. I'm not like those people who, as the guys at the stall told me, complain that putting dead animals on display is bad for the kids who see them, that it is animal cruelty or bad taste or god knows what else. But I do maintain that plucking birds is a pain in the behind, even when you only have to remove the small amount of feathers left on a pre-prepared ones. I'd rather use my time finding great ways of cooking them. Tonight I think I succeeded. My choice was bacon-wrapped mallard stuffed with herb crushed potatoes and served with roast potatoes (you can never have too many spuds), squash purée (yes, it was the leftover squash I baked the other night), baby kale and wild mushroom gravy, and what a nice choice it was!For the duck:
1 wild duck
3 to 4 rashers bacon
salt and pepper to taste
For the stuffing:
2 to 3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
a knob of butter
½ onion, finely chopped
a handful of mixed fresh herbs (such as chives, thyme, oregano or marjoram), chopped
2 bay leaves
For the roast potatoes:
4 tbsp duck fat (or goose fat, dripping or olive oil)
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
For the mushrooms gravy:
1 tbsp butter
4 pearl onions, halved
a handful of wild mushrooms, sliced
1 to 2 rashers of bacon, chopped
80ml red wine
80ml water
salt and pepper to taste
1 Oxo cube
To serve:
vegetables of your choice
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Pick the duck over for feathers, clip off the ends of the wings and season with salt and pepper. Wrap the breast with the bacon rashers and set aside.
For the stuffing, heat the butter in a shallow frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and fry until translucent, about 5 minutes. Boil the potatoes until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain thoroughly. Crush with the back of a fork and mix with the onions and herbs. Add the two bay leaves and place the mixture inside the duck's chest cavity. Put the bird in the centre of a large roasting tray. Place in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes.
Par-boil the roasting potatoes until the outside is beginning to go soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain well. Put the lid back on the pot and, holding it firmly down, shake a few times to roughen the potatoes. This helps to make them nice and crispy. Add the duck fat and toss to coat well. Arrange the potato chunks around the duck and return the tray to the oven. Roast for 15-20 minutes, then turn the potatoes and baste the duck. Return to the oven.
In the meantime make the gravy. Gently melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan over medium low heat. Add the onion halves and sauté until they begin to soften, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add bacon and cook for a few minutes to release some of the fat. Now stir in the mushrooms and continue frying, stirring as little as possible, until the mushrooms are beginning to collapse and the onions are soft, about 5 minutes.
Increase the oven temperature to 220 degrees. Pour the wine into the gravy and bring to the boil. Cook until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Now add the water and crumble in the Oxo cube. Reduce by half, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
Remove the duck from the oven and allow to rest in a warm place for 5 minutes. Serve with the stuffing, roast potatoes and vegetables and pour the gravy over to finish.
Christine at 6:03 pm
