Best Skillet Duck Recipes

JACQUES'S SKILLET DUCK WITH PARSNIPS AND SHALLOTS

Steps:

• Separating the duck:
• Cut off most of the fatty flap of neck skin and reserve. Insert a sharp knife into 1 breast near the shoulder joint and slice - in a semicircle - around the wishbone. Slide your finger in back of wishbone and pry it out.
• To remove the legs, lift the duck by one leg and cut through the skin all around the thigh, including the meaty piece along the backbone, called the "oyster." Grasp the leg at the knee and pull back the thigh, to expose the joint. Cut through it and pull the leg off the carcass in 1 piece. Repeat to remove the other leg. Cut the drumsticks from the thigh pieces.
• To remove the breast halves, slice along both sides of the breastbone. Lay the duck on its side, and cut through the upper shoulder joint. Hold the carcass down by the neck with one hand, grasp the shoulder section with the other, and pull off the entire breast half, in 1 piece. Repeat on the other side. Pull out the 2 slim meaty filets that remain on either side of the breastbone.
• Chop off the wing tips. Cut around the wing on 1 breast piece to free it from the breastbone; separate the largest wing joint from the other 2. Repeat on the other side.
• You should now have 12 pieces to put in the pan: 2 large breast pieces, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks, 2 small breast filets, and 4 wing pieces.
• Finally, trim any loose, fatty flaps of skin from the carcass, the breast, or the leg pieces.
• Frying the duck:
• Set the pan over moderate heat. Slice the reserved neck skin into 3 or 4 strips and put them in the pan to begin rendering fat. Season the duck pieces with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the 1/4 teaspoon pepper. When there's enough fat to film the pan bottom, lay in all the pieces, skin side down (you can push aside the strips of neck skin, but leave them in the pan).
• Raise the heat to medium-high, and cook skin side down and uncovered. The duck skin will shrink and color, and lots of fat will accumulate in the pan. Check the underside of the pieces once or twice t make sure they are not burning; lower the heat slightly if necessary. Fry until the skin on all the pieces is well browned and quite crisp; the whole process should take 20 to 25 minutes.
• Turn the heat down to low. Leave the duck pieces on their skin - they should be half submerged in fat - and strew the parsnip pieces, shallots, and garlic cloves all around them in the pan. Add the rosemary and bay leaves, and sprinkle over 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Cover the pan, turn down the heat to low, and cook for 30 minutes. Check occasionally to make sure that the duck is gently steaming; adjust the heat as necessary.
• When the duck and vegetables are tender - pierce with a sharp knife to check - turn off the heat. Immediately lift the duck and vegetable pieces from the pan with the spoon or skimmer, allowing the fat to drain, and arrange on a serving platter.
• Pour off the clear duck fat from the pan - you will have 1 1/2 cups or so - and save for other uses. Add 1 cup of water to the pan, bring to a boil, scraping with a wooden spatula to melt all the solidified juice, and pour over the duck. Scatter chopped parsley over and serve.
• A Côtes du Rhône, Syrah, or Grenache-type wine would be good with this duck.

SKILLET DUCK BREAST A L'ORANGE

Steps:

• 1. Preheat a large frying pan on medium high heat. Lay your Duck breasts in the pan skin and fat side down. Let cook until dark golden brown-about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• 2. Turn your duck breasts over and let the other side cook about 2 or 3 minutes more. Remove from pan and set in warm plates to set.
• 3. keeping the heat on your pan, add the marmalade to the hot duck fat, stirring until melted, then whisk in the orange juice concentrate. Cook until thickened and slightly sticky. Serve over the duck breast. This sauce goes well with carrots, too.

SKILLET DUCK

Steps:

• Cut each duck in half lengthwise, slicing through the carcass bones. Then cut each half duck into two pieces (the leg, and the breast with wing attached).
• Heat two large skillets or saucepans that have lids, either nonstick or heavy aluminum, until hot. Place one duck (4 pieces) skin side down in one layer in each of the hot skillets. Sprinkle with the salt, and cook over high heat for 5 minutes. Lift the pieces to dislodge them from the bottom of the skillets, then return to the skillets, skin side down.
• Add the duck necks and gizzards to the pans, cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes. (The skin on the duck pieces should be very brown at this point.) Reduce the heat to very low, cover, and cook for 25 minutes. Add the livers and hearts, cover, and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
• Place the duck pieces on a large tray, and keep them warm until serving time in a 170-degree oven. Pour the fat (about 4 cups total) from the two skillets into a bowl, and reserve 1 1/2 tablespoons of it for the green salad (see recipe). Cover and refrigerate the remainder. (It can be used for up to two months for sauteeing potatoes or other vegetables.)
• There should be a residue of glaze or solidified juices in the bottom of the skillets. Add 1/4 cup of water to each skillet, and stir to melt the solidified juices. Set these drippings aside.
• Serve the pieces of duck sprinkled with the reserved drippings and with the green salad (see recipe.)

SKILLET DUCK LEGS WITH OLIVES AND ANCHOVIES

Steps:

• Trim the excess skin and all the visible fat from the duck legs; cut the skin and fat into 1-inch pieces. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the salt on all sides of the legs.
• Pour 2 tablespoons of the oil into the pan, and set over medium heat. Arrange the legs in the pan, skin side down, and scatter all the skin and fat pieces in the spaces between them. As the fat starts to sizzle, lower the heat slightly and partially cover the skillet, leaving a gap of an inch or so for moisture to evaporate. Let the fat sizzle away, as you occasionally nudge and shift the leg pieces so they don't stick to the bottom.
• After 15 to 20 minutes, turn the legs over-the skin should be gold and lightly crisped already. Cook the legs on the flesh side for about 15 minutes, shifting them a bit, then turn them skin side down again and continue cooking for another 20 minutes-cook an hour altogether-until they are thoroughly crisp and deeply colored. Lift the leg pieces from the pan, letting fat drip off, and put them in a bowl. Carefully pour out the fat into a heat-proof container, but leave the crusty bits on the bottom and sides of the skillet. See box on uses for duck fat, which follows.
• Return the skillet to the stove; pour in 3 more tablespoons of olive oil, and set over medium heat. Stir in the garlic slices, and cook for a minute or two, until they start to sizzle. Drop the chopped anchovies in a hot spot; cook, stirring, for a minute or more-the anchovies will melt away in the oil. Now drop in the olives and stir them around, scraping up some of the browned bits in the pan as you do, for a minute or more, until they're starting to cook.
• Put the duck legs back into the pan, toss in the branches of rosemary, and get the duck cooking again, turning the legs over in the oil and seasonings for a minute or two. When everything is hot, pour the red wine vinegar in several clear spaces around the pan; toss and stir everything as the vinegar steams and the acidity cooks off. After a minute, sprinkle on another 1/4 teaspoon of salt and pour in the wine, also on hot spots, and stir for a minute, then cover the pan completely.
• Cook covered for 4 or 5 minutes over low to medium heat, then uncover and turn everything well, coating the duck with the liquid and using it to deglaze the browned bits in the pan. Taste the sauce and add salt if necessary; drizzle over a tablespoon or two of olive oil if the sauce needs more viscosity.
• Cover the pan, and cook another 4 to 5 minutes. Uncover, and give everything a final stir so the duck is well coated with thick sauce and bits of olives. If there's loose, wet sauce in the pan, cook and stir until it is thickened. But if the duck is dry and there are stuck brown bits on the pan, pour in a bit of broth to loosen things up and get the duck moist and glistening with the sauce. Remove from the heat and serve. Let the duck rest in the pan, partially covered, if you want; refresh and reheat it with a bit of broth before serving.
• To make this wonderful dish with a whole duck rather than duck legs, here's a simple way to cut it up. I suggest you have a heavy chef's knife, kitchen shears, and a small cleaver.
• Rinse and dry the duck. Save the giblets and neck for soup (or cook the neck in the skillet, as I would). Trim and cut excess skin and fat, and cut them up for the skillet.
• Grasp a wing near the body and bend it back firmly, exposing the armpit-you'll feel the connecting joint. Cut through it to remove the wing; repeat on the other side. Slice off the outside thin wing piece for the soup pile; cook the meatier wing pieces in the skillet.
• Set the breast facing up, and slice a line right down the middle, exposing the cartilage where the breast halves meet. Now cut through the cartilage and bone with your shears or knife, following your line, splitting the duck open.
• Open the breast halves and spread them apart, like opening a book, with the spine down the middle. Now cut the duck apart along the spine, chopping with the base of your knife or cleaver at the tough parts. One cut is all you need; leave the backbone attached to one of the long duck halves.
• Cut each half crosswise, dividing the breast meat from the leg meat-there's a natural dip between them.
• Now you have four big pieces, two small wings, one neck, and lots of fat and skin to fry, following the recipe.
• This skillet duck is delicious served just with cooked or grilled polenta.
• Skillet Brussels Sprouts (page 271) is a harmonious accompaniment with or without polenta.
• To serve on individual plates, arrange a whole leg, thigh and drumstick, on each plate, and top it with the pieces of olives and drops of remaining sauce. Or you can cut the leg at the joint and serve two pieces.
• If you are cooking the whole duck pieces, either serve as they are or cut in smaller pieces. Duck bones are more brittle and splinter easily, so cutting at the joints is the way to go.
• Don't discard delicious duck fat!
• You'll get almost a pound of fat with skin attached when you're trimming duck legs for this recipe or for guazzetto (page 154). Both the fat and the skin are full of flavor and easy to render, giving you a snack of delicious cracklings and a small crock of pure duck fat. Here's how:
• Cut the trimmings into rough 1/2-inch pieces and put them in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat. Within a few minutes, the fat will have started rendering and the skin will be sizzling. Cook slowly for 20 minutes or more, until the skin cracklings are crisp and browned all over.
• Lift out the cracklings with a spider or strainer, and toss them on a paper towel with a little salt. Pour the rendered duck fat into a heatproof bowl or small crock. (If you're not sure whether it's heat-proof, put a spoon in the crock to temper the heat.) Store duck fat in a closed crock; it will solidify and keep for a month and more. To use, just spoon into a pan; it will melt immediately, like butter. Use it as a cooking fat when frying eggs, making sauces like Bolognese, and braising meats.
• Enjoy the cracklings as a snack, or dress a soup with them. You can use them instead of bacon in a quick pasta dish, or add them to a recipe like Spaghetti with Asparagus Frittata (page 99). Also, duck cracklings are delicious tossed in a green salad, in Poached Whole Zucchini with Lemon and Olive Oil, in scrambled eggs, or kneaded into focaccia just before baking.