Duck in the oven. Duck with apples and lemon in the oven Duck stewed in lemon juice with blueberries

Time, as usual, flies unnoticed, and very soon it will come New Year, and after it Christmas. And on the days festive feasts I always want to try something incredibly tasty, aromatic and satisfying. And exactly rosy duck, baked in the oven with the simplest and most affordable seasonings, can become the main dish of the New Year or Christmas table.

In Russia, as well as in many other countries, duck stuffed with apples, with ginger, mustard and honey, in soy or orange sauce, is often prepared on major holidays and has long been among the traditional Christmas dishes. And today we'll look at a few popular recipes cooking duck in the oven with honey.

To make the Christmas duck with honey in the oven tasty and appetizing golden crust, you will need the following products:

duck weighing 2-2.5 kg
honey - 3 tbsp. l.
set of spices: 1 tsp. ginger, ground black pepper, tarragon and half a teaspoon nutmeg, salt, soy sauce.

Prepare duck with honey and ginger in soy sauce as follows:

We prepare the carcass: we wash it thoroughly inside and out, remove the remaining feathers, cut off the wings and cut out the tail. Dry with a paper towel.
To make the bird juicy inside and rosy on the outside, grease it outside and inside with a thick paste obtained from a mixture of honey with soy sauce and seasonings, after rubbing the carcass with salt.
Having completed all these steps, wrap the duck in baking paper and leave it in the refrigerator for 12 hours (for this reason, it is recommended to cook the baked duck about a day before consumption).
The next day, remove the duck from the refrigerator and begin preparing the filling. Most often apples, prunes, buckwheat or rice porrige. We will prepare the filling from apples, choosing varieties that are firmer and more acidic (“Golden”, “Antonovka”). We remove the core from the apples, peel them and cut them into slices. You can add to the filling walnuts, almonds, prunes, which must first be poured with cognac (rum, brandy) and left to steep for 20 minutes.
We fasten the stuffed duck with ordinary thread (or wooden skewers) so that the filling does not fall out during cooking.
Place the duck with honey and apples on a baking sheet and lightly grease it with vegetable oil. Wrap the tips of the legs and wings (if they have not been trimmed) in pieces of foil so that they do not burn during cooking.
When the duck is almost ready, you can put the remaining apples from the filling in the pan next to the duck and bake them. They will be saturated with the juice of the bird, and it will be tasty addition for the main course.
Cooking time depends on the size and weight of the bird. Approximately one and a half to two hours at 180 degrees. In this case, every 30 minutes the duck needs to be basted with the fat formed in the mold, and constantly monitored so that it does not burn or dry out. If the bird starts to overcook, you can cover it with a piece of foil on top. The duck should be golden brown with a crispy, tender crust.
After cooking, remove the duck, place it on a dish of appropriate size and serve it whole or cut into pieces.

Read also: How to cook sauerkraut with honey

Duck in honey mustard sauce

Combining perfectly, honey and mustard make the meat juicy and tender, giving it original taste. This is probably why there are many recipes for cooking duck in honey mustard sauce, which are often used by housewives. Let's look at one of these simple recipes.

To prepare duck with mustard and honey according to this recipe, we will need:

honey and mustard - 2 tbsp each. l.
spices to taste
water – 1 glass.

Cooking method:

We process the carcass in the same sequence as in the previous recipe. Rub it with salt and pepper.

Prepare the sauce by mixing honey with mustard and spices, and coat the carcass on all sides with it.

Place the duck on a baking sheet with water. Bake, basting the meat periodically honey mustard sauce, mixed with the fat formed in the mold.

Recipe for duck with honey and mustard marinade

Ingredients:

small duck
honey – 1-2 tbsp. l.
freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
dry red wine and soy sauce – 100 g each
French mustard - 1 tbsp. l.
spices to taste.

Preparation:

The prepared carcass (washed and dried) must be divided into 4 parts, which are placed for an hour and a half in a duck marinade made from wine, soy sauce, spices, grapefruit juice, honey with mustard and salt.

Fry the pieces on all sides and transfer to a baking sheet, pouring marinade. Bake for 1.5 hours at 180 degrees.

Duck with oranges, mustard and honey in a slow cooker

Adding ingredients such as quince, ginger and orange to the duck allows you to cook holiday option original and unusual delicious dish from poultry.

For duck with oranges you will need:

soy sauce – 6 tbsp. l.
ginger – 1 tsp.
cognac – 3 tbsp. l.
lemon, orange, quince - 1 pc.
mustard – 1 tbsp. l.
liquid honey – 3 tbsp. l.
pepper and other spices.

How to cook:

Having prepared the bird carcass (by thoroughly washing and drying), place it in the marinade for several hours. For the marinade, mix soy sauce, cognac, honey, mustard, salt, ginger and spices. Having completed the marinating process, stuff the duck with pieces of lemon, quince and orange.

Read also: Sauerkraut with cranberries and honey: beneficial properties and recipe

Cook the bird in a slow cooker in baking mode for 40 minutes. Then drain off the resulting fat and bake for another 40 minutes, turning the meat over to the other side.

Duck with apples and honey

Duck baked with apples and honey is an indispensable dish for a festive family feast. To prepare it, you need to take a small duck, honey and mustard (2 tablespoons each), a little turmeric, 4-5 sour juicy apples.

Rub the dry and clean carcass with pepper, salt and turmeric. Place apples cut into slices inside. Lubricate the top of the duck with a mustard-honey mixture (the remaining sauce can be poured inside the duck) and bake for one and a half to two hours, having first wrapped the carcass in foil.

Christmas duck in honey sauce with lingonberries

Let's look at another recipe for Christmas duck in French, which you'll have to tinker with. But the result is worth it.

Ingredients:

medium sized domestic duck
honey – 30 g
seasonings and spices: 15 g salt, 2.5 g black fresh ground pepper, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 bunch of thyme, 15 g rosemary, 30 g parsley and 0.5 g ground paprika
for the glaze you will need vegetable oil (35 ml), Dijon mustard and honey (15 g each).
For the filling you will need 15 g of garlic, 600 g of onion, 40 g of sugar, 600 g of sauerkraut, 200 g of apples, 60 g of lingonberries and 20 g of parsley. Pepper and salt - to taste.

By the way, Dijon mustard was invented in Dijon, France in the 19th century. It is prepared from ground mustard seeds mixed with spices and wine vinegar.

Preparation:

Wash and dry the carcass (if necessary, singe and remove remaining feathers). Place greens inside the carcass and rub the outside with pepper and salt.
Pull the legs and wings tied together to the carcass and wrap the prepared carcass in film folded in 8-10 layers.
The duck (still without filling) takes a very long time to bake: 9 hours at 80 degrees.
At the same time, we are preparing the filling. Fry the onion and garlic until golden brown, add sauerkraut, add a little meat broth and bring it to readiness.
Separately prepare caramelized apples with a spoon of sugar. For this, slices, preferably sour and durum varieties apples, fry in butter (the fruit should not soften). After the apples are lightly browned, you need to add sugar and fry a little more so that each slice is covered with a film of sweet caramel. In this case, the apples must be stirred frequently, otherwise the sugar will burn.
Add the finished apples to the filling and remove it from the stove. Now you can add fresh frozen lingonberries to it.
For the glaze we use honey and mustard, which we mix with a mixer. Pour in the oil in a thin stream and add a little salt for taste. Beat everything until a creamy mass forms.
We free the finished duck from the film. Place the stuffing inside the stewed carcass, adding parsley. Coat it on top honey glaze and bake at 220 degrees for 10 minutes until the duck is covered with a golden crust.
Transfer the meat to beautiful dish, pour juice from the baking sheet over it. You can serve the duck with baked potatoes and spices.

It’s not for nothing that duck baked in the oven is considered one of the best dishes for the festive table. The amazing taste of poultry meat, the divine aroma and the spectacular presentation of the food certainly contribute to this.

Today we will tell you in detail how to deliciously bake a whole duck in the oven and offer two best options dishes.

Duck baked in the oven in foil with apples

Ingredients:

apples (ideally Antonov) – 420 g;
lemon – 120 g;
ground ginger and cinnamon - 2-3 pinches each;

Preparation

Initially, we prepare the duck carcass by singeing the feathers and hairs over the fire, if necessary, and also by rinsing it thoroughly and drying it. Now mix salt, ground ginger and black pepper in a bowl, add poultry seasonings, pour in a little olive or sunflower oil and mix. Rub the resulting mixture onto the bird inside and out, place it in a bag and leave it in the refrigerator for a day. In fact, you can use other spices and herbs for pickling of your choice and taste. By the way, for example, ground coriander or squeezed garlic, as well as any aromatic dried herbs, such as oregano, basil, marjoram, etc.

Immediately before baking the duck in the oven, prepare the apple filling. Wash the fruits, remove the inner seed box and cut into large slices. Sprinkle them with lemon juice, add some salt, sprinkle with cinnamon and other herbs and spices and mix thoroughly.

Fill the duck's belly with the apple mixture, sew it up, place the carcass back down in an oiled baking dish and cover with a piece of foil.

In order to preserve the juiciness of the bird, we bake it initially at maximum temperature for twenty minutes, after which we lower the temperature to 175 degrees and continue cooking for another one and a half to two hours, from time to time opening the foil and pouring juices over the bird.

Fifteen minutes before the end of the process, remove the foil and raise the temperature again to the maximum.

Duck baked in the oven with prunes and potatoes

Ingredients:

whole medium-sized duck – 1.8-2.2 kg;
apples (ideally Antonov) – 220 g;
pitted – 90 g;
potatoes – 360 g;
garlic cloves – 3-4 pcs.;
lemon juice – 30 ml;
– 75 g;
seasoning for poultry - a few pinches;
iodized rock salt - to taste;
sunflower or olive oil without aroma – 25 ml;
ground pepper - a few pinches.

Preparation

Just like in the previous recipe, we prepare the carcass properly and prepare the mixture for rubbing. Mix honey, lemon juice, pre-peeled garlic cloves squeezed through a press and a few pinches of poultry seasonings in a bowl. Rub the resulting aromatic, spicy mixture onto the bird carcass inside and out, place it in a tight bag and place it on the refrigerator shelf for twenty-four hours.

To make the filling, wash the apples, remove the seed pods, and then cut them into several pieces. Rinse the prunes thoroughly under running water and if they are hard, soak them in water for a few minutes. hot water. Mix apples and prunes in a bowl, add some salt, season with lemon juice and spices to taste and place in the duck belly. We close the edges of the skin and sew them with thread.

You can bake the duck in the same way as in the previous case in a form under foil, or use a baking sleeve for this. On the sides near the bird carcass we place peeled potatoes, cut into several parts and seasoned with salt, pepper and spices.

Oven baking process and selection temperature regime we described in detail above. IN in this case When preparing poultry with prunes, apples and potatoes, we rely on the information presented in the previous recipe.

When roasting a duck in a sleeve, cut it about fifteen minutes before the end of cooking and brown the bird at maximum temperature.

We remove any remaining fluff from the duck, if there is any, and singe it if necessary (I do this with a creme brulee burner). Salt and pepper the carcass outside and inside. Place lemons cut into quarters inside the duck.

We tie the duck tightly with thread. This is necessary so that the bird retains its shape and loses as little juice as possible. Place in a greased pan, breast side down.

Place in an oven preheated to 250 degrees for 15 minutes. Then take it out and turn it breast side up.

Reduce the oven temperature to 170 degrees and continue baking until done, about 70-80 minutes more. We collect the fat that is rendered from the duck and do not throw it away - then we will use it to prepare duck confit;) Periodically baste the duck with fat.

Cut the pumpkin into large cubes, put it in a bowl, add salt, thyme, olive oil and mix.

40 minutes after reducing the temperature, place the pumpkin in the mold with the duck. We send it back to the oven.

About 15 minutes before cooking, we increase the heat again to 220 degrees and begin to grease the duck with teriyaki sauce at intervals of 4-5 minutes.

Check the duck for doneness. To do this, we pierce the carcass at the junction of the thigh and the body and look at the flowing juice - it should be transparent.

Remove the finished duck from the mold, cover with foil and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

Bon appetit!

A bird on the table is a holiday in the house.
Russian proverb

Cooking duck in the oven so that it turns out tasty, not dry, interesting, original and not greasy is quite difficult, believe me. Without practice, skills and theoretical knowledge, it is quite problematic to pull off such a trick with your ears. Of course, there are cooks by nature - everything comes easily and immediately to them, they feel the products and intuitively implement recipes of any complexity without looking at a cheat sheet, but such people are unlikely to ask Mr. Google how to cook duck in the oven. Today’s conversation is with those who love to cook, do it with inspiration and gusto, but at the same time carefully listen to the recommendations and advice of experienced people.

So, let's start with the fact that duck in the oven is not the easiest dish to execute, however, it is worth recognizing that in many families this is a completely traditional dish, which is prepared with pathos, dancing and tambourines on especially solemn occasions. Duck with apples, duck in foil, duck with quince, duck in wine, duck this way, duck that, duck in a new way, in an old way, in a cunning way - there are countless options. What to choose so as not to spoil the bird and please your family and personal culinary ego with an excellent result? Let's figure it out.

How to choose a good roast duck

- The duck is ready!
- Let her go, let her fly.
Film “The Same Munchausen”

Oh, just don’t raise your eyebrows in bewilderment, mentally turning to the author of the article with a question like “What to choose there? I came, bought it - that’s all the parsley!” The right bird is the key have a delicious dinner. The wrong bird is a guarantee of a spoiled mood. You can, of course, let everything take its course and hope for “maybe” in a standard and quite traditional way, no one argues, but it’s still better to think a little now, pay attention and put a tick in your head, so that later you don’t get angry with yourself for wasted money and time.

So how do you choose a good duck? At the market, you are more likely to be offered an elderly individual who has not quacked for a long time, but only occasionally uttered duck maxims in a weak, smoky voice... in a hoarse voice. You can identify such a young lady by looking closely and, sorry, by rubbing her bust: “young women” have soft bones, and the chest can be slightly bent; “Grandmothers” will not allow such blasphemy in relation to their own loins. Pay attention to the manicure: the claws of a young duck are even and parallel to each other; The claws of an old bird often “look” in different directions; they are hard and durable. Well, another clear sign of age is wrinkles: an old duck should have many, many folds above its beak, and the fewer folds, the younger the waterfowl.

The chances that you will be handed a Pithecanthropus from Paleolithic times in a supermarket are, of course, much less, however, you should be on your guard here too. Do not forget about the obvious signs of a young high-quality bird: the fat should not be thick, dark yellow in color (the lighter, the more pleasant), the size is better smaller than larger, the skin is intact, without darkening, internal fat– without a characteristic greenish tint, the stock is not sour. If you have a choice, give preference to unpackaged poultry: who knows what is hidden under the sealed vacuum film in which the duck is tightly wrapped?

So, once the choice of bird has been made, it’s time to start choosing the recipe. What do you personally like? What are your family's preferences? What to cook so that the family purrs with pleasure?

Duck pieces baked in the oven

If something walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck, it's a duck.
American proverb

Duck in pieces is a convenient solution when you are limited in time resources: you won’t have to wait as long for such a dish to be ready as a similar one, but baked whole, so if you want duck in the oven, you don’t want to walk around the kitchen, going crazy from the spreading fragrant smells throughout the house, this recipe is for you.

Ingredients:

1 duck carcass (or required amount“spare parts” - legs, breasts, thighs);
3 large oranges;
2 tbsp. l. honey;
3 sprigs of rosemary;
salt and pepper to taste.

Wash the duck, dry it, cut it into portioned pieces. Dry the skin thoroughly with disposable towels. Rub with a mixture of salt, pepper and honey, place in a baking dish with high sides. Squeeze the juice from one orange and pour it over the prepared meat. Cut the remaining citrus fruits into thick slices and place them next to the duck.

Place rosemary sprigs there. Cover with foil, put in a cool place and leave to marinate for 3-5 hours.

Bake under foil at 200 degrees for 50 minutes, then remove the foil and let the meat brown in the oven for another 10-15 minutes. Serve with orange juice mixed with duck fat.

Whole baked duck with fruit (recipe with step-by-step photos)

This basic recipe stuffed duck cooked in the oven. Apples and plums are used as filling. Apples are the most popular fruit for stuffing poultry, and it's on hand all year round, plums can be replaced depending on the season with other fruits, for example, quinces or oranges.

Ingredients:

medium-sized duck 1 pc.;
apples 3-4 pcs.;
plums 4 pcs.;
salt 1 tbsp. l.;
poultry spice mixture 1 tbsp. l.;
soy sauce 25 ml;
honey 25 ml.

Rinse the duck from the inside, inspect it to ensure there are no remaining feathers on it. Boil water in a kettle. Place the bird in a sink or large bowl. Start pouring boiling water from the kettle over the carcass. After a thorough dousing, the duck's skin will shrink slightly and the pores will close. This is important because when baking, the skin prepared in this way will not burst, and you will get a solid crust. You can, in addition, make oblique cuts before watering - they look beautiful on the finished duck.

Pat the duck dry with a paper towel, rub in salt and spices and leave to marinate for 30 minutes.

Prepare the fruit: core, cut into slices or slices. Stuff the duck with fruit, distributing it inside.

Sew up the hole or secure with a skewer.

Tie the duck legs and wings with kitchen thread. It’s not necessary to do this, but it will look prettier and cook more neatly.

Line a baking sheet with parchment and place the bird back up. Bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 40 minutes (until crusty).

Then remove the duck from the oven and turn it breast side up, then bake for another 40-50 minutes at 170 degrees. Stop the process again and remove the duck to brush with the glaze (soy sauce and honey) for a nice crust. Cook for another 20-30 minutes.

You can add apples, potatoes and other fruits and vegetables to the baking sheet with the duck, which will be served as a side dish.

To make sure the duck is ready, pierce it in the thickest part - there should be no ichor.

Duck in the sleeve, baked in the oven

If you don’t have a duck pan with a lid, if you don’t trust your culinary intuition and are afraid of drying out the duck, if the thought of cleaning the oven from greasy splashes spoils your mood, this recipe is for you. Feel free to wrap the bird in your sleeve and relax - everything will turn out juicy, soft and tender even without your control.

Ingredients:

1 duck carcass weighing 1.2 - 1.5 kg;
5-6 large sour apples;
5-6 potatoes;
5 boxes of cardamom;
2 star anise;
1/3 teaspoon cinnamon;
a pinch of chili pepper;
2 tbsp. l. honey;
100 ml low-fat cream;
salt to taste.

Peel and cut potatoes large slices. Cut the apples into 4 parts, remove the core. Place the apples and potatoes in a bowl, sprinkle with cinnamon and pepper, add star anise and cardamom, salt to taste, and mix.

Wash the duck carcass, check that it is well gutted, dry it with disposable towels, rub it with salt and honey. Fill the duck with some of the apple and potato filling and sew it together.

Place the duck in the sleeve and place the remaining apples and potatoes next to it. Carefully pour the cream there, tie it properly and place it on a baking sheet.

Bake the duck at 200 degrees for an hour and a half. After the specified time, if desired, the sleeve can be cut and the duck returned to the oven for browning.
When serving, transfer the duck to a platter. Don't forget to remove the threads and decorate with the remaining apples and potatoes.

Peking duck

Peking duck still has a trail of Soviet popularity, born at a time when this dish could only be tasted in a limited number of restaurants. The fame of this bird is also due to the fact that it is almost impossible to cook it at home - few people, for example, will decide to purchase a special unit for blowing the skin, separating the skin from the meat, thus ensuring a special crispiness. However, if you adapt the recipe as much as possible to the conditions of standard home cooking, by omitting some technological steps, you can get a pretty good bird, taste qualities which even the pickiest eaters will appreciate.

And yes, to implement this recipe, try to find a Peking duck - it has a thin skin and less fat.

Ingredients:

1 duck carcass weighing approximately 1.5 kg;
2 liters of water;
50 ml rice vinegar;
1/2 tsp. cinnamon;
1/2 tsp. ground fennel seeds;
3-4 star anise;
1/2 tsp. ground cloves;
1/3 tsp. hot red pepper;
3-4 cm of fresh ginger root;
2 tbsp. l. honey for marinade;
1 tbsp. l. honey for brushing the finished duck;
5 cloves of garlic;
1 tsp. ground ginger;
2 tbsp. l. sesame oil;
3 tbsp. l. soy sauce;
salt to taste.

Wash the duck thoroughly, gut it if necessary, and check whether the skin is clean enough.

Prepare the marinade - put ginger root cut into thin pieces into a saucepan, add honey, vinegar, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, fennel, pepper, add water. Bring to a boil, boil for 3-5 minutes. And immediately pour the boiling marinade over the carcass - the skin will tighten a little and become noticeably darker. After this, rub the duck with garlic and dry ginger.

We place the duck prepared in this way on a jar, put the jar in a bowl and hide it in the refrigerator to marinate. The duck needs access to air from all sides, and a lot of juice will be released - this is why the jar needs to be placed in a deep container. Marinate the duck for at least 12 hours.

A few hours before cooking, remove the bird from the refrigerator and leave it at room temperature. Then transfer to a baking sheet with high sides and bake, covered with foil, for 1 hour at 200 degrees. After the specified time, remove the foil, coat with a mixture of soy sauce and sesame oil, bake until golden brown at a temperature of 220-230 degrees (about 10 minutes). Remove from the oven again, brush with honey and bake for another 5 minutes, after which the duck can be served.

Juicy soft duck in beer

Duck in beer is a treat for real gourmets. The dish turns out to be seriously substantial and, one might even say, brutal: a noticeable bready aroma gives the bird additional satiety.

Ingredients:

1 duck carcass;
5-6 sour apples;
1 bottle of beer (preferably light, dark if you prefer);
salt, pepper to taste;
1 tsp. caraway;
3 buds of cloves;
10 peas of allspice.

Wash the duck, gut it if necessary, and dry it with paper towels. Rub the bird carcass with salt and pepper and place it in the duckling pan. Place quartered apples mixed with spices around. Fill with beer, cover with a lid, and put in the oven. Bake at 200 degrees for at least 1 hour. Serve with boiled potatoes or rice. Shamelessly dip pieces of bread into the resulting sauce.

Duck with pumpkin and oranges

Not the most standard option for cooking duck in the oven, it will certainly appeal to lovers of non-standard combinations and flavor discoveries.

Ingredients:

1 duck carcass weighing up to 1.5 kg;
400 g pumpkin;
2 oranges;
1/2 lemon;
1/3 tsp. nutmeg;
1/2 tsp. paprika;
3-5 sprigs of thyme;
salt, pepper to taste;
2 tbsp. l. honey;
3 cloves of garlic.

Before cooking, the duck carcass must be washed and dried well with disposable towels, after which you need to rub the bird with a mixture of honey, salt, pepper and garlic.

Leave for 5-8 hours to marinate.

Cut the pumpkin into large pieces, mix with oranges, cut into the same pieces, add nutmeg, paprika, lemon juice, thyme. We hide the resulting filling in the middle of the carcass and place the duck on a baking sheet. Leave the duck in the oven and bake at 180 degrees for 1 hour. Five minutes before readiness, brush with a mixture of honey and garlic.

10 options for non-standard filling for duck in the oven

- Got it. Duck. With apples. It looks like it's cooked well.
“It seems she also doused herself with sauce on the way.”
- Yes? How nice of her. So, please come to the table!
Film “The Same Munchausen”

Looking for fun dinners? Feel free to fantasize and be creative with fillings - duck in the oven will pleasantly surprise your admiring family every time with its novelty, fresh flavors and your unexpected culinary solutions. The main rule of experiments is don’t be afraid: even if it doesn’t turn out exactly as you planned, no one will know about it except you, and in response to the possible bewilderment of your household, you can always, proudly lifting up the offended tip of your nose, declare that they have absolutely no understanding of innovative solutions in the field of cooking.

Cranberry or pickled lingonberries– sour berries will refresh fatty duck meat.

Dry bread crumbs and bacon - subtle smoky notes and a rich bready spirit will turn this duck into any man's dream.

Potatoes are satisfying and familiar, what else can I say?

Buckwheat - an option for lovers healthy food. Want to get a little rowdy? Add unhealthy but insanely flavorful wild mushrooms.

Rice with vegetables - healthy, easy, traditional and bright. Well, it’s delicious, of course.

Pasta – yeah, exactly. Combined with the fatty duck juice, it turns out incredibly rich and luxurious.

All kinds of legumes sound strange, but this is a very worthy solution. Nourishing, affordable and, oddly enough, tasty: beans, peas and other comrades love “fatty company”.

Dried fruits and nuts are not for everyone. Not everyone likes sweetish notes in meat, but this option looks good festive table especially interesting and original.

Quince - wow, how great duck turns out with this fruit! It seems that they were generally invented on earth just for each other.

Cabbage with prunes - no pretentiousness, just delicious at home.

If you want to catch a duck, take your time. Be silent and wait - she will become curious, and she will probably stick her nose out.
Harpel Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

Experienced housewives do many things on a whim: well, let’s say, knowing that when baking a chicken it is important to check whether there is a piece of liver with vile green bile left inside, they automatically check the same point in the duck. This is correct, and often the advice offered on the Internet sounds naive and far-fetched. However, even if you consider yourself a “duck” guru, look through the tips - who knows, maybe you will find something new and useful for yourself? Well, if you have never baked a duck in the oven yourself, be sure to read. Read and memorize.

Basic steps - rinse the duck, check how the bird is gutted, dry the skin - this is in many ways the key to success. By neglecting the first points, it’s easy to negate all subsequent efforts to prepare a delicious dinner (you must admit, it’s not very fun when cutting up a duck and suddenly discovering that you baked it with an uncleaned stomach or forgot to remove a couple of feathers hidden under the wing).

Poultry often has a characteristic, not very pleasant odor. It doesn’t mean that you bought a bad duck, it’s just a feature of the game. Long-term marinating is quite capable of solving this problem: if you properly rub the meat with spices and salt, after baking you will only get a stunning aroma and tasty meat. By the way, about meat: marinating also helps to mitigate the possible age characteristics of the bird you bought, so pre-keeping the duck in the marinade is a complete plus (well, and one minus: waiting is so sad!..).

Fill the duck only two-thirds full with the filling - almost any filling will become saturated with duck fat and juices during the baking process, significantly increasing in volume. You can, of course, decide that your generous nature does not imply half solutions (well, or two-thirds solutions), and cram the stuffing into the bird with all your generous soul, however, be prepared for the fact that, with a high degree of probability, the duck in its back part it will simply burst. Well, if it doesn’t burst, it will most likely spit at you hot filling, when you serve the dish to the table and take up the game shears.

To be on the safe side, it is recommended to sew up the “hole” in the duck so that the stuffing that you so lovingly prepared and stuffed inside will remain there. In addition, with this simple action you will also help the filling become tastier - during baking it will be saturated with the released fat, most of which will seep into the filling.

It is better to cut off the “butt” (tail) of the duck. It is clear that there are lovers of this part of the bird, but in the case of waterfowl we are often talking about excess fat and possible unpleasant smell. In general, the possibility of a tasty win pales in comparison to the very real threat of getting a half-dinner with a very specific smell.

It is, of course, best to bake a duck in the oven in a duck cooker - there your bird will be warm and cozy, and it will be able to stew properly if it does not want to voluntarily and quickly become soft and tender. Another good option is a baking sheet with high sides: due to the fact that duck is a fatty bird, a lot, a lot of fat will be released during baking. If you use a regular metal sheet with regular sides, you will have to scrape the fat off the bottom of the oven.

Store-bought duck is baked for about 1 hour, homemade duck – at least 1.5 hours. On average, cooking time is determined at the rate of 45-50 minutes per 1 kg of meat plus 15-20 minutes for browning the crust. More is not always better: it can simply dry out. If you want to hold it longer, cover it with foil or return to step 6 – ducklings. The readiness of meat can be determined with a culinary thermometer - the temperature in the duck thigh should be 80 degrees.

When roasting, it’s a good idea to baste the duck with the juice that is released - this will give the meat additional juiciness and provide a beautiful shiny skin. Well, and on top of everything - taste: what you marinated the meat with will certainly be in the juice, which means it will be back in the duck. The cycle, in general.

After the bird is ready, cover it with foil and let it stand for 10-20 minutes - the meat juices will be evenly distributed inside, the duck will “cook” and become as juicy and soft as possible.

Well, and the most important thing (believe me, this is exactly the main thing - the final touch) - sauces. Serve the bird with cherry, cranberry, orange, pomegranate sauce, serve with aioli and ketchup, make tartare and mayonnaise - whatever you like is good. By the way, the traditional sauce for duck in Chinese cooking is “hoisin”: soy sauce, nut butter, honey, sesame oil, chili, garlic. Maybe you can fantasize about this topic?

P.S.

“She’s a great,” said the Swiss. -Usini shir is delicious with fareny!
A. Dumas, “The Three Musketeers”

And lastly, an afterword, so to speak. When baking real domestic duck a lot, a lot of fat will be released. Don't neglect this treasure! First, it can be used to make confit de canard, a rich and highly flavorful stew popularly known simply as confit. Secondly, it is an excellent addition to pates and sausages. Thirdly, it is simply fat on which you can fry potatoes or bake vegetables. It goes wonderfully with buckwheat, millet, rice and pasta. You can stew cabbage on it, it’s great to add to pea mash, it “plays” wonderfully in the company of baked pumpkin. In general, everyone has known for a long time: goose fat or duck fat is simply very valuable product, which you can’t just take and throw away. And you know. And don't throw it away.

Let duck be on your table often and tasty, bon appetit!

Repeat after famous chefs, stuff the duck with apples and citruses, bake in salt, glaze with honey, simmer in wine. It will be incredibly delicious.

How to choose a duck

It is better to take chilled poultry: its quality is easier to determine.
The skin should be even light color no bruises, stains, plaque, dents or other damage. Fresh duck meat should be slightly moist and the skin should not be sticky.
Press the fleshy part with your finger: if there is a dent, the duck is not fresh.
An old bird will turn out dry and tough. So take the young one. Such a duck has cartilage at the tip of the breast, its beak is shiny, clean and quite flexible, the membranes are not stuck together and move apart easily, the meat has a reddish tint, the fat is not dark, but transparent, the legs are yellow.
An unpleasant or sour smell indicates that the bird is not fresh.

How to prepare a duck for roasting

If you bought a frozen carcass, be sure to defrost it. A bird weighing 2 kg thaws in the refrigerator for about a day. If you want to finish it in 3 hours, put the duck in a saucepan with cold water. It is important to change the water every half hour and make sure it remains cold.
Remove the neck and legs, if present, and gut the bird. You can later use the offal, for example, for broth.
Remove excess fat from the neck and back parts so that it does not interfere with getting a crispy crust on the finished duck. But do not cut off excess skin: it will be needed to seal the stuffed carcass.
Pour boiling water over the duck. For 2 kg you will need 5 liters of water. Take half of the prepared boiling water and carefully pour over the carcass so that the liquid does not get inside. Dry with a clean towel and leave for half an hour until completely dry. Repeat. Scalding will help clog the pores so that the cooked duck has a crispy skin. But if you don’t have time for this, just rinse the bird thoroughly with cold water inside and out and dry it well.
When or before seasoning the duck, make cross cuts in the skin without damaging the meat so that excess fat can escape during cooking.

Photo: YURENIA NATALLIA / Shutterstock

Ingredients

1 glass of orange jam;
6 sprigs of thyme;
1 tablespoon grated ginger;
2 tablespoons pink peppercorns;
1 duck carcass(a little more than 2 kg);
ground black pepper - to taste;
1 medium onion;
1 medium;
1 stalk of celery;
2–3 cm of ginger root, cut into ½ cm slices;
1 Bay leaf;
1 sprig of fresh rosemary;
3 cinnamon sticks;
about 2 kg of coarse salt (should be about the same as the duck weighs).

Preparation

In a small saucepan, heat the jam until liquid and strain into a bowl. Add 4 sprigs of thyme, grated ginger, pink pepper and set aside the glaze.

Prepare the duck as described above and season the inside with pepper. Chop onion, carrots and celery large pieces and put it in the carcass. Place 2 sprigs of thyme, slices, bay leaf, rosemary and 1 cinnamon stick there.

Seal by sewing the skin together with kitchen thread or using toothpicks. Tie the legs.

Pour ⅓ of the salt into a deep baking tray or mold. Place the duck on top, brush it generously with the glaze and leave some cinnamon sticks nearby. Add the remaining salt and place in the oven preheated to 200°C.

Remove the meat after 2 hours 15 minutes or when a food thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 70°C to 75°C.

Give ready-made dish Let cool for half an hour, then invert the dish and place the duck on a large cutting board. Remove salt and skin, cut into slices and serve.

Photo: nilswey/Depositphotos

Ingredients

2 ducks, 2 kg each, with neck and giblets;
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary;
1 nutmeg;
2 oranges;
1 tablespoon salt;
8 cloves of garlic;
3 red onions;
5 cm ginger root;
a couple of celery stalks;
½ cinnamon stick;
3 bay leaves;
2 kg of potatoes;
1 liter of water or chicken broth;
spices for potatoes - to your taste;
2 tablespoons flour;
200 ml port wine.

Preparation

Prepare the ducks, set aside the necks and giblets. Separate the leaves of one rosemary sprig from the stem. Grate half the nutmeg and orange zest. Mix with a spoon of salt.

Rub the ducks with the mixture inside and out, place in a bowl, cover and refrigerate for several hours.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Stuff the ducks with the remaining rosemary and the orange halves.

Chop the peeled onion, carrots, ginger and celery. Place in a deep baking tray along with the cinnamon, bay leaves and chopped necks and giblets. Place the baking sheet on the lower rack of the oven.

Place the ducks breast side up on the rack above it. The fat should drip onto the baking sheet.

Peel the potatoes, cut into pieces and place in cold salted water. Bring to a boil, then cook for 5–10 minutes, drain in a colander and stir.

After an hour, remove the baking sheet with vegetables and giblets. Immediately replace it with an empty one so that the grease does not stain the oven.

Pour the fat from the pan into a bowl. Place the vegetables and duck parts in a saucepan, and pour a little boiling water onto a baking sheet to remove any stuck bits from the bottom. Drain the liquid into the pan with the vegetables, add a liter of water or broth and place over medium heat. Skim off any fat that rises to the surface.

Put boiled potatoes on a baking sheet that was left in the oven. Add a few tablespoons of fat drained from vegetables, season with spices and bake for another hour.

In a separate pan, heat 2 tablespoons of fat. Add the flour and stir until it becomes a paste-like consistency. Add the contents of the pan with vegetables and pour in the port. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove the potatoes and ducks from the oven. Place the carcasses on plates, cover with foil and leave for 15 minutes.

Strain the contents of the pan through a sieve, pressing the vegetables to extract as much aromatic juices as possible - this is your sauce. Pour it into a clean bowl and keep warm over low heat, remembering to remove fat from the surface.

Jamie Oliver suggests not cutting the duck, but using tongs to separate the meat from the bones and using your hands to tear the flesh into pieces. Serve with potatoes and sauce.

Ingredients

2¹⁄₂ kg duck;
1½ teaspoons salt;
1 teaspoon ground pepper;
½ teaspoon dried garlic;
½ teaspoon ground paprika;
5 small apples;
¼ cup honey;
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice;
2 tablespoons lemon juice.

Preparation

Prepare the duck. In a small bowl, combine the spices and rub over the bird.

Core the apples, cut them in half and stuff the duck. Seal the carcass with toothpicks and tie the legs.

Place the bird, breast side down, on a rack in an oven preheated to 180°C. Place a drip pan down to catch excess fat. Bake for 50 minutes. Then turn over and cook for the same amount.

Whisk honey, orange juice and. Remove the duck, brush generously with the honey glaze and leave for 20 minutes. Slice and serve with your favorite side dish.

Photo: Lesya Dolyuk / Shutterstock

Ingredients

2½ kg duck;
5–6 citrus fruits (oranges, lemons,) without peel;
salt - to taste;
2–4 teaspoons potato or corn starch;
1 glass of white wine;
4 tablespoons of your favorite jam.

Preparation

Preheat oven to 120°C. Prepare the bird by stuffing it with citrus and sealing it with string or toothpicks. Make slits in the skin. Rub the carcass with salt and place it on the grill, breast side up. Place the baking tray down so the duck fat will drip onto it.

Bake until golden brown, 6–7 hours. If you want more golden brown crust, half an hour before readiness, increase the temperature to 260 °C and hold for another 5-10 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes, uncovered with foil.

Prepare the sauce. Dissolve the starch in a few tablespoons of wine, pour the rest into the pan and heat slightly. Add jam, stir until smooth and bring to a boil. Add more jam or wine if necessary and remove from heat. Slowly pour the starch mixture into the sauce until slightly viscous, stirring constantly.

Remove citrus from carcass and shred meat. Add the sauce to a plate, place the duck pieces on it and serve.

Photo: Bochkarev Photography / Shutterstock

Ingredients

2¾ kg duck;
salt;
5 cloves of garlic;
1 medium lemon;
½ cup balsamic vinegar;
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon;
¼ cup honey.

Preparation

Prepare the duck. Season it generously with salt, inside and out, place it on a board and stuff it with garlic and sliced lemon. Seal and tie the legs together.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Place a wire rack over a baking sheet or deep dish, place the bird on it, breast side up, and bake for 1 hour. Then turn over and cook for another 40 minutes. Drain the fat from the pan, turn the bird over again and continue cooking.

Make the glaze. Connect balsamic vinegar and lemon juice and generously brush the duck with this mixture every 10 minutes for 40 minutes.

In a separate bowl, combine honey and 3 tablespoons of the vinegar-lemon mixture. Continue brushing the duck with this mixture every 10 minutes for another 40 minutes.

10-15 minutes before cooking, you can increase the temperature to make the crust crispier and golden brown.

Remove the meat from the oven and wait 15 minutes. Remove the lemon and garlic, slice the duck and serve.

Photo: vsl/Shutterstock

Ingredients

For the main part:

1 small duck (1 kg);
1 teaspoon of vinegar for soaking meat + ½ teaspoon for greasing;
2 tablespoons oyster sauce;
1½ tablespoons Shaoxing or other rice wine;
1 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice mixture: star anise, Sichuan pepper, cloves, cinnamon, fennel;
2 tablespoons maltose molasses;
2 tablespoons of boiling water.

For pancakes:

1½ cups flour;
a pinch of salt;
⅔ glass of boiling water;
1 teaspoon oil.

To submit:

2 leeks (only the white part is needed);
1 cucumber;
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce.

Preparation

Prepare the duck. The process is different from the one at the beginning of the article! Pour water into a large bowl and add vinegar. Soak the bird for 1 hour. Let the duck dry in a natural way(if the kitchen allows, hang it by the head or neck on a hook).

Mix 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, ½ tablespoon wine and spices. Grease the inside of the carcass.

In another bowl, combine molasses, boiling water and vinegar. Brush the duck evenly, leave for 30 minutes, then spread the mixture into another layer. Marinate for 12–24 hours in a cool place. If this is not the case, put it in the refrigerator, but first put the carcass on a bottle of water: it is important that it maintains an upright position and there is air access on all sides.

Prepare the pancake dough. Combine flour and salt in a heatproof bowl, pour in boiling water. Stir with a spatula until smooth. When the dough has cooled slightly, knead it for 8 minutes until elastic. If the dough is too sticky, add a little flour. Cover cling film and leave for an hour.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Seal the duck using toothpicks. Place a baking sheet lined with foil in the oven and place the carcass on the rack above it. Bake for 20 minutes on one side, then 15 minutes on the other. Reduce temperature to 120 °C and cook for another half hour.

Return to the pancakes. Roll the dough into a sausage and cut into 12 equal pieces. Form balls, flatten them to a thickness of 5 cm. Grease half of them with oil. Place the remaining pieces on the greased ones. Roll out 6 double pancakes with a diameter of approximately 18 cm, making sure that everything is evenly distributed.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Place the pancake. When air bubbles begin to form between the two layers after 30-40 seconds, flip the pancake. It should remain white, slightly browned in a few places. After another 30 seconds, the air bubbles will become larger. At this point, remove the pancake onto a plate, let cool for half a minute and carefully divide it into two.

Repeat with the rest. You should have 12 pancakes. Set them aside and cover with a warm towel.

Return to the bird. If it's ready but you want a crispier crust, return to 180°C and bake for another 6-10 minutes. Or take the duck out, place it in a deep pan and pour hot water over it, holding it by the neck.

Cut the duck: first along the middle, then each breast crosswise. Cut the onion and cucumber into thin strips.

CandyBoxImages / Depositphotos

Ingredients

4 duck legs;
1 bunch of rosemary;
4 large cloves of garlic;
salt - to taste;
½ teaspoon of Chinese 5-spice mixture: star anise, Szechuan pepper, cloves, cinnamon, fennel;
½ bottle of red wine;
2 tablespoons of red currant or quince.

Preparation

Prepare the legs. Preheat the oven to 170°C (or 190°C if electric). Place the rosemary and garlic on a baking sheet and place the stems on top. Season with salt and spices and remove to bake for 1 hour.

Combine the wine and jam in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring until the mixture is smooth. After this, simmer for another 5 minutes.

Remove the legs, drain off all the fat and pour wine sauce. Bake for another 10-15 minutes until done.

Iko/Depositphotos

Ingredients

3 duck breasts;
salt and pepper - to taste;
5 apples;
30 g butter;
2 tablespoons brown sugar;
1 tablespoon olive oil;
50 ml Marsala or other fortified wine.

Preparation

Prepare the breasts. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Peel the apples and cut into large pieces. Melt in a frying pan butter, add and mix well. Reduce heat and cook fruit for 10-15 minutes to brown. Save the resulting caramel for serving.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Fry the breasts in olive oil 4 minutes on each side, starting with the skin. Place on a baking sheet, pour in wine and bake for 10–12 minutes.

Cut the finished breasts into pieces, place on a plate and add apples to them. Top with caramel sauce.