Honey-Glazed Spiced Duck Breast Roasted Heirloom Cauliflower and Quinoa Ingredients: Duck breast
Quinoa
Cauliflower
Kale
Honey
Spice blend
1/2 lemon (the other 1/2 is for the fish soup)
(For best results, read recipe fully before beginning.) 1) Prepare the ingredients:
- Wash and dry the fresh produce.
- Cut the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces.
- Strip the kale leaves off the stem and discard the stem. Roughly chop the leaves.
- Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Prepare the duck breast: with a sharp knife, score the skin in a cross-hatch pattern (don’t cut all the way down to the flesh; try to just cut the fat, as this will help it render and get crispy). Season the duck on both sides with salt and pepper and 1/2 the spice blend. Lay fat sidedown on a paper towel-lined plate.
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2) Cook the quinoa:
- Heat a medium pot of salted water to the boil on high. Add the quinoa and simmer until tender and beginning to unravel, about 15 minutes. Add the chopped kale and cook for 5 minutes more. Drain thoroughly. Stir in a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3) Start rendering the duck breast:
- While the quinoa cooks, Place the seasoned and scored duck breast fat side-down in a medium saute pan. Put the pan on low heat. You want the fat to render from the duck breast, and this is best done slowly over low heat so the meat doesn’t cook too quickly before the fat renders. This rendering should take 15 to 20 minutes, and the saute pan will have quite a bit of rendered fat at this point. Drain the fat, return the pan to the stove, and increase the heat to medium-high. When the breast skin side is deeply browned (and the flesh should be opaque around the edges but still red on top), gently flip the breast - so the skin side is up and continue cooking for 3 minutes more. Transfer the breast to a plate to rest. Spread the honey onto the browned skin. It will soften and glaze the breast as it rests.
4) Roast the cauliflower:
- While the duck cooks, toss the cut cauliflower in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper, and the remaining spice blend. Arrange on a sheet pan and transfer to the heated oven. Roast for 10 minutes, or until browned in spots. Remove from oven to cool.
5) Finish the dish:
- Toss the cooked quinoa and kale with the roasted cauliflower. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide between 2 dishes. Thinly slice the cooked and rested glazed duck breast and serve on top. Enjoy!