Recipes › Blackcurrant › Duck Breast with Blackcurrant Sauce
Duck Breast with Blackcurrant Sauce
Pan-roasted duck breast served with a glossy, intense blackcurrant and red wine sauce — a classic combination that showcases why this bold, sharp berry is one of the finest partners for rich game and waterfowl. The sauce takes minutes to make while the duck rests.
Blackcurrant is usually ready July to August. More blackcurrant recipes, or see what to sow this month where you are.
Ingredients
- 2 duck breasts
- to taste salt and black pepper
- 150 g fresh blackcurrants
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- 150 ml red wine
- 150 ml chicken or duck stock
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 15 g unsalted butter
Contains: milk, sulphites.
Method
- Score the duck skin in a cross-hatch pattern and season generously with salt and pepper.
- Place the duck breasts skin-side down in a cold frying pan. Turn the heat to medium and cook for 12–15 minutes, rendering the fat until the skin is deep golden and very crisp.
- Flip and cook for 4–5 minutes more for medium. Remove from the pan and leave to rest for 8 minutes.
- Pour off most of the duck fat, leaving a thin coating. Add the shallot and cook for 2 minutes until softened.
- Add the red wine and thyme and reduce by half. Add the stock and reduce again by a third.
- Add the blackcurrants and sugar and cook for 3–4 minutes until the berries burst and the sauce becomes glossy. Remove the thyme and stir in the butter.
- Slice the duck and serve with the blackcurrant sauce spooned over.
Tips
- Starting the duck skin-side down in a cold pan and bringing the heat up gradually renders the fat evenly and gives a better crisp than a hot pan.
- Resting the duck for as long as it cooked keeps it juicy and allows the juices to redistribute.
Ring the changes
- Add a splash of blackcurrant cassis liqueur to the sauce in place of some of the red wine for an even more intense berry flavour.
Keeping it
Best served immediately. The sauce can be made ahead and reheated gently; add the butter just before serving.
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