Duck breasts (magret de canard) are a French favorite. The following recipe is from Meg, a friend from days in Germany who is now back in her home country, Australia. She’s an excellent cook and treated us to fabulous meals when we visited her and husband Brendan in Melbourne two years ago. This quick, easy and delectable recipe serves four.
1 – 2 tablespoons olive oil
4 1/2 duck breasts (in France I find that a package of one duck breast serves two)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
pinch of sugar
salt, freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons or more of blueberries or raspberries ( I usually use frozen raspberries, and more than specified here)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Heat oil in frying pan. Fry breasts with skin side down, gently, until skin is golden, about 5 -6 minutes. Pour off oil. Turn, add red wine vinegar, sugar, salt, pepper, cinnamon and berries. Cover and cook gently for 10 to 12 minutes until duck breasts are tender and still juicy inside, and berries have melted into a delicious sauce. (watch cooking time — meat should be pink, not well done) Lastly, swirl in balsamic vinegar. Let bubble a few seconds, then check for seasoning. To serve, cut into thick slices with sauce spooned around the duck.
If you try the recipe, please share your opinion below. Do you have a good recipe you’d like to share? Send it to me, leah@leahlarkin.com. I’ll try it and post it on the blog.
Tales and Travel 