Roast Duck with Orange Sauce/Canard à l’Orange (Paleo/Primal, Gluten Free)

Happy Easter, everyone! It has been a relaxing weekend however I did have to make a trip to Whole Foods to pick up a few little things… on Easter Sunday. Biggest mistake ever! It was a madhouse and I had old ladies trying to cut in front of me at the checkout line and another elderly couple in such a hurry they said they couldn’t wait for me to waddle 3 feet to my cart so they used their cart to push my cart out of the way.

I did make it home in one piece (baby still tucked under my ribcage) to make a version of Julia Child’s roast duck with orange sauce or Canard à l’Orange. It’s a French classic and fancy enough for an Easter dinner.

There is a little bit of prep work involved. You will need to have some hearty duck stock ready which has a 2 hour cooking time. Just throw the duck neck, gizzards, heart with a chopped up onion and carrot in a stock pot to brown. Then pour in 2 cups of chicken stock and enough water to cover the duck bits and simmer for 2 hours.

Find yourself four sweet navel oranges.

Slice the peel off and julienne the peel (tiny little slices).

Then blanch the peel in a quart of water for 15 minutes. Then drain and pat dry for later use.

 Prepare your whole duck by rubbing salt and pepper in the cavity and stuffing it with a small onion, some fresh thyme and 1/3 of the orange peel. Tie the wings and legs to the body with some kitchen string. Set in in a shallow roasting dish with some onion and carrots scattered around it.

Your duck needs to roast at 425 for 15 minutes, breast side up. Then turn it down to 350 and turn the duck to one side. After 30 minutes, turn it on its other side and roast for another 20-30 minutes. Set it back to breast side up, sprinkle with salt and continue roasting for at least another 15 minutes until the internal temperature with a meat thermometer reaches 140 for medium rare.

While your duck is roasting, you can prepare the orange sauce base.

Simmer some red wine vinegar and raw honey until it is a syrup-like  consistency. Then add 1/2 cup of duck stock and stir until it is combined and brought back to a low simmer.

Mix together 2 TBSP tapioca flour and 3 TBSP port and add to the pan along with 1 1/2 cups of duck stock and the remaning orange peel. Cook until it is thick and you can correct seasoning with salt and pepper. Set it to a side while the duck finishes roasting.

Once your duck is ready, you will need to remove the string and transfer the duck to another platter and leave it in the switched off oven (door ajar) while you use the pan drippings to complete your orange sauce.

Remove most of the fat from the pan and place on the stove top. Pour 1/2 cup of port into the pan and scrap off the drippings. Reduce to about 3 TBSP.

Strain the pan sauce into your orange peel sauce and bring back to a simmer. Add 2 TBSP of orange liquor and also drops of lemon juice to taste. If you are Primal, you can also finish this with 2 TBSP of softened butter.

Arrange segmented oranges and parsley on a platter and serve the duck with a bit of sauce on top and the rest of it in a gravy boat.

 You’ll need:

• A whole duckling – we used a 6 lb one
• For duck stock:
  • neck, gizzards, other bits from the whole duck
  • 2 cups of chicken stock
  • 1 sprig of thyme, 2 TBSP parsley, 1 small onion, 1 small carrot
• 4 sweet navel oranges
• Salt and pepper
• 2 small onions, sliced
• 1 carrot, sliced
• sprig of thyme
• 1/4 cup red wine vinger
• 3 TBSP raw honey
• 2 TBSP tapioca flour + 3 TBSP port
• 1/2 cup port
• 2 TBSP orange liquor
• lemon juice
• OPTIONAL if you are Primal, 2 TBSP butter

1. Prepare the duck stock at least 2 hours in advance. Brown the duck bits, onion and carrot in a stock pot and then pour in stock, herbs and enough water to cover the duck. Simmer for 2 hours.
2. Peel the oranges and cut peel into juliennes (1/16 inch wide, 1.5 inch long)
3. Simmer the orange peel in water for 15 minutes and drain and pat dry
4. Preheat oven to 425.
5. Prepare your duck by rubbing salt and pepper in the cavity and stuffing it with one small onion, a sprig of thyme and 1/3 of the orange peel.
6. Tie your duck up securely with string and lay breast-up in a shallow roasting dish with the remaining onion and carrot scattered around it
7. Roast for 15 minutes
8. Reduce heat to 350 and put the duck on one side and roast for a further 30 minutes.
9. Turn the duck to the other side and roast for another 20-30 minutes.
10. Turn it back to breast-up, sprinkle with salt and roast for at least another 15 minutes until a meat thermometer reads about 140 for medium rare.
11. When the duck is ready, remove the string and place in a platter in the turned off oven with the door ajar while you finish your sauce.
12. While your duck is roasting, start preparing your orange sauce. Cook vinegar and honey until it is dark and syrupy.
13. Add 1/2 cup duck stock to the pan and combine.
14. Then add 1 1/2 cups duck stock, tapioca flour and port mixture and orange peel and simmer until the sauce is thick. Correct seasoning with salt and pepper. This can now be set aside.
15. When your duck has been removed from the roasting pan, drain as much fat out of the pan as you can. Set the pan on the stove top and add 1/2 cup of port.
16. Scrape off drippings and reduce till there is about 3 TBSP of port.
17. Add this to the orange sauce and simmer. Then add the 2 TBSP of orange liquor and drops of lemon juice to taste. If you are Primal, you  can finish this with mixing in 2 TBSP of butter just before serving
18. Arrange orange segments on platter around the duck and spoon a bit of orange sauce on top. Serve the rest of the sauce in a gravy boat with the duck.

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