Think a dish like ‘Duck a’lorange’ requires a plane ticket to France, or, at the very least, a reservation at le fanciest French restaurant in town? Think again! This luxurious meal can be whipped up from the comfort of your very own kitchen—in 40 minutes, no less. There’s pan-seared duck glazed in a savory-sweet, thyme-flecked orange sauce, creamy duck fat mashed potatoes, and an arugula salad bursting with juicy orange segments, pickled shallots, and toasted almonds. Treat your taste buds to a trip—no passport required!
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Produced in a facility that processes eggs, milk, fish, peanuts, sesame, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat.
12 ounce
Yukon Gold Potatoes
¼ ounce
Thyme
12 ounce
Duck Breasts
1 unit
Orange
1 unit
Shallot
5 teaspoon
Red Wine Vinegar
2 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains Milk)
2 tablespoon
Apricot Jam
1 unit
Chicken Stock Concentrate
2 teaspoon
Dijon Mustard
2 ounce
Arugula
1 ounce
Almonds
(Contains Tree Nuts)
1 teaspoon
Sugar
2 teaspoon
Olive Oil
2 tablespoon
Butter
(Contains Milk)
Salt
Pepper
Wash and dry all produce. Dice potatoes into ½-inch pieces (for a smoother texture, peel potatoes first). Place in a large pot with half the thyme sprigs and enough salted water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, 15-20 minutes. Remove and discard thyme sprigs. Reserve ¼ cup potato cooking liquid, then drain and return potatoes to pot.
Meanwhile, pat duck dry with paper towels; season all over with salt and pepper. Place skin sides down in a large, preferably nonstick, pan. Cook over medium heat until skin is crisp, carefully reserving fat in a small bowl as it renders, 15-20 minutes. (TIP: Lower heat if skin browns too quickly.) Meanwhile, halve, peel, and thinly slice shallot; toss in a separate small bowl with half the vinegar, 1 tsp sugar (1½ tsp for 4), and a big pinch of salt and pepper.
Zest orange until you have 1 tsp (2 tsp for 4 servings); halve orange. Squeeze juice from 1 half into a third small bowl. Peel remaining half, then dice orange into ½-inch pieces. (For 4, squeeze juice from 2 halves; peel and dice remaining orange.) To bowl with juice, stir in jam, stock concentrate, half the orange zest, and remaining vinegar. Pick thyme leaves from remaining sprigs until you have 1 tsp (2 tsp for 4); roughly chop leaves.
Once skin is crisp, flip over duck in pan and cook to desired doneness, 3-5 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board to rest. Add chopped thyme to same pan over medium heat and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in orange juice mixture and bring to a simmer. Cook until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Stir in 1 TBSP butter until melted; turn off heat.
Heat pot with drained potatoes over medium-low. Add sour cream and 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4 servings); mash, adding up to ¼ cup potato cooking liquid, as necessary, until smooth. Stir in reserved duck fat, to taste. Season with salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.
In a large bowl, combine pickling liquid from shallot, mustard, a large drizzle of olive oil, remaining orange zest, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss with arugula, shallot, orange pieces, and almonds. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Slice duck crosswise. Divide between plates with salad and potatoes. Spoon glaze over duck.