Duck à l’Orange with Watercress
Rustic Duck à l’Orange pairs roasted duck legs with caramelized orange slices and fresh watercress for a simple yet elegant dish.
Duck à l’Orange with Watercress
This rustic take on Duck à l’Orange combines oven-roasted duck legs with caramelized orange slices and fresh watercress. Perfect for an elegant dinner or holiday gathering, it highlights simple ingredients with bold flavors.
Ingredients
- 8 duck legs, trimmed of any excess fat
- 16 sprigs thyme
- Coarse sea salt and black pepper
- 4 oranges, peeled and sliced into disks
- 4 blood oranges, peeled and sliced into disks
- Olive oil
- 2 bunches baby watercress
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Place the orange slices on a baking pan, overlapping them slightly. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Place the duck legs on a sheet pan and carefully score the skin, cutting slightly into the meat. Insert a sprig of thyme into each incision. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and some black pepper. Roast on the middle rack of the oven for 30 minutes.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350°. Place the pan with the oranges in the oven on a rack below the duck. Continue roasting the duck and oranges for 30 minutes.
- To serve, place the orange slices on a serving platter. Place the roasted duck on top of the oranges. Tuck the watercress between the duck legs.
Nutrition
Calories: 411kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 47g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 197mg | Sodium: 192mg | Potassium: 163mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 456IU | Vitamin C: 47mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 4mg
This recipe accompanies Sweet & Savory: Cooking with Fruit, an essay about the longstanding culinary tradition of pairing fruit with meat and other savory ingredients.
Pascale Beale
Chef, teacher and food writer, Pascale Beale, owner of Pascale’s Kitchen, grew up in an eccentric European family who cherish food, wine and the arts. She is the author of 10 Mediterranean-style cookbooks, including the best sellers Salade and Salade II. Her food memoir, 9’ x 12’: Adventures in a Small Kitchen, a multi-media book, is hosted on Substack. Her latest cookbook is Flavour: Savouring the Seasons.
