Smoked duck, Blood Orange Fennel and Beetroot Salad

 

Ingredients:

 

1). 2 duck breasts, skin on

2). 1 tablespoon sunflower oil

3). 2 blood oranges (or 2 regular oranges), peeled and cut into thin slices

4). 3 cooked beetroots, either roasted or boiled and then peeled or use pre-cooked beetroot

5). 1 fennel bulb

6). 50g peppery winter leaves, such as rocket, watercress, mustard leaves or raddichio

7). 20g pistachios, roughly chopped

8). A handful of mint leaves

9). Salt & pepper

 

 

For smoking the duck:

 

1). 1 tablespoon coriander seeds

2). 2 star anise

3). 20g lapsang souchong tea leaves (or other black tea leaves)

4). 50g brown sugar

5). 100g uncooked jasmine rice

 

For the dressing:

 

1). 2 tablespoons orange juice (saved from the sliced oranges)

2). 2 tablespoons olive oil

3). 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

4). Juice of 1/2 lime

5). 1 teaspoon honey

6). Salt & pepper

 

 

Instructions:

 

1). Season the duck breasts with salt and pepper. Bring a frying pan to a medium heat, add the vegetable oil, then cook the breasts skin side down, for 3 minutes, or until sealed and brown, remove from the pan and set aside.

2). Place some foil in a wok, the scatter coriander seeds, star anise, tea, sugar and rice on top. Place a bamboo steamer on the wok, covering over the smoking ingredients.

3). Turn the heat to high and leave the bamboo steamer in place. When the wok begins to smoke, add the duck breasts, skin side up, and reduce the heat to medium. Leave the duck to smoke for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the duck to rest in the wok for 5 minutes. Remove the duck and slice thinly.

4). While the duck breasts are cooking make the dressing. Put all the ingredients for the dressing in a jar and shake well until combined.  Taste to check the seasoning – it should be quite sharp.

5). Trim and halve the fennel bulbs, slice very thinly, avoiding the core. Halve the beetroots and then cut into wedges.

6). To roast beetroot pre-heat the oven to 160°C. Wash the beetroot and cover in a little olive oil and sea salt. Roast in the oven in a tray, covered tightly in foil for about 1-2 hours or until soft through. Keep the foil on. Once cool enough to handle remove the skin of the beets and slice into wedges.

7). Now assemble the salad.  Dress the sliced fennel and winter leaves with two tablespoons of the dressing, Taste and add more salt if needed. Arrange the salad on four individual plates or one large sharing platter. Scatter the sliced duck, beetroot wedges and blood orange slices over the top and then drizzle over the dressing. Finish by scattering over the chopped pistachios and mint leaves.