Duck breasts with honey, soy and ginger

Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

A French treatment of duck breasts, as they’re served in a pool of sauce, but with Chinese spices. Using these cooking times and temperatures, you should be left with perfect duck.

INGREDIENTS

– 2 duck breasts

– 1 tsp Chinese five spice – 1 tbsp honey

– 2 tbsp soy sauce

For the sauce

– 10g unsalted butter – 1 shallot, finely chopped

– 1cm piece of ginger, peeled and grated – 100ml amontillado sherry – 200ml chicken stock – 2 tsp honey (optional) – ½ tsp soy sauce – squeeze of lime juice

METHOD Preheat the oven to 210C/200C fan/gas mark 6½.

Score the duck fat without cutting the flesh, then rub the five spice, honey and soy sauce, along with some seasoning, into the breasts all over.

Using an ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat, cook the breasts – fat-side down – for about 3 minutes. Turn and cook for another minute. Put the duck in the oven and cook for a further 8 minutes. Remove and cover with foil, to let the duck breasts rest.

In a clean pan, melt the butter for the sauce. Sauté the shallot and ginger until soft. Add the sherry and boil until reduced by half.

Add the chicken stock and reduce this by boiling as well. You should end up with a slightly syrupy sauce. Add the honey (you can make this less sweet, if you prefer, by leaving it out), soy and a squeeze of lime juice (the lime juice lifts the flavour).

Cut the duck breasts into slices, or leave them whole if you’d rather. Pour the sauce over the meat, then serve with rice and mangetout, or any vegetables of your choice.