Gressingham Duck Breast with Layered Mash Potato, Braised Red Cabbage, Orange Butter Carrots and Red Wine Sauce

As much as I love duck, it isn’t something that I cook very often, mainly due to it being quite pricey and me loving to rustle up a bargain. Because it isn’t a regular feature in our house I like to put in some added effort and go all out with sides and yumminess (any excuse to spend longer in the kitchen). That being said, if you’re organised and prepped with your side dishes this is recipe is as easy as pie, and tastes delicious too!

Serves 2

For the potatoes

• 1 large white potato – peeled and sliced
• 1 large sweet potato – peeled and sliced
• 1 leek – sliced
• 100g broccoli – finely chopped
• Nob butter
• 1 tbsp chives
• Salt and pepper
• 3 tbsp crème fraiche
• Salt and pepper
• Splash olive oil
• 1 egg yolk – beaten

For the orange butter carrots

• 6 baby carrots – peeled
• Juice 1 orange
• Small nob butter
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• Sprig rosemary

For the red cabbage

• ½ red cabbage – roughly chopped
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 20g brown sugar
• splash water
• 1 red onion – peeled and finely sliced
• 1 tbsp raspberry vinegar

For the red wine sauce

• 250ml beef stock
• 75ml red wine
• 1 sprig rosemary
• 1 bay leaf

For the duck

• 2 Gressingham duck breasts

Preheat the oven to 180’C

Cook your potato in separate pans of boiling water for 15-20 minutes, until soft.

While your potatoes are cooking, melt the butter in a frying pan and gently fry the leek and the broccoli until soft and most of the liquid has evaporated.

Once cooked, mash your potato separately with salt and pepper until smooth.

Take two thirds of the white potato and beat it together with 1 tbsp crème fraiche.

Take the rest of the white potato and beat in your greens, chives and 1 tbsp crème fraiche.

Beat your sweet potato together with another table spoon of crème fraiche.

Place 2 large metal pastry rings on an oven tray that has been covered with a sheet of greaseproof paper.

Rub some oil around the edges of the ring so that the potato doesn’t stick.

Layer your rings, first with the vegetable mash, then the sweet potato and finally pipe on the white potato mash.

Brush the top with your egg yolk and when ready, bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes to create a golden crust.

To make your carrots, place all the ingredients into a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes.

Transfer the carrots to an oven proof dish at cook at the same time as your potato (25 minutes)

To make your braised cabbage – place all the ingredients in a pan and bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat, cover and leave to simmer for 25 minutes – checking regularly and adding more water if needs be.

To make your sauce, place all the ingredients into a saucepan, bring to the boil and then simmer until it has reduced by two thirds the volume – remove the rosemary sprig after 10 minutes, otherwise this will be the overpowering flavour – this will probably take around half an hour in total.

For the duck, place the duck breasts, skin-side-down into dry (ovenproof) frying pan.

Place the pan onto a medium to high heat.

As the pan heats up the duck will release fat, as more is produced, drain it off.

Continue to fry the duck, skin side down until golden brown (this will take about 8 minutes.

Once the skin is crispy, flip the breast over and transfer to the oven for 5-8 minutes (depending on how well done you like your breast).

Plate up all your ingredients, drizzle over the sauce and enjoy!