Roast duck with ginger wine jus recipe

Why not add a few dashes of alcohol to liven up your cooking? Wines, spirits or liqueurs add intrigue and richness to recipes.

Ingredients

• 4 duck breasts, skin on
• 4 tbsp ginger wine
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Roast potatoes, carrots and parsnips and wilted spinach, to serve   

For the clementine compote:

• 100g (3½ oz) caster sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
• 4 tbsp ginger wine
• 3 clementines, each sliced into 5, then quartered and pips removed

Method

1. To make the compote: Put the sugar, cinnamon stick and ginger in a pan with the ginger wine and 150ml (5fl oz) water. Stir over a medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, add the clementine pieces and simmer for 8 mins, to soften the fruit. Strain the syrup into a jug. Set aside the clementine pieces in a bowl and remove the cinnamon stick. Pour the syrup back into the pan and bring back to the boil until it has reduced to a jammy consistency. Pour into the bowl with the cooked clementine and leave to cool.
2. Set the oven to Gas Mark 7 or 220°C. Put a roasting tin in to heat up. Score the skin of the duck breasts in both directions to make a diamond pattern on top.
3. Heat a heavy-based frying pan. When really hot, put the duck breasts in the pan, skin-side down. Cook for 5 minutes or more, until the skin browns. Take them out and put, skin-side up, in the roasting tin. Cook for 10-12 mins, depending on how pink you like the meat. Pour the fat from the frying pan into a small bowl and use for cooking another time. Take the duck out of the oven. Wrap it in foil and leave for 10 mins. Slice the duck breasts neatly.
4. Scrape the juices from the roasting tin into the cleaned frying pan, add the ginger wine and 2 tbsp water and boil for 1 minute to make a jus. Season and pour over the duck. Serve with the compote (warm or cool) and roast vegetables and spinach.