While my father was building our cottage in Friendship, Maine back in the summer of ’79, my mother and I joined him every weekend. (I was eleven years old and being left to my own devices at home wasn’t an option). We all ate from a decently-stocked cooler, perhaps had a small grill, and slept in tents on the bare foundation before the walls went up. We were ‘roughing it’ but I didn’t mind, for the most part. I had Muscongus Bay to float around in, woods to explore, and I had my books.
However, the minute our neighbors suggested to my mother that I might rather spend a night in their guest room, I leapt at the chance. A cozy bed! Running water!
I slept that evening in a tidy, wood-paneled room and when I woke up the next morning, the earth might as well have fallen quite away. I didn’t know the time or where anybody was—I didn’t hear a sound. I opened my copy of Sidney Sheldon’s page-turner Bloodline and got lost in a jet-set world of international intrigue, reading for several out-of-pocket, undisturbed hours until I finished. I didn’t have to use the bathroom, I wasn’t hungry, I required nothing: I was of myself, solely—and impossibly young. It was one of the most perfect mornings I’ve ever had.
“They flew to Paris in a private jet, and had a superb dinner. It began with a paté de foie gras with truffles, lobster bisque, crisp duck à l’orange and Maxim’s special salad, and ended up with champagne and a birthday cake. Rhys drove Elizabeth down the Champs-Élysées afterward, and they returned to Switzerland late that night.”
I didn’t actually experience duck à l’orange for myself until my father took me to New York several years later, where we had dinner at the Oak Room in the Algonquin hotel. We started with escargots, finished with cheesecake. All of these things have have remained tucked in my heart ever since.
So without further ado, here’s a recipe for excellent duck à l’orange. It’s Julia Child’s version, with a few well-considered tweaks from Hank Shaw at honest-food.net. I hope it creates some delicious memories for you, too.
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Duck à l’Orange
Servings: 4 people
Author: Hank Shaw
Ingredients
2 fat ducks, like mallards or pintail
Salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cups duck stock or beef stock
4 sweet oranges
1 tablespoon arrowroot or corn starch
3 tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
1/4 teaspoon orange bitters (optional)
2 tablespoons room temperature butter
Instructions
Use a needle or sharp knife point to pierce the skin of the fat ducks all over, taking care to not pierce the meat itself; go in at an angle. This helps the fat render out of the bird. Salt the ducks well and preheat the oven to 325°F.
Put the ducks in an ovenproof pan. I rest them on celery leaves to prop them above the level of the pan; this helps them crisp better. If you want, surround the duck with some root vegetables. Roast for 90 minutes.
Take the pan out and increase the heat to 425°F. When it hits this temperature, put the birds back in the oven and roast until the skin is crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, boil the vinegar and sugar in a small pot until it turns brown. Pour in the stock little by little, stirring all the while. Set aside.
Shave the peel off the oranges, grating some fine and keeping the peel of 2 oranges in large pieces. Juice 2 oranges. Cut segments from the other 2 oranges. Here is a tutorial on how to do that.
When the ducks are ready, remove them from the oven and let them rest on a cutting board.
Finish the sauce. Bring it to a simmer, then add about 1/2 cup of orange juice and the large bits of peel. Simmer 5 minutes. Whisk together a little of the sauce with the starch, and, when it's mixed well, stir it into the saucepot to thicken. Add the Grand Marnier and enough salt and orange bitters to taste. Swirl in the butter one tablespoon at a time.
To serve, carve the duck and arrange on plates. Give everyone some orange supremes and pour over the sauce. Garnish with the grated zest, and serve with good bread, mashed potatoes or celery root, or polenta.
