This duck salad recipe is quick and easy to make, but very tasty. Duck reacts so well to a bit of hot smoke – the rich flavour of the meat is enhanced by its full bodied aroma and the lovely layer of fat under the skin ensures the meat does not dry out during smoking.
The little white turnips, called navettes, end up tender and coated in a delicious glaze set against the welcome crunch of the hazelnuts.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
– 32 hazelnuts, chopped into 2 or 3 pieces and toasted
– 4 navettes (small white turnips), cut into 6 or 8 wedges
– 15g butter
– 2 duck breasts
– 4 good handfuls of bitter greens (watercress, rocket, mustard leaf, frisee)
– Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Dressing
– 1 tbsp good-quality sherry vinegar
– 3 tbsp hazelnut or walnut oil
– 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Method:
1. Place all the dressing ingredients in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and whisk well to combine. Set aside.
2. Place the navettes in a flameproof casserole or small saucepan.
3. Add 3 tablespoons water and the butter, and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook for 20 minutes over a medium heat.
4. Check the navettes while they are cooking and remove the lid for the last few minutes of cooking time if there is still a lot of liquid in the casserole. They should be glazed but not wet.
5. Meanwhile, following the instructions for the Biscuit-Tin- Smoked Fish on page 152, put your duck breasts into the biscuit-tin smoker to smoke for 20 minutes while the navettes are cooking.
6. When the duck is smoked and the navettes are cooked, slice the duck breasts. Arrange the sliced duck and navette wedges in a circle around the edge of four warm plates, leaving a space in the middle of each plate for the salad.
7. Dress the bitter greens with most of the dressing and divide among the plates. Sprinkle with the toasted hazelnuts.
Recipe from My Mother is available to purchase from harpercollins.co.uk.