Duck Dishes

Duck Breast with Plum and Tamarind Sauce

Hi there! I haven’t posted for awhile since I’ve been finishing up a course in American Politics at my local university. (You could definitely call me a ‘perpetual student’ since I have been attending university courses off and on since 1967)!

To celebrate the end of my classes, I decided to make ‘Duck Breast with Plum and Tamarind Sauce.’ A tamarind tree bears tropical fruit grown in bean-like pods and is frequently used in Asian and Middle Eastern cooking. It also has certain reported medicinal benefits, like lowering blood sugar and preventing heart disease. I like cooking with tamarind because it has a nice sweet and sour taste and you can build further flavors around it using cinnamon and star anise, etc.

To make this dish, I used tamarind paste, which you can buy in Asian supermarkets. It only takes about 15 minutes to make the sauce and a further 12-15 minutes to cook the duck breast.

This dish is similar to my recipe for Duck à l’orange, except with an Asian rather than a French twist!

 

Duck Breasts with Plum and Tamarind Sauce
Serves 2
Tender duck breasts served with a 'sweet and sour' plum and tamarind sauce
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
12 min
Total Time
27 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
12 min
Total Time
27 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 tbsp sugar
  2. ¼ cup red wine vinegar
  3. ½ cup + 2 tbsps. water
  4. 2 plums, peeled and de-seeded (fresh or canned plums are OK to use)
  5. 1 tsp tamarind sauce
  6. 1 star anise
  7. 1 cinnamon stick
  8. 2 cloves
  9. 1 tbsp fish sauce
  10. 2 Duck Breasts, uncooked
Instructions
  1. Over medium heat, whisk the sugar and red wine vinegar together for several minutes until the sugar dissolves and the liquid turns a dark brown color; add the water to the mixture. Peel and de-seed the plums and slice into 3-4 pieces. Add these to the cooking liquid along with the tamarind sauce, star anise, cinnamon stick, cloves and fish sauce. Simmer for at least 10 minutes until the plums soften and the flavors blend together. Transfer to a food processor and pulse until well-blended. Pass the sauce through a fine sieve; taste and adjust seasoning accordingly (if the sauce is too tart, add a little more sugar).
To cook the duck breasts
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Using a sharp knife, score the skin side of the duck breasts, using a criss-cross pattern. Season both sides of the duck with salt and pepper. Place a fry pan on stove top over medium-high heat and add a small amount of oil. Beginning with the skin side, cook each side of the duck breast for 3-4 minutes; the flesh side should be a golden brown color. Wrap each duck breast in foil and cook in the oven for a further 4-5 minutes. The duck will be ready when the meat is a light pink color. If the meat is still red inside, then cook for another few minutes. Remove from oven and let the duck rest for at least 10 minutes in the foil (the meat will continue to cook a little when it rests).
  2. Slice the duck breast in long horizontal pieces. To serve, re-heat the sauce, spoon the sauce onto a plate or shallow bowl, then arrange the duck pieces on top of the sauce. To decorate, try adding a star anise piece to the plate or a piece of basil or parsley.
Notes
  1. Tip: Before wrapping the duck breasts in foil and placing them in the oven, I make a small incision with a paring knife into the flesh side of the duck breast. This makes it easier to check if the duck is pink inside and therefore ready to be removed from the oven.
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7 Comments

  • Reply
    John/Kitchen Riffs
    June 1, 2017 at 10:55 pm

    Like the color of that place mat! Like this dish, too — so full of flavor. Although my supermarket sometimes carries tamarind pods (rather unusual for my part of the world), I always prefer to use the paste — so much easier. Anyway, love duck breast and it pairs so well with fruit, doesn’t it? This looks great — thanks.

  • Reply
    Juliana
    June 2, 2017 at 2:45 am

    Although we often eat duck in Chinese restaurant I have never cooked one myself…you sure make it look so easy…great flavors Fran. Thanks for the recipe!
    I hope you are having a nicweek 🙂

  • Reply
    Makos(@thehungrybites)
    June 2, 2017 at 6:06 am

    Hey Fran!
    this duck seems delicious!
    Star anise with cinnamon and cloves is always a nice combination!
    Thanks for the recipe 🙂

  • Reply
    Lynn @ Oh-So Yummy
    June 2, 2017 at 11:17 am

    Hi Fran! I’m not too familiar with tamarind though my coworker tried to show me some drier fruit at work one day! Neat way to change up the recipe into another style though! I have yet to try cooking duck meat of any kind!

  • Reply
    Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop
    June 5, 2017 at 4:12 am

    Congrats of finishing a course! This looks like a great way to celebrate! Duck is so elegant and tasty! This looks lovely.

  • Reply
    Laura
    June 8, 2017 at 3:45 am

    This recipe is great. I am now following this for a reference for my Mexican Recipe Website. Thank You

  • Reply
    All That I'm Eating
    June 9, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    I rarely cook duck breast at home which is such a shame, this sounds delicious.

  • I love comments!