Duck with orange sauce is the most favored way to serve this bird.
The thing I love about duck is the nice crispy skin. Believe it or not, I’m pretty “meh” about the meat since I’m not a huge fan of dark meat on poultry other than chicken.
INGREDIENTS
1 duck (5 lbs or more)
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Sauce:
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 tbs butter
2 tsp grated orange zest
¾ cup orange juice
4 pieces thinly sliced orange (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
Wash duck and dry thoroughly. Remove excess fat from the cavity area. Prick the skin at 1-inch intervals over the entire bird.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Place bird breast side up on a rack set in a deep roasting pan.
Mix salt & pepper and sprinkle over the bird.
Roast for 40-45 minutes; prick the skin again and turn bird breast slide down.
Roast for another 40-45 minutes; prick the skin again and turn bird breast side up.
Remove bird from the oven, cover loosely with foil and let it rest at least 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the sauce–place all sauce ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to boil stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low and gently boil until sauce has the consistency of pancake syrup. This should take about 15 minutes.
Brush the duck with some of the sauce.
Cut duck into quarters and serve with additional sauce.
Enjoy.