Duck in Orange Sauce

Make Duck with Orange Sauce for your next dinner party, and impress your friends and family! It's one of the easiest "fancy" dishes you can make - and perfect to prep ahead . With a delicious sweet & tart orange sauce, this is a dish you will be making over and over again!

Course Main Course

Cuisine European

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 40

Active cooking time 30

Total Time 45

Servings

Calories 411kcal

Author Emmeline Kemperyd

Equipment

Ingredients

2 large duck breasts with skin
½ teaspoon fine table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ cup duck fat
5 oranges juice only
4 garlic cloves peeled and slightly crushed, but in one piece
10 sprigs of rosemary
½ cup honey

To serve

sea salt flakes optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prep & stovetop cooking (20 minutes)

Bring out the duck breasts and pat them dry. Turn them skin-side up and carefully cut a criss-cross pattern in the skin. Take care not to cut into the duck meat, but still cut as deep into the skin as you can. Season with salt and black pepper on both sides.
2 large duck breasts with skin, ½ teaspoon fine table salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Place the duck breasts skin-side down in a cold pan without any oil or butter, then place the pan over medium heat. Allow the fat to render off until skin is crisp and golden and the fat has stopped seeping out of the duck skin. This takes 10-15 minutes. Pour off excess fat regularly while cooking and save for later.
Raise the heat to medium-high, flip the breasts over and sear skin-side up for 1 minute. Then sear quickly on the other sides of the duck breast and transfer them to an oven safe dish.

Orange Sauce (10 minutes)

Place the pan back over the heat and pour in some of the duck fat you rendered off. Add the orange juice, honey, sprigs of rosemary and garlic cloves. Bring to a simmer and let simmer until a bit sticky and reduced by half, this takes 5-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
¼ cup duck fat, 5 oranges, 10 sprigs of rosemary, ½ cup honey, 4 garlic cloves
Turn off the heat and remove the garlic cloves and sprigs of rosemary, then set aside for now.

Finishing the duck breasts in the oven (5-10 minutes if starting with a hot oven)

Heat oven to 350°F (175°C).
Glaze the duck breasts with the orange sauce on both sides, then place skin-side up and stick in a meat thermometer. Place uncovered in the middle of the oven and cook for 5-10 minutes until internal temperature has reached your desired set point (see notes below for what temperature to aim for as well as a note on food safety).
Wrap the cooked duck breasts in aluminum foil and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat up the orange sauce.
Slice the duck breasts and serve topped with orange sauce and sea salt flakes.
sea salt flakes

Video

Notes

Note on cooking temperatures and food safety:

The USDA recommends that all poultry, including duck, be cooked to at least 165 F (74 C). This is the asbolutely safest option when it comes to protecting against food borne illnesses.

However, for best result regarding taste and texture, it should be cooked until pink (medium option below). Which option you choose is up to you. I always cook according to the medium option, but I also live in a region where duck is generally quite safe to consume. If you choose to cook it below 165 F (74 C) you do need to be aware of the risk.

Suggested cooking temperatures:

Rare: Cook to 53 C/128 F and let rest to reach 56 C/133 F
Medium: Cook to 58 C/137 F and let rest to reach 62 C/144 F
Well-done: Cook to 65 C/149 F and let rest to reach 70 C/158 F

Ingredient notes & substitutions

Duck breasts - make sure they're boneless and the skin-on kind
Oranges - we're just using the juice, so in a pinch you can sub in store bought orange juice. Or use another sweet citrus - like clementines.
Liquid honey - regular honey works as well
Rosemary can be swapped for thyme
Orange zest can be added to the sauce if you want more of orange taste and a touch of bitterness

Tips & tricks

Use a really sharp knife to score the skin
Render off the fat - it really is worth the time
Always start with a cold pan when rendering off the fat
Don't pour the fat straight down the drain as this might clog it - instead, pour it into a bowl to cool and either use to cook other things in (duck fat potatos are delicious), or:
- Place it in the fridge to cool and solidify, then throw in the trash
- Soak up with paper towels and throw them in the trash
Know your temperature point - do you like it rare, medium or well-done? In the recipe card below you can see which temperature you should aim for depending on your preference.
Use an oven thermometer to get your duck to just the right temperature
Always take your duck out at a few degrees below the target temperature - in the recipe card below you will find suggestions for at what temperature to bring it from the oven as well
Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days - great cold or heated, as well as added to pastas, salads and thai curries
Freeze leftovers to keep them for up to 3 months

Nutrition