Warm Duck Breast Salad with Orange, Hazelnuts and Bitter Leaves

The furniture arrived a few days before my sister and her husband did. Beds, wardrobes, a dining table — all delivered into a house still filthy from a complete reform. House cleaning is not my favourite chore at the best of times, and this was not the best of times. They drove down from their holiday home in Alicante — five hours in a hired Fiat 500 — and arrived to find Casa Adora in a state of cheerful chaos. I served charcuterie while I cooked the star of the show: a warm magret de canard salad with orange, toasted hazelnuts, and bitter leaves. It was the first summer I lived here. The house was a mess. The duck was excellent.

A NOTE ON MAGRET DE CANARD

Magret de canard is the breast of a duck that has been raised for foie gras — larger, fattier, and more flavourful than a standard duck breast. The thick layer of fat on one side is what makes it special: scored, rendered slowly in a cold pan, it bastes the meat as it cooks and crisps to something extraordinary. Fresh magret occasionally appears in Lidl in Spain – snap it up when you see it. If unavailable, a good-quality duck breast will do the job.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 magret de canard (or duck breast)
• A bag of mixed bitter leaves
• 1 orange, segmented
• 50g hazelnuts, toasted in a dry pan
• 1 pepino (cucumber), thinly sliced
• Fresh chives, chopped

For the dressing:

• 1 tbsp duck fat from the pan
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp honey (or a pinch of sugar)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

How to Make Warm Duck Breast Salad

1. Score the fat of the magret in a cross-hatch pattern, cutting through the fat but not into the meat. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Place the duck breast fat side down in a cold pan. Bring up to a medium heat and render the fat slowly for 10–12 minutes until golden and crispy.
3. Turn the breast and cook for a further 4–5 minutes for pink, or longer if you prefer it more cooked through.
4. Remove the duck and rest loosely covered with foil for 5 minutes. Reserve 1 tbsp of the duck fat from the pan.
5. While the duck rests, toast the hazelnuts in a dry pan until golden. Set aside.
6. Make the dressing — whisk together the reserved duck fat, sherry vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt and pepper.
7. Arrange the bitter leaves on a plate. Scatter over the orange segments, sliced pepino, toasted hazelnuts and chives.
8. Slice the duck breast thinly and lay over the salad. Drizzle with the warm dressing and serve immediately.

Magret de canard has a way of making an occasion feel special without requiring much of the cook — the fat does most of the work. This warm duck breast salad has been on the Casa Adora repertoire since that first chaotic summer, and it has never failed to impress. If you enjoy cooking duck, the Game Recipes hub has the full collection — confit, ragù, partridge, rabbit, quail and more.

FOOTNOTE

This warm duck breast salad is part of the Game Recipes hub — a collection of wild and seasonal recipes from Casa Adora and the road. Explore the full collection. Wonky photos, proper food, genuine adventures – The Flexible Chef.