… with Carrot Mousseline, Red wine & Date Reduction
I now present a main course option that is not only a French classic – in this case with a few contemporary brushstrokes – but also remarkably well received by Indian palates; needless to say Peking style duck would be their preference, but this too has a sufficient number of well-wishers, especially when they are held captive at a sit down dinner and not obliged to fork out for it themselves.
In any event, for all you debutant hosts and hostesses, not only does this make for a very impressive main course, but it is also extremely simple to prepare; all you need are stamina and patience … just take a look at the recipe below!
Duck Confit
Ingredients
YIELD : 4 PORTIONS
- 1 kg White butter (Believe it or not, this is a great substitute for duck fat- see note1 below)
- 4 x 200g Duck legs (see note2 below)
- 4 teaspoons minced garlic
- 4 teaspoons caster sugar
- 4 teaspoons rock salt
- 4 teaspoons mixed fresh (thyme, rosemary, parsley
- finely chopped) or dried herbs
Note 1: Either brand Amul (pic below) or from any local dairy; I source mine from Shyam Quality Dairy & Bakery located at INA market, New Delhi.
Amul White Lactic Butter (Photo credit: Internet Image, January 2023)
Note 2: I source the duck legs from Gayatri Farm, New Delhi, and specify the large size, which can vary between 200-250g.
Method
Place duck legs skin-side down on an aluminium plate. Mix together the garlic, sugar, salt & herbs and rub each duck leg (flesh side only) with the marinade; then refrigerate overnight (STEPS 1 & 2).
The following day, in a large heavy bottom saucepan, melt the white butter on low heat (STEPS 3 & 4), add the duck legs skin-side up (STEP 5), and allow to simmer (not boil) for approximately 2 to 2.5 hours, until the flesh is almost falling off the bone (STEP 6).
If this has been made in advance, let cool and then store covered with the white butter in a container in the fridge.
Just before serving, preheat oven to 160°C (setting: convection below & fan above), melt a little white butter in a non-stick frying pan and sear each dug leg, skin side down until browned (STEP 7), turn over and place in a baking dish. Pour some white butter into the baking dish just to cover the flesh, not the skin (STEP 8).
Place the baking tray on the upper shelf of the oven and heat for approximately 15 to 20 mins until flesh warmed through and skin crisped up. Then serve with accompaniments (see recipes below).
Carrot Mousseline
In spite of what you may think, I am not indulging in some kind of affectation by calling this a mousseline, for it is no ordinary puree; the texture is positively silken, the cooking technique a veritable surprise … just one of those things I happened to stumble upon during my habitual early morning research and trials of culinary ideas and recipes, when I am not only at my hungriest but also creative best. It’s not a surprise I am still single, for I wake up at 4am in alpha state, ready to rock & roll in the kitchen rather than loll and cuddle in bed.
Ingredients
YIELD: 4 PORTIONS
- 500g carrots
- 100g water
- 90g Amul butter
Method
Thinly slice the carrots using a mandolin (STEPS 1, 2 & 3). Cut butter into cubes.
Place the carrots in a saucepan, add butter and give it a stir, pour in water, stir again, and place over low heat (STEP 4). Partially cover with a lid and let cook slowly, stirring every 10 minutes, until all the water has evaporated and the butter is fully absorbed (STEPS 5, 6 & 7).
Let cool and then puree in a food processor (STEPS 8 & 9).
Reheat gently, preferably over a pot of simmering water (bain marie) before serving.
Gordon Ramsay’s Date And Red Wine Sauce
Indeed, this isn’t one of my own and not my own version either, but a Ramsay original, which in my opinion is a wonderful sauce to accompany a duck confit, even if the French don’t traditionally serve a sauce with this particular dish; that said, I did have the gall to serve it to the French ambassador to India a few years ago, and as much as he momentarily looked somewhat perplexed, his plate was licked clean. And no, he wasn’t simply being polite, for conventional etiquette calls for at least a few scraps to be left behind.
Ingredients
YIELD: 4 PORTIONS
- 600ml chicken stock (simply use knorr cubes; there is really no need to put yourself through making a fresh stock)
- 250ml red wine
- 3 tablespoons port (please see note below)
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 200g pitted dates cut in halves (any variety will do)
Note: You can use a local port (pictured in the image of Step 2), if not an imported one, which is always preferable. The only other possibilities are madeira or marsala.
Method
First and foremost dissolve two stock cubes in 1 litre of water and measure out 600ml.
Then cover the dates with boiling water, leave for 5 mins and then drain (STEPS 1 & 2). Pour the stock into a sauce pan, add red wine, port and balsamic vinegar and boil down by two thirds (STEPS 3 & 4).
Reduce to a simmer, add the soaked dates and continue to simmer for 10 minutes (STEP 5). Then strain, pushing through the date pulp and reserve (STEP 6). Reheat gently before use, whisking to re-amalgamate.
To Assemble
Shape the carrot puree off-center of the plate using an egg cutter open mould (4 inch diameter x 1 inch height), place a duck leg over one side of the puree, drizzle the sauce around the plate using a teaspoon and scatter with micro-herbs. (see series of images below)
Testimonial
“‘Why are there no great French restaurants in Delhi?’ How many times my predecessors and I heard and repeated this lament! The truth – but known only to a very small number of lucky ones – is that this place exists, where the dishes are executed with both professionalism and sensitivity, a place that is more of a salon in which the conversation is as delicate as the cooking….at the home of Ms. Diya Sethi. It also takes a lot of the same generosity that is found in her dishes to share their secrets … Au Fourneau !”
Emmanuel Lenain
French Ambassador to India, 2019-2023
Index
For the Duck Leg Confit
Above: Morphy Richards table top oven
21in width x 14in depth x 13.5in height
Please note that if you cannot find the packaged amul white lactic butter, get it from Shyam quality dairy, Shop no. 44, INA Market, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110023.
Duck legs from Gayatri Farm, Tel: +91-9811155863
Bottled dried herbs are available at most provision stores stocking imported goods. I keep a French stash with me at all times.
For The Carrot Mousseline
Above: Ordinary home use mandolin,
13in length x 3in width
Above: Open egg cutter mould,
or any open mould of dimensions,
4in diameter x 1in height
Please note that most of the small equipment used you can purchase at The Butler Hotel Supermarket, H6HR+C9X, Sardar Inderjit Singh Bhatia Rd, Block C, Lajpat Nagar 1, Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi, Delhi 110024.