SLOW-COOKED DUCK LEG WITH SPICED TOMATO
This melt-in-the-mouth, slow-cooked duck legs are served with a rich and flavoursome sauce in this super-tasty winter dish. We serve it with a long pasta like tagliatelle.
Ingredients
4 Saveur duck legs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, peeled, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely diced
1 small fennel bulb, finely chopped
2 celery sticks, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, peeled, finely chopped
4 fresh bay leaves
10g fresh oregano leaves
1 Farro cinnamon stick
1 Farro star anise
2 x 400g cans Mutti chopped tomatoes
100ml dry white wine
200ml Foundation Foods chicken stock
40g pickled jalapeños 40g Romulo capers
120g Le Nostrane green Sicilian olives, roughly chopped
200g baby spinach
400g La Molisana tagliatelle
5g fresh Italian parsley, roughly chopped
Method
Generously season duck legs all over
Heat oil in a large sauté pan over a medium heat. When oil is hot, brown duck legs on all sides, allowing excess fat to be rendered out. Decant as much of the fat as possible halfway through and adjust the heat so the skin crisps and browns, transfer to a plate and set aside
Remove all but 4 tablespoons of duck fat from the pan. Strain and keep remaining fat in the refrigerator for duck fat potatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the onion, carrots, fennel, celery and garlic, season to taste and continue cooking the vegetables until soft, about 10-15 mins, stirring occasionally
Add herbs, spices, tomatoes, sherry and stock, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for about 5 mins. Add duck legs back to the pan along with the juices and cover with a lid. Reduce heat to low so the sauce is barely bubbling, cook for about 1 1⁄2 hours, or until duck is tender and the meat falls away from the bone
With 10 mins before the end of cooking, gently stir in the jalapeños, capers, olives and spinach
Bring a large saucepan filled with water to the boil over a high heat. Add tagliatelle and cook for 9 mins or until al dente. Drain tagliatelle well in a colander
To serve, divide tagliatelle between four plates, spoon over the sauce and duck legs and sprinkle with chopped Italian parsley