Recipe - Sous Vide Honey Sesame Duck Breast with Rice and Sesame Broccoli

Sous Vide Honey Sesame Duck Breast with Rice and Sesame Broccoli

Ever had the problem of your duck breast going tough when you cook it? Never again with the sous vide method - it comes out perfectly every time. The searing with duck is a little bit more complicated than with chicken, but it is still really easy.

Now, there are 2 ways to go about this:

1. quick prep, but the skin isn't going to be as crispy
2. longer prep, with perfect crispy skin

Both give fantastic duck breast meat, so if that's all you're interested in, go with version 1, but if you love yourself a bit of duck skin, go with 2.

Serves 2

Ingredients

for the duck

• 2 duck breasts (I use the Gressingham duck breasts from Morrisons that they have in packs of 2 on the 3 for £10 offer).
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic (crushed - I use a tube)

for the broccoli

• 1/2 head broccoli
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp normal oil
• 1 clove garlic (crushed - I use a tube)

75g of Jasmine rice per person

Instructions

For the duck

• Preheat the Anova to 57.5 °C / 135 °F

Quick prep:

1. Place the duck breasts in a bag with all the other ingredients.
2. Seal using the water displacement method or a vacuum sealer on moist.

More complicated prep:

1. Score the duck skin with long even strokes - do not cut the meat and score against the grain.
2. Sear in a med pan, skin side down for 2-3 mins until the skin it golden - no oil is required because the fat will render. Do not have the heat too high or it will burn.
3. Place the duck in a bag with the other ingredients.
4. Seal using the water displacement method or a vacuum sealer on moist.

Cooking:

1. Put the duck in the water bath and set the timer for 2h
2. When the duck is ready, remove it from the water bath and bag and pat dry - reserve the cooking liquid.
3. In a hot, but not scorching pan, place the duck skin side down and cook until the skin is crispy.
4. Meanwhile add the cooking liquid to a saucepan and add a little corn flour.
5. Cook until bubbling and thickening.
6. Allow the duck to rest for a few minutes before serving.

For the broccoli

1. Blanch the broccoli by bring a pan of water to the boil, dropping in the florets and cooking for 3-4 mins (if you have small florets, go for 3, bigger, go for 4). Drain and leave to the side until almost ready to serve.
2. Heat the oils for the broccoli in a small frying pan or wok and add the garlic (you could use a saucepan if you are using your only frying pan for the duck:)).
3. Add the blanched broccoli to the garlicy oil and stir fry for a minute.

Cook the rice as indicated on the packet - usually in boiling water for about 12 mins.

Serve with the sauce drizzled over the top.

Cooking the duck sous vide with all the flavours in the bag means they really get into the meat, but the meat also stays beautifully soft and juicy.

If you prefer your duck done to a different level, here are the temps chefsteps.com recommend for different results (I haven't tried any of them):

• 129 °F / 54 °C: Rare, with some chew
• 135 °F / 54 °C: Tender and juicy (temp I use)
• 144 °F / 62 °C: Totally tender, a little less juicy
• 149 °F / 65 °C: Decidedly less juicy but still delicious
• 158 °F / 70 °C: Cooked all the way through

Do you have any favourite duck recipes you can recommend?