Ducks with Cherry Wine Sauce

[Palmetto Bug]

It took the right recipe to get me to like eating ducks. They were a bit dark, livery and strong for my taste until I found a recipe I liked. This is my favorite. We had it tonight and I'm still in the afterglow of a really good meal. No pictures because I'm an old guy that thinks it's strange to take pictures of your meal. This recipe if for two ducks and will feed four people with appropriate sides.

Ducks with Cherry Wine Sauce

2 ducks' breasts, skin on

Sauce
one cup of Cabernet, reduced over low heat to maybe 1/4 cup.
add chopped dried cherries, maybe 1/4 cup.
add 3 tsp. butter
add 1/4 tsp of salt.
add 1 tsp of sugar.
add 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
add a good sprinkling of rosemary to the sauce, maybe 1/2 tsp.

Set the sauce aside.

Pat some finely chopped rosemary and a sprinkling of coarse ground salt on both sides of the filleted breasts before roasting.

Cook the duck breasts in a butter-coated casserole dish in a not-preheated oven, near the top of the oven, skin side up at first, on the top rack on the hottest broil setting. It takes maybe 8 minutes, depending on how close they are to the heating element for the skin to get very crispy. Your mileage may vary.

Once the skin side is thoroughly seared and crispy, flip them. Cook them just a few more minutes to leave them pretty rare on the inside. To serve, plate, skin side down and cover the meat with the wine reduction sauce.

[Highstrung]

One of my favorite dishes a guy that cooks around here is some what similar.. He reconstitutes some cherries in brandy, then adds them into he red wine sauce.. I swear it's port. But he used to serve it with squab. I've posted one similar on here with duck, and I think quail once.

Ducks can taste so different between species and where they're eating and living. I swear I could cook you some summerducks from around here, and it would change you mind completely.

[Highstrung]

I love shooting birds on the coast, but dern they eat so different. Even Gadwall, I won't leave the skin on a coastal Gadwall again.

[BEAR]

I love shooting birds on the coast, but dern they eat so different. Even Gadwall, I won't leave the skin on a coastal Gadwall again.

That’s like eating a Bufflehead off the freshwater vs salt. Salt water Buffleheads are pretty good to me, but freshwater ones are awful.

[Highstrung]

I've never killed a Bufflehead on the coast, I've killed exactly two here. I haven't planned on shooting another, I just might now.

[Palmetto Bug]

The original recipe used a reduced port instead of cabernet. I didn't have any port handy so cab it has been.

I cooked gadwall tonight. Woodies, mallards and gadwall are the only ones I try to get my wife to eat. If she balks on a ringo, I might never get her to eat another duck and I hate having to cook for one. Summer ducks are the safest bet.

[TheVisorGuy]

I was expecting to see the soda

[welltaut]

The original recipe used a reduced port instead of cabernet. I didn't have any port handy so cab it has been.

I cooked gadwall tonight. Woodies, mallards and gadwall are the only ones I try to get my wife to eat. If she balks on a ringo, I might never get her to eat another duck and I hate having to cook for one. Summer ducks are the safest bet.

I like to eat any puddle duck...one of my favorite meats....GW teal are as safe as summer duck.