Tag Archives: duck

Duck with Cherries & Lemon

“The lamb was as good as any he had ever eaten, and the duck was even better, cooked with cherries and lemons and not near as greasy as most. The innkeep brought buttered pease as well, and oaten bread still hot from her oven.” -The Hedge Knight

Duck with Cherries and Lemon

Thoughts:

This was a special request from twitter commenter @theodinspire, who wondered if we’d tackled this recipe yet. It turned out that we hadn’t, but that description is so wonderful that it immediately went to the top of my list. 

As you can see from the photo, the color of the finished dish is very striking. That vibrant red comes from the cherry juice and wine, which soak into the skin of the duck as it gets basted. The result is a tart, crisp skin and soft duck on the inside. The citrus and cherry pair well, but not at all in that cherry-ade slushie sort of way. Rather, it’s a kind of savory tartness, with just a bit of a kick from the ginger. 

While I’m not sure about pease as a pairing, I think that our oatbread would be just wonderful next to this duck, the candied orange peel complimenting the lemon, while still being rustic enough for a country inn. Pretty decadent fare for a hedge knight!

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Breakfast in Mereen

“Dany broke her fast under the persimmon tree that grew in the terrace garden… Missandei served her duck eggs and dog sausage, and half a cup of sweetened wine mixed with the juice of a lime. The honey drew flies, but a scented candle drove them off.”

-A Storm of Swords

Breakfast in Mereen

Our Thoughts:

We need a duck. To lay eggs. For us to eat. Because this was one of the most decadent breakfasts we’ve ever encountered. The yolks of these eggs stay creamy even after being hard boiled, and the texture combined with the subtle flavors imparted by its tea-immersion is just wonderful. Then you take a bite of the sausage and get an explosion of meaty, spiced nomminess.

Not feeling all that keen to search out dog sausage, let alone actually eat it, we swapped in some delicious lamb sausage instead. Lamb seems to be nearly everywhere in Westeros and Essos, so it is a reasonable substitute.  We wanted the eggs to look exotic, so we used a Chinese technique for tea staining them.

The honey-sweetened wine is a variation on Ancient Roman Mulsum, and is very refreshing and very drinkable on a warm summer morning.  The crispness of the drink counters the heaviness of the other elements of the meal, as does the fresh fruit.

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