About this Recipe

By: Rachel

Although I love eating duck à l’orange – also known simply as orange duck- it took me a long time to attempt making it myself. In fact, this week was my first time cooking duck on my own. I am a highly cravings-driven person, and when I want to eat something… I want it now. More than once, I googled recipes, saw the long list of ingredients with fiddly instructions, gave up, and decided to go make myself a sandwich.

ingreadients for duck à l’orange or orange duck

Why Orange Duck Is Worth the Effort

Duck à l’orange isn’t a particularly difficult dish to make, it just requires time and patience. It takes a few days, between curing, marinating, cooking, roasting, and searing, to get everything just right, and rushing won’t yield the result you want. There are no (or very few) shortcuts in life, and none to be had in orange duck either. So, if you find yourself having a strong I need it right now craving for this dish, you may want to head to your local French bistro.

Craving Orange Duck, but Intimidated by the Recipe?

Duck à l’orange requires a bit of planning, and more than likely, procuring some special ingredients (most of us don’t have a refrigerator full of ducks, waiting to be confit-ed). A trip to your local Asian specialty market will likely yield you some fresh duck and most of the ingredients for the marinade; many grocery stores now carry duck fat (I’m partial to the Epic brand, which is inexpensive and widely available).

The end result—succulent meat, golden-brown skin, and a concentrated orange sauce that is at once sweet and umami—is well worth the wait. Set aside a low-key weekend when you’ll be able to take your time with each step. Cure the duck legs on a Friday night, marinate the duck breast on Saturday, begin the duck confit on Sunday morning, and you’ll be enjoying your delicious reward for Sunday dinner.

Call it duck à l’orange or orange duck—either way, it’s one of the most rewarding dishes you can make at home. If you’re looking for the perfect side to serve it, try this warm asparagus with gremolata—a bright, herby contrast that cuts through the richness beautifully.

Note: If you cannot find separate duck leg quarters and breasts, you can purchase a whole duck and break it down yourself or ask the butcher to do this for you. I found that it was far cheaper to just buy a whole duck, and breaking it down was a lot easier than I had expected!

Duck à l’Orange

Duck à l’orange may sound challenging, but you can make this iconic French dish at home. You’re just one weekend away from succulent duck with golden-crisp skin and sauce bursting with orange flavor.

Print Recipe

30-45 minutes to prep ingredients and up to 8 hours to cook, plus 24-48 hours marinating time.

Meal Type Main Dish

Good For Fall, Winter

Servings 2

Ingredients

For the duck legs:

2 duck leg quarters
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
Leaves of two thyme sprigs, or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
2 ounces (55g) candied orange peel
1 shallot, chopped
Duck fat, melted (enough to completely submerge the legs)

For the duck breasts:

2 duck breasts
1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
½ cup (120mL) freshly-squeezed orange juice
4 tablespoons yuzu ponzu
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
2 teaspoons brown sugar

Step by Step Instructions

Prepare your duck

If you have purchased duck leg quarters and duck breasts separately, you may skip to Step 1 below. If you have a whole duck, read on!
Do not be afraid! It is easy to break down a duck, and this video can show you how.
Remove the neck and any organs from the cavity of the duck, and cut away the large flap of fat at the base of the body. Use a sharp, flexible fillet knife to separate the leg quarters from the body of the duck, then carefully follow the contour of the breasts to separate each.
You can use the remaining parts for duck stock; you can render the fat to use in other dishes in the future (like this or this).

Duck Leg Confit

Step 1

Mix the salt, pepper, thyme, orange zest, orange peel, and shallots into a paste, using a small food processor or a mortar and pestle.
Rub the paste over the duck legs, transfer to a small, nonreactive baking dish (the duck legs should fit very snugly), and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 24-48 hours.

Step 2

Heat oven to 225°F (105°C). Brush off the cure from the duck legs, rinse well in cold water, and dry well with paper towels. Return to the small baking dish, and cover completely with duck fat.
Cover the dish with a lid or heavy-duty foil, and bake for 5-7 hours, or until the meat is beginning to separate from the bone and offers no resistance when probed with a fork.

Step 3

To complete your dish another day, allow the legs to cool in the fat, cover tightly, and refrigerate. As long as your duck legs are fully covered in fat, they will keep this way for about a month. You can pick up the dish at the next step when ready to proceed.

Step 4

Drain your duck legs of the fat by placing over an oven-safe wire rack over a sheet pan, and allow the remaining fat to drip off.
Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C), using the convection bake (not roast) setting if you have one. Place your duck legs skin-side up on a wire rack over a foil-lined sheet pan and roast for 15-25 minutes, rotating as needed, until golden brown.

Duck Breasts

Step 1

Score your duck breasts in a crosshatch pattern, and set in a Ziploc bag.
Add the orange zest, juice, ponzu, marmalade, and brown sugar to the container of a high-powered blender (such as a Vitamix) and blend until smooth. You can skip this step if you don’t mind not having a smooth sauce.

Step 2

Add the marinade to the Ziploc bag, making sure to coat the duck well. Squeeze excess air out of the bag and marinate for 8-12 hours.

Step 3

Pour the marinade into a small saucepan, and set aside. Remove the duck breasts, and season with kosher salt and black pepper. Place skin-side down, in a cold, cast-iron skillet, and cook on medium-low heat, rotating occasionally, for 15-20 minutes, or until the fat is rendered and the skin is golden brown.
Turn the duck skin-side up, cover, and cook until rare, 3-5 minutes (the meat will register about 125°F, or 52°C). Remove the duck from the pan and allow it to rest while you prepare the sauce.

To serve:

Prepare the sauce. Place the marinade over medium-high heat, and reduce until thickened.
Place 1 roasted duck leg on each plate. Slice the warm, rested duck breasts, and plate next to the legs. Drizzle the warm sauce over both portions.

Beverage Pairing

By: Olivia

After you’ve taken the time to make this incredible Duck à l’Orange, you should open something special. As the dish is fruity and succulent, you’ll want a wine with a lovely fruit profile, good acidity, and low tannins. It must be a Beaujolais! At Violet Wine, we love Nicolas Boudeau Brouilly Grain d’Expression. This Beaujolais is complex without being over the top, full of berry fruits, and soft in all the right ways. It’s a delight to drink and will equal the duck à l’orange, neither overpowering the dish nor fading into the background.