This Balsamic Cherry Glazed Roasted Duck is literally to die for! It is moist and tender and not a bit fatty, which duck tends to be.
The first time I had whole duck was at least 15 years ago. A friend, who had been to culinary school and thought she was the best the chef on the planet (I was and am a better cook, just saying!), made it for Thanksgiving. Luckily we did Jamie Oliver’s (my idea) Thanksgiving turkey and dressing too (to this day one of my favorites), due to the fact that the duck was hideous!
Probably the fattiest thing I have ever eaten. When I saw a contest using duck, I thought, well maybe I can perfect that!
So, for the contest I did a Fuzzy Navel Grilled Whole Duck, yes, the glaze contains peach schnapps. Yum! Also, we did a wonderful Asian duck burger with peach sauce and grilled peaches, (and Chinese Rushan cheese!).
So I googled how to get it crispy for days. Finally decided how I would cook the duck to make it crispy, instead of a pile of grease. Since then my family has become “quack” addicts! (My husband’s goofy sense of humor! Probably nothing to joke about but I couldn’t resist!)
This is the Fuzzy Navel Grilled Duck. It was simply amazing! I’m not sure why I haven’t posted that one. I will soon. So much good food, so little time!
The Roasted Balsamic Cherry Grilled Duck
I honestly can’t decide which one I like better. They are both soooo good! The key to juicy but not fatty duck is to either poke holes (I did this for the fuzzy navel version) or to score the skin without piercing the meat (the Cherry Glazed version).
In addition to that first tip, the second tip is to cook it low and slow and flip the bird over every hour. Start with the breast side down in a roasting pan with a rack. After one hour, flip it so that it is breast side up. Do this two more times (a total of 4 hours).
You will end up with a beautifully crispy duck every time. I do this for grilling or roasting. When you are roasting, if enough fat accumulates in the bottom of the pan to touch the duck, drain some off. On the grill, you want to indirect grill it (turn off the burners directly underneath) otherwise you will get flare ups from the dripping fat.
Even the legs end up juicy and delicious. The first time I did them, I was worried that the legs were going to be dried out, not the case!
Now the reason I mentioned that the family is addicted, is that the next week we pan-seared these breasts with shallot, mushrooms, dill and a delicious demi glace gravy.
The husband actually did cute ‘mushrooms’ made out of baby potatoes and mushrooms caps. He is so funny! But, Yum! I’m drooling just thinking about them! Time to go out and buy more duck! This is another great savory use for cherries! Cherry BBQ Sauce
Duck is a good source of proteins, selenium, iron, zinc and B vitamins. Roasting the duck in this fashion, renders it much more healthy, due to the release of all of the fat underneath the skin! See here for the different ducks available.
I love this combination lasagna and roasting pan.
Other great Duck Recipes on Binky’s Culinary Carnival
Thanks for stopping by to check out the recipe for Balsamic Cherry Glazed Whole Duck! I hope you enjoy it! Let me know in the comments below if my method gave you the best duck you have eaten!
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Balsamic Cherry Glazed Whole Duck
Equipment
Ingredients
For Duck
- 6 lb duck
- 1 large carrot , cut into large chunks
- 1 small onion , quartered
- 1 large stalk celery with tops , cut into large chunks
For the Stuffing
- 2 tsp Olive Oil
- 1 large shallot , diced
- 2 stalks celery , diced
- 3 c cornbread , crumbled
- 2 c crusty white or wheat bread , cubed
- 2 tsp minced fresh rosemary , chopped
- 1 tsp chopped dill, fresh , chopped
- 1/2 tsp sage, dried
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 2 Tbsp Butter
- 1/4 c chicken stock or water. plus or minus
- 1/4 c dried apricots , chopped
- 1/4 c dried cherries
For Glaze
- 3/4 c cherry preserves
- 1/4 c Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary , chopped
- 1/8 tsp sage, dried
Instructions
For Duck
- Wash and dry duck thoroughly, inside and out. Either poke wholes into the skin being careful not to pierce the meat or use a sharp knife to score the skin in a crisscross pattern. Place onion, celery and carrot in the cavity.
- Alternately, you can stuff the cavity. If you are using the stuffing to fill the cavity, you don't need the carrot, onion and celery. We like our stuffing crispy, so I make mini muffin cups, instead.
- Place on roasting pan that has a wire rack, breast side down.
- Bake at 300°F for one hour. Carefully remove the duck from the oven and flip it over so that it is breast side up. Bake again for another hour and repeat the process 2 more times, so that it cooks for the last hour breast side up. The last 45 minutes, or so brush with the cherry balsamic glaze.
- Let rest for at least 30 minutes before cutting.
For Stuffing
- Soften the shallots and celery in olive oil in a small saute' pan. Add rosemary and sage and saute' just for a few more minutes.
- Place butter and water or stock in a separate small sauce pan. Bring to a boil then turn of heat, to melt the butter.
- Meanwhile, prepare bread and place in a large bowl.
- When the vegetables are soft, place them in with the bread.
- Place all the rest of the ingredients, except apricots and cherries, to the bowl with bread crumbs. I usually add 3/4 of the water or stock in and add enough more to make it desired wetness. You don't want it soggy, but evenly moist.
- Add apricots and cherries and just mix to combine.
- If you want to stuff the bird, do this first. If you are doing stuffing muffins, Spray two mini muffin tins with non stick spray. Fill with stuffing.
- Bake for about 40 minutes, the last hour the bird is in.
For Glaze
- Use to same pan you melted the butter in. Place all of the ingredients in the pan. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to very low, simmering for 30-60 minutes until thick.
Looks awesome! For the balsamic, are you using a top-shelf aged balsamic that costs and arm and a leg, a standard grocery store balsamic, one of the syrupy sweet balsamic products, or something else. There’s such variability with balsamic vinegar. I don’t want to overshoot with a high end product but definitely want the duck to turn out as delicious looking as the one pictured.
Hi Dave! Thanks for your comment! I did not use a top shelf balsamic! I used a Balsamic Vinegar of Modena with 2 leaves in the Leaves System. “Two leaves means lightly concentrated density – great for salads dressings and marinades”, according to the bottle. I purchased it at a local grocer. I hope that helps!
Can’t wait to try this recipe
Thanks so much, Kim! Be sure to let me know how you like it!
I’ve never cooked a whole duck but this looks fantastic!
It really is very good! The key is crispy skin! Thanks Mindy!
“…hi, my name is Sarah and I’ve never made duck before.” Does that make me a complete failure?? Hopefully not! But, thankfully, this recipe looks easy enough to make that I think I can do it successfully! Thanks so much for sharing!!
Hi Sarah! It really is easy. It takes quite a while but most of it isn’t active cooking time! And certainly not a failure! Last year was the first time I attempted it!
I know I’ve never cooked duck, and I’m not even sure I’ve ever eaten it, but man this sounds great! Full of flavor and it looks yummy!
I hadn’t had much experience with it in the past either, Debi. It really is delicious! Thanks!
Holy cow that looks fantastic! I have never cooked duck before. Maybe I will give it a try!
Thank you Linda! It’s very easy and totally worth the time it takes to make it!
I’ve only had duck a few times in my life. My Mom made it several times growing up, but I don’t think nothing like this. The cherry glaze sounds great!
Thank you so much Stephanie! The glaze is really super! It is sweet yet tangy! It pairs very well with the duck!
I totally need to make this one day! Grilled ofcourse! I love duck especially the breast is superb! Nice plating you did there! Thanks for sharing this lovely recipe! Will share!
Thanks, so much Simon! I actually loved the fuzzy navel duck we did last year one the grill too! Fantastic!