Caneton Rouennais

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 10-inch (25 cm) skillet
• •Small food processor or mortar and pestle
• •Fine-mesh sieve or tamis
• •Roasting pan fitted with a rack
• •Instant-read digital thermometer
• •Kitchen twine

Instructions

1. 1

   Ready the duckling

   Set an oven rack in the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Pat the duckling dry inside and out. Prick the fatty skin around the thighs, tail, and lower breast with the point of a skewer without piercing the meat beneath; these little openings let the fat escape while the skin bronzes. Season the cavity and skin with 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 6 g) of the salt and ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g) of the pepper, then leave the bird at cool room temperature while you make the forcemeat.

2. 2

   Stiffen the livers

   Put the larding bacon in a heavy skillet over medium heat and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring, until it releases its fat and the edges just begin to color. Add the onion and cook for another 3 minutes, until softened but not browned. Raise the heat to medium-high, add the sliced duck livers, parsley, remaining ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 3 g) salt, remaining ¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml / 0.5 g) pepper, and the quatre-épices. Toss for only 2 to 3 minutes, until the liver surfaces are firm and colored but the centers remain decidedly pink. Take the pan off the heat at once. If the livers have gone a little farther and the mixture looks dry, ça se rattrape: reserve a tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat and work it back into the paste in the next step.

3. 3

   Pound and sieve

   Let the liver mixture half-cool for 10 to 15 minutes. It should be warm rather than hot, with the fat still supple. Transfer everything to a small food processor and pulse just until it becomes a cohesive paste; prolonged processing warms the fat and makes the forcemeat greasy. Press the paste through a fine-mesh sieve with a flexible spatula, scraping the smooth forcemeat from the underside. The food processor replaces the old mortar, but the sieve does not disappear. It removes sinew and gives the filling its proper fineness. If the paste smears oil across the sieve, chill it for 10 minutes and continue once the fat firms.

4. 4

   Stuff and truss

   Spoon the forcemeat loosely into the duck's cavity, leaving room for heat to circulate. Do not compress it into a solid plug. Fold the neck skin underneath, tie the legs together with kitchen twine, and tuck the wing tips behind the shoulders. Set the duck breast-side up on a rack in a roasting pan. Stuff only immediately before roasting; a filled bird should not wait about the kitchen.

5. 5

   Roast without drying

   Roast at 450°F (230°C) for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven to 375°F (190°C). Carefully spoon accumulated fat from the pan and continue roasting for 30 to 40 minutes, rotating the pan once. The skin should be deep bronze, the thickest part of the breast should reach 150°F (66°C) and remain at or above that temperature for at least 5 minutes through resting, and the center of the forcemeat must reach 165°F (74°C). If the breast reaches its mark while the forcemeat still lags, do not sacrifice the duck. Ça se rattrape: spoon the forcemeat into a shallow ovenproof dish and return it to the oven until it reaches 165°F (74°C) while the bird rests. If the skin darkens too quickly, shield the breast loosely with foil and leave the legs exposed.

6. 6

   Rest and carve

   Transfer the duckling to a warm platter and rest it for 15 minutes. Spoon the forcemeat into a warmed serving bowl, remove the twine, and carve off the legs before slicing each breast thickly across the grain. Pour away the clear rendered fat from the roasting pan for another use, then spoon the remaining concentrated duck juices lightly over the carved meat. Serve the forcemeat beside each portion, generous rather than decorative. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A true young Rouen duck can require an order from a poultry butcher. If it cannot be found, a young Pekin duck of the same weight is the honest home equivalent: the flavor will be milder, but the roasting and the forcemeat remain sound.
• •The liver inside one duckling will not supply the required eight ounces. Ask the butcher for additional duck livers. Chicken livers can fill the gap in necessity, though their flavor is more assertive and the filling will no longer taste quite so completely of duck.
• •Larding bacon means fatty, unsmoked bacon. Smoked bacon takes command of this delicate liver forcemeat and changes the book's flavoring, so save it for another pot.
• •The quatre-épices is the measured home equivalent of the source's little spice. Keep it little. You should notice warmth behind the liver, not identify cloves from across the table.
• •For anyone at increased risk from undercooked poultry, roast the breast to 165°F (74°C). It will be less rosy than the classical service, but safety governs the table.
• •Pour a dry Norman cider or a light, supple red. The dish is rich enough already, so the glass should refresh rather than compete.

Advance Preparation

• •The forcemeat can be prepared up to one day ahead. Cool it promptly, cover it closely, and refrigerate; let it soften for 15 minutes before filling the duck so it can be spooned without packing.
• •The duckling can be dried, seasoned, and left uncovered in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours, which helps the skin bronze. Bring it out while preparing the forcemeat, but do not stuff it until the oven is hot and you are ready to roast.
• •Rendered duck fat can be strained after roasting and refrigerated for later potatoes. We don't apologize for butter, and we certainly don't discard good duck fat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 320g)