Bitter green salad with duck, pear and walnuts

ingredients

• Duck confit

  • 6 duck legs, skin on
  • 3 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
  • 2 tablespoon finely chopped juniper berries
  • 2 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 3 bay leaves (fresh or dried), torn
  • 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
  • 3 tablespoon flaky sea salt
  • canola oil, for frying

• Pear and fennel purée

  • 2 tablespoon canola oil
  • 2 cup thinly sliced fennel bulb
  • 2 cup diced pear
  • 2 tablespoon walnut oil (or similar)
  • flaky sea salt

• Salad

  • 3 cup wild rocket
  • 2 witloof, halved and thinly sliced
  • 1 small radicchio, leaves torn
  • 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
  • 1/2 cup inner celery leaves (pale yellow only)
  • 2 pears, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon apple syrup*
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon walnut oil
  • flaky sea salt

method

• Duck confit

  • 1

    Prepare the duck in advance as it needs to marinate for two days. Trim off any excess fat from the legs then place legs in a bowl.

  • 2

    Rub in the thyme, juniper berries and garlic, scatter with torn bayleaves and season with pepper and salt. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for a couple of days in the fridge.

  • 3

    When duck legs have marinated, preheat oven to 150°C.

  • 4

    Brush off excess marinade and place legs to fit snugly in an ovenproof dish. Melt duck fat and pour over legs then cover dish with tinfoil.

  • 5

    Cook in the oven for 2 hours, then check to see if the flesh is tender and pulls away easily from the bone. If it is not ready, continue cooking, checking every 15 minutes.

  • 6

    Once cooked, remove from the oven and let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate the entire dish until required.

  • 7

    Remove legs from fat. (Store fat airtight in the refrigerator and reuse for other recipes.) Place a large skillet on a medium heat and add a splash of canola oil.

  • 8

    Place legs in skillet, skin side down. Cook for 5-7 minutes until golden brown and crispy, then flip and heat through on the reverse side. Remove from pan and rest.

• Pear and fennel purée

  • 1

    Meanwhile, prepare the purée. Place a small pan on a low heat, add the canola oil, fennel and pear and stir to mix together.

  • 2

    Cover with a lid and cook slowly for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until soft but not coloured. Transfer to a blender and blitz until smooth.

  • 3

    With the motor running, drizzle in the walnut oil and blend until incorporated. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Refrigerate until required.

• Salad

  • 1

    Place rocket, witloof, radicchio, parsley, celery leaves, pear and toasted walnuts in a mixing bowl, then dress with apple syrup and walnut oil.

  • 2

    Season lightly with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Pull the crispy duck meat off the bones and mix through the bitter salad.

  • 3

    Spoon some pear and fennel purée into each serving dish and top with bitter salad, making sure each helping includes a mixture of all the ingredients.

notes

*Check label if eating gluten free.