Kachka z Yablukamy (качка з яблуками, duck with apples)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large roasting tray with a rack, or a thick bed of apples and onion
• •Small skewer or sharp paring knife
• •Kitchen twine
• •Heatproof jar for rendered duck fat

Instructions

1. 1

   Salt the duck

   The day before, pat the duck dry inside and out, then trim away any loose lumps of fat from the cavity and save them. Prick the skin all over with a skewer or the tip of a small knife, especially around the thighs and breast, keeping the blade shallow so you pierce skin and fat, not meat. Rub the salt and pepper over the bird and inside the cavity, then leave it uncovered in the fridge overnight until the skin feels tight and dry.

   This is the step that gives you lacquered skin. Wet skin steams itself in the oven, and we are not doing all this work for rubber.
2. 2

   Wake it up

   Take the duck out of the fridge about an hour before roasting so it loses its fridge chill. Wipe away any beads of moisture from the skin. Heat the oven to 160C. Put the saved trimmings of duck fat into the roasting tray so they begin the pan juices for you.

3. 3

   Prepare the apples

   Core five of the apples and cut them into quarters, leaving the skins on so they hold themselves together at first. Toss them with the smashed garlic, bay leaves, caraway if using, and a pinch of salt. Slice the remaining two apples into thick rounds or wedges for the tray. Keep them tart. Don't sweeten them into pudding before the duck has even met them.

4. 4

   Stuff it loosely

   Spoon the seasoned apple quarters into the cavity, but don't pack them hard. The duck needs hot air moving through the middle or the breast cooks while the inside sulks. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine if you have it, then set the sliced onion and the remaining apple pieces in the roasting tray and place the duck breast-side up on top. Pour the water or apple juice into the tray.

5. 5

   Roast and render

   Roast gently until the fat begins to run clear and the skin turns from pale to honey-gold. Every thirty-five to forty minutes, tilt the tray and spoon or pour the clear fat into a heatproof jar, leaving the darker pan juices behind with the apples and onion. Listen for a steady ticking in the tray, not angry frying. If the tray dries out, add another splash of water.

6. 6

   Lacquer the skin

   Stir the buckwheat honey with the grated garlic and fermented apple brine, sauerkraut brine, or lemon juice. Brush this thinly over the duck, then raise the oven to 220C and roast until the skin is deep bronze and taut, the apples have collapsed at the edges, and the leg moves easily when you wiggle it. If you use a thermometer, the thickest part of the thigh should read 74C. The kitchen should smell sweet, roasted, and slightly sharp from the apples.

7. 7

   Rest and carve

   Move the duck to a warm platter and let it rest for twenty to thirty minutes. Scoop the soft apples from the cavity into a bowl and discard the bay leaves. Skim excess fat from the tray, then spoon the glossy apple-onion juices over the carved duck. Serve the pan apples beside it, not hidden underneath. They earned their place.

Chef Tips

• •The apple matters more than any spice here. Use sour, firm apples: Renet Symyrenka if you can find them, or Granny Smith, Bramley, or another sharp storage apple. Sweet soft apples collapse too early and make the roast taste flat.
• •Prick the skin at a shallow angle. If you cut into the flesh, the juices escape and the meat dries before the fat has rendered.
• •Save every spoonful of clean duck fat in a jar. Roast potatoes in it the next day, or stir a little through buckwheat kasha with fried onions.
• •The honey glaze is a shine, not a candy coat. If the skin is already dark enough, brush once and stop. If it colours too fast, lay foil loosely over the breast.
• •For the table, I like something sour beside it: pelustka, the beet-pink cabbage ferment whose name means petal, or plain sauerkraut with a little green sunflower oil.

Advance Preparation

• •For the best skin, salt the duck and leave it uncovered in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours before roasting.
• •The apple stuffing is best cut just before roasting so it stays bright and sharp.
• •Rendered duck fat keeps in the fridge for at least a week. Spoon it into a clean jar while still liquid.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 340g)