- Ingredients:
- 4 ducks
- 4 onions, halved
- 2 lemons, cut in quarters
- 4 large bay leaves
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- watercress for garnish
- Method:
- Rinse duck inside and out, pat dry. Salt and pepper the cavity. Insert halved onion, 2 lemon quarters and a bay leaf into the cavity and truss it closed. In a pre-heated oven, roast the duck at 350 degrees for 1 and 1/2 hours, pricking the skin once or twice during the cooking time to allow the fat to run out. The duck is done when the juices run clear from the thigh when pierced.
- To serve: halve the duck, take the breast, back and thigh bone out. Arrange a half duck on each plate and reheat if necessary. Serve with loquat sauce and garnish with watercress.
- For the loquat sauce:
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 2 tbs cider vinegar
- 3 cups good poultry broth (use tinned broth fortified by boiling with duck wings and neck, parsley, celery, bay leaf and peppercorns for 20 minutes. Kept hot for use.)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 tbs cornstarch diluted in 2 tbs cold water
- 1 tin loquats (Roland brand) with juice or 20 fresh, halved, peeled, seeded
- 1/4 cup Bermuda Gold liqueur
Make a blond caramel by boiling the sugar in 4 tablespoons of water until it melts and goes golden. Quickly add the vinegar, and the strained hot stock. Add the cinnamon stick and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the juice from the can (if using fresh, slightly decrease the vinegar), Bermuda Gold liqueur and bring to a boil. Thicken by adding the cornstarch (more if necessary). If the liquid is not boiling, the cornstarch will not work its magic. Add the loquats, remove the cinnamon stick, keep warm or serve immediately. May be made ahead and re-heated.
