 | Duck TartChef Deb Paquette of ETCH Restaurant | Nashville, TN |
Duck confit is paying homage to history. It is timeless and deserves to be honored with sauces that create an unforgettable memory. Eating puff pastry stuffed with unctuous fat-cooked duck, caramelized onion, and fig jam is wonderful. But it is more incredible when complemented with a passion fruit sauce that provides buttery tartness, smoked caramelized pineapple for umami, and yuzu chile butter with its floral citrus notes that encourage the chiles to keep the sweetness of the dish balanced. The browning of sesame seeds with dried orange peel is just another prize to elevate this dish
Ingredients for CVAP Duck Confit:
• 4 large duck legs
• 4 tbsp. kosher salt
• 1½ tbsp. cracked black pepper
• ½ tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1½ tbsp. crushed coriander seed
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp. chopped fennel seed
• 1 tbsp. The Perfect Purée Orange Zest, thawed
• 1 cup duck fat
Ingredients for Duck Gravy:
Part 1: Make the stock:
• 5–6 oz. duck bones and juices (some fat needed)
• 3 cups water
• 2 tsp. toasted coriander seed
• ½ cinnamon stick
• ¼ tsp. ground cardamom
• pinch ground clove
Part 2: Add to the pot:
• ¼ tsp. ground cardamom
• ¼ tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. methi
• ¼ cup dark caramelized onion
• 4 rinsed cured black olives
Passion Fruit Sauce:
• 3 oz. The Perfect Purée Passion Fruit Concentrate, thawed
• 4 oz. cooked carrots
• 3 oz. cooked sweet potato
• ½ cup Jumex mango nectar
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. white balsamic vinegar
• ⅓ cup cream
• 1½ oz. butter
Ingredients for Smoked Pineapple Sauce:
• 1 cup The Perfect Purée Carmelized Pineapple Concentrate, thawed
• 1 cup mango nectar
• 20 threads saffron
• 1 tbsp. tahini
• 1 tsp. brown sugar
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• pinch salt
Ingredients for Yuzu Chile Butter:
Part 1: Syrup:
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 oz. lemongrass, ½-inch pieces
• 1½ tbsp. coriander seed
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 0.3 oz. star anise
• 2 oz. peeled ginger
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 4 oz. The Perfect Purée Yuzu Luxe Sour blend, thawed
• 2-inch x ¼-inch thick beet slice or 3 tbsp. beet juice
• 10 dried cranberries
• 1-inch Calabrian pepper (no seeds)
• 1-inch guajillo pepper (no seeds)
Part 2: The butter:
• 7 oz. unsalted butter, softened
• ¾ cup room temperature syrup
• smashed paste from Part 1
• ½ tsp. salt
• 4 oz. The Perfect Purée Yuzu Luxe Sour blend, thawed
Ingredients for Sesame Crunchies:
Part 1:
• 2 oz. The Perfect Purée Orange Zest, thawed
Part 2:
• 1 oz. black sesame seeds
• 1 oz. white sesame seeds
• 1¾ oz. light brown sugar
• 1¾ oz. all-purpose flour
• 1¾ oz. cold butter, cubed
Part 3:
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup water
• ⅓ cup fennel seeds
Fig Jam:
• 10 oz. dried figs, stems removed
• 2–3 oz. DomPX liqueur (Pedro Ximénez)
• ⅓ cup water
• 1½ tsp. Aleppo pepper
• 1 tbsp. pumpkin seed oil
To Assemble and Serve:
Puff pastry
Herbs, petite salad greens, microgreens, or edible flowers
Method for CVAP Duck Confit:
Combine all ingredients except the duck fat and toss the duck legs in the spice mix until coated. Place in a container, cover, and refrigerate for 12 hours. After curing, rinse legs in cool water twice and strain for 10 minutes. Pat dry and bring to 40°F. Place legs in a large vacuum bag, add ½ cup duck fat, and seal. Set CVAP to 71°C, 0 browning, for 16 hours. Chill in an ice bath and refrigerate. Remove skin, pull the meat, and reserve bones and juices for the stock. Alternatively, cook covered in duck fat at 250°F for 3 hours. Cut meat into 1- to 1½-inch pieces (2–2½ ounces per tart) and refrigerate.
Method for Duck Gravy:
Simmer the stock ingredients on low for 30–40 minutes until reduced to 2 cups, adding water if too salty. Strain into a small pot, keeping 2 tablespoons of fat. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons slurry, simmer one minute, strain, and chill. Reheat gently for service.
Method for Passion Fruit Sauce:
Combine all ingredients in a small pot and warm through. Blend on high until smooth and chill until service.
Method for Smoked Pineapple Sauce:
Medium smoke the Carmelized Pineapple concentrate, then place all ingredients in a small pot and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Blend until smooth.
Method for Yuzu Chile Butter:
Simmer syrup ingredients until reduced to ¾ cup. Strain and cool. Remove solids and smash into a paste. Blend the paste, syrup, butter, salt, and yuzu purée until smooth. Refrigerate.
Method for Sesame Crunchies:
Dry The Perfect Purée Orange Zest on parchment at 200°F for 30–40 minutes or dehydrate. Mince when dry. In a mixer with paddle attachment, combine sesame seeds, brown sugar, flour, and butter until pea-sized crumbs form. Spread evenly on a parchment-lined sheet pan and bake at 300°F on low fan for 30 minutes, stirring halfway. Cool. In a saucepan, bring sugar and water to a boil and reduce to a thick syrup. Add fennel seeds and cook 1–2 minutes. Pour onto a greased sheet pan to cool, then pulse into dust. Combine 1 cup sesame mix, 1 tablespoon dried orange peel, and 2 teaspoons fennel seed dust.
Method for Fig Jam:
Soak figs in DomPX for 2 hours. Simmer figs, water, sugar, and salt for 5 minutes. Blend into a paste, cool, and stir in Aleppo pepper and pumpkin seed oil.
To Assemble and Serve:
Warm duck gravy and hold in a hot water bath. Remove the butter and pineapple sauce from the fridge. Place the passion fruit sauce in a squeeze bottle. On a 12-inch off-white plate, place 9 dots of passion fruit sauce around one side, each slightly larger than a dime. Pull through each dot with a knife to create tails. On the opposite side, make a 5-inch paisley smear of pineapple sauce. In the center, spoon a 4-inch circle of duck gravy and place the tart in the middle. Remove the puff pastry knot, add 2 balls of yuzu chile butter on top, and replace the knot so the butter melts into the tart. Garnish with herbs, greens, and edible flowers. Finish with a sprinkle of sesame crunchies over the tart and plate.