Chef Mark Dommen of One Market Restaurant – San Francisco, CA
Adapted by StarChefs.com

Yield: 6 Servings

Ingredients:

Duck Jus:
• Duck bones, coarsely chopped into small pieces*
• 2 onions, coarsely chopped
• 2 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, coarsely chopped
• 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 cups red wine
• 2 cups port wine
• 1 ½ quarts chicken stock
• 3 sprigs thyme
• ½ sprig rosemary
• 2 fresh bay leaves
  
  Duck Two Ways:
• 2 Liberty Farms ducks, approximately 6 pounds each*
• 6 cups rendered duck fat
• Sea salt
• Cracked black pepper and freshly ground black pepper
• ½ bunch sage
• 1 bunch thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 12 cloves garlic
• 1 pound caul fat
• 3 medium turnips
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1½ sprigs rosemary
• 2 bunches Swiss chard
• 1 cup duck jus
• 2 ounces fresh huckleberries
  
  *Debone the ducks, removing the breasts and legs from the carcasses, and use the carcasses for the duck jus. You can also or ask your butcher to do this for you.

Method:
For Duck Jus:
Place duck bones in a large heavy-bottom pot set over medium to high heat, and allow them to brown evenly. Continuously stir them in order to brown evenly. When the bones are browned, strain off any excess fat that has rendered out from them and add chopped vegetables to the pan. When the vegetables are browned, add the tomato paste and cook for two more minutes to cook out some of the raw tomato flavor. Deglaze the pot with the red wine and port wine, allowing to reduce until almost dry. Cover with chicken stock, add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Turn down to barely a simmer and cook for 2½ to 3 hours. Strain through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth and skim off any excess fat that may rise to the surface. Once degreased, place liquid back on the stove and reduce over high heat until it coats the back of a sauce spoon. This should yield approximately 1 to 2 cups of duck jus.

For Duck Two Ways:
Preheat your oven to 250°F. Season the duck legs with sea salt and cracked black pepper and let sit for a couple of hours allowing the salt to penetrate the meat. Place the duck legs and rendered duck fat into a saucepot large enough to hold everything along with a half of the thyme, the garlic cloves, the bay leaf and 1 sprig of rosemary. Bring the duck fat and legs to a simmer, cover and place in the oven for approximately 1½ to 2 hours until the duck meat is soft and falling away from the bones. Gently remove the duck legs from the fat, discard the herbs, and allow the legs to cool. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and skin, reserving the meat and throwing away the rest. Place the duck leg meat into a bowl and season with chopped thyme, chopped sage, freshly ground pepper and sea salt to taste. Divide the duck leg meat into six even-sized portions. Spread the caul fat out onto a cutting board and carefully wrap the individual leg portions shaping them into a disk.

Peel the turnips and cut into small pieces about 3/8-inch cubes. In a small pot, melt the butter, and add the chopped turnips. Cook with out giving them any color. Add the cream and rosemary. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and continue to cook the turnips until the cream has reduced and the turnips are soft. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Remove the rosemary from the turnips and transfer the mixture to blender and blend to a fine puree. Adjust the seasoning accordingly and reserve keeping hot.

Wash the Swiss chard and remove the stems. Coarsely chop the chard into manageable pieces. The stems can be pickled and added back to the chard when cooked or you can throw them out. In a large sauté pan, heat a Tablespoon of butter, add the Swiss chard and cook until soft. If necessary, add a few drops of water to the chard while cooking to create a little steam. This will help it wilt and cook faster. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Season the duck breasts with salt and pepper. Place skin side down in a heavy- bottom skillet and cook on top of the stove at a low temperature until you have rendered most of the fat from the skin. (This can take 15 minutes or so.) When the skin looks crispy, turn up the heat and flip over the breast to get a nice sear on the flesh side. Cook until medium rare, remove from the pan and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes in a warm place.

Meanwhile, in another heavy-bottom skillet set over medium to high heat, place 2 Tablespoons of duck fat from the confit and sear the duck confit disks until they are golden brown.

In a small sauce pot, bring the duck jus to a boil, turn the flame down to low and add the huckleberries. Check the seasoning one more time.

To Serve:
Divide the turnip puree evenly among six plates. Place the sautéed chard on top of the turnip puree, put a duck confit disk on top of the turnip puree. Slice the duck breasts and divide among the six plates laying it on top of the duck leg disk. Finish by spooning the huckleberry sauce around.

Wine Pairing:
A rich and fruity red such as a Zinfandel or even a Cru Beaujolais from Morgon or Moulin-à-Vent