Maple Butter and Port Roast Duck

• Préparation : 15 minutes
• Cuisson : 150 minutes
• Portions : 6

Ingrédients

• 1 whole Brome Lake duck (2.15 kg or 4¾ lb)
• 2 duck legs
• 5 sprigs thyme
• 250 ml (1 cup) Port wine
• 180 ml (3/4 cup) maple butter
• 500 ml (2 cups) duck stock
• 1 onion, cut into wedges
• 10 ml (2 tsp) cornstarch
• 3 sprigs rosemary (optional)

Préparation

1. Preheat oven to 180 °C (350 °F).

2. Rinse the duck under cold water and pat dry with absorbent paper towel.

3. Stuff the cavity of the duck with the onion wedges, 2 sprigs of thyme and, if desired, 1 sprig of rosemary. Bind the duck with kitchen twine.

4. Place the duck and legs in a roasting pan. Spread the remaining sprigs of thyme and rosemary, if using, around the duck. Add salt and pepper. Stick a cooking thermometer into one of the legs of the whole duck, without touching the bone.

5. In a bowl, whisk the port with the maple butter and duck stock. Add salt and pepper. Pour one-third of the mixture over the duck. Refrigerate the rest of the mixture.
   Cover the roasting pan and bake for 2 hours.

6. Then, spoon the cooking juices over the duck. Continue roasting uncovered for 30 minutes, until the skin becomes crispy and the thermometer reads 82 °C (180 °F).

7. Remove from the oven and place the whole duck and legs in a serving dish. Cover loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil.

8. Remove the cooking fat from the roasting pan. Pour the rest of the port mixture into the roasting pan and bring to a boil, scraping the sides with a wooden spoon to remove the cooking juices. Transfer to a saucepan and heat over medium heat until the liquid has reduced by a third. Dissolve the cornstarch in a little cold water. Pour into the saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer until thickened. Serve with the duck.