Duck legs are not as popular as chicken.
They are smaller, tighter and fatty.
But of them you can cook a lot of wonderful dishes.
Duck meat is dark, rich and fragrant, it is wonderfully combined with vegetables and fruits.
And if you follow all the rules, the dishes will surely delight you with excellent tastes.
Duck legs - general cooking principles
The skin of the legs before preparation should be cleaned if there are feathers and pads on it. Then the legs are washed and wiped dry. Usually there’s a lot of fat on a duck, whether to remove it or not is a personal matter. If you like more lean dishes, it is better to cut. Since the legs of the duck are small, they are usually not cut and used entirely.
To make the meat juicier, it marinates. For this you can use spices, sauces, sour cream, mayonnaise. Withstand the legs can be from several hours to two days. It all depends on the age of the bird and the availability of free time. If not, then you can simply rub the pieces with spices and immediately cook. Usually the duck is baked or stewed. Onions, garlic, carrots and other vegetables are added to the dish. Not to mention the classic combination of duck with apples, which is given a special place in the world of cooking.
Recipe 1: Stewed duck legs
For cooking braised duck legs do not need a drop of oil. On the legs of a sufficient amount of fat, which must be pre-cut and melted. The dish is obtained immediately with a sauce based on tomato paste.
Ingredients
• 5 legs;
• 2 bulbs;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 1 carrot;
• 3 tablespoons of pasta;
• 1 bay leaf;
• pepper, salt.
Cooking
1. Cut the fat from the duck and send it to the cauldron for draining. Greaves remove.
2. Cut the peeled carrots into rings, thick onions and throw them into the cauldron. Fry the vegetables for 2 minutes. 3. Shred the chicken legs, dry them and put them on top of the vegetables.
4. Add 300 grams of boiling water. You can use any broth.
5. Cover and simmer for an hour. If the duck is not young, then extend another 20 minutes.
6. Add tomato paste, salt, sprinkle some pepper and put a pinch of nutmeg.
7. Mix and simmer for another 20 minutes, at the end add chopped garlic and bay leaf, herbs as desired.
Recipe 2: Duck chicken in the oven with apples
A duck with apples is a common expression that many have heard. But not everyone tried this wonderful dish. Prepare duck legs with apples? And for satiety add a little potato.
Ingredients
• 2 chicken legs;
• 2 apples;
• 2 bulbs;
• 3-4 potatoes;
• 2 tablespoons sour cream;
• salt, pepper, nutmeg.
Cooking
1. Cut the onion into rings, lay it out evenly in foil.
2. We wash the duck, if there is a lot of fat on the legs, then a part can be cut off. Sprinkle chicken legs with salt, pepper and place in foil on the onion.
3. Peel the potatoes. If the tubers are young, then you can use with the peel, just wash well. Cut into slices.
4. Cut the apples in the same way as potatoes. Mix in a bowl.
5. Add salt, pepper and sour cream, mix and lay out to the duck. If desired, it can also be smeared with sour cream.
6. Seal products in foil, carefully twist the edges and send the dish to be baked for 1 hour and 20 minutes. We set the average temperature of 175-185 degrees.
Recipe 3: Duck legs in sour cream with garlic
Another version of duck legs with sauce. The dish is rich and very tender. Sour cream can be used any, but better not very fat. Duck is better to marinate in advance for the night or day.
Ingredients
• 4 duck legs:
• 1 tsp. spices for meat;
• 50 grams of soy sauce;
• salt;
• 3-4 tablespoons of flour;
• 300 grams of sour cream;
• 5 cloves of garlic.
Cooking
1. Prepare the duck: remove excess fat, wash it, dry it with a napkin. 2. Mix the soy sauce with the spices and rub the legs. You can use seasoning for chicken, meat, kebabs. If there is little salt in it, then add to taste more.
3. Rub the legs with fragrant mass, put in a container or just in a plastic bag and remove for 12 hours.
4. We get marinated legs, roll in flour and fry in hot oil. You can use melted fat from the legs. Fry for 2 minutes on each side, making fire big.
5. Sour cream mixed with chopped garlic, salt, pour into the pan with duck and simmer for 40 minutes with low heat. If necessary, the sauce can be made thinner and diluted with a small amount of boiling water.
Recipe 4: Duck legs in the oven in the sleeve
Recipe for juicy duck legs, which are prepared in the sleeve for baking. The legs are pre-soaked in marinade, which improves their taste.
Ingredients
• 6 duck legs;
• 0.5 lemon;
• 80 grams of mayonnaise;
• 1 spoon of honey;
• spices.
For soaking:
• 3 bay leaves;
• 10 peppercorns;
• 3 tablespoons of vinegar;
• 1.5 tablespoons of salt.
Cooking
1. Pour 2.5 liters of cold water into the pan. Put salt, bay leaves, black pepper, vinegar and mix well.
2. Put the chicken in the water, cover and leave for a day. The pot must be kept in the cold.
3. We get legs, wipe with a towel.
4. Mix mayonnaise with honey, lemon juice, you can add any spices. We rub the legs.
5. We put the duck in the sleeve, top lubricates the remnants of mayonnaise sauce. Optionally put in the package potatoes, apples or any other vegetables.
6. Close the sleeve on both sides, make a puncture with a needle and send it to the oven.
7. Hold 60 minutes at 180 degrees. Then the sleeve is cut, we pour the legs with fat and juices that have come out of them and fry until golden brown. The temperature in the oven at this stage can be added.
Recipe 5: Duck legs with potatoes in a slow cooker
The happy owners of the multicooker can not bother themselves with the stove, because they have a great helper who will take care of themselves. Another recipe for braised duck legs with potatoes. If you add more liquid, you get the first dish.
Ingredients
• 2 chicken legs;
• 600 grams of potatoes;
• 1 bulb onion;
• 1 carrot;
• spices;
• 100 grams of butter or grease from duck.
Cooking
1. We cut peeled onions with thick half rings, carrots in strips and together with the oil are sent to the slow cooker. If fat is used, cut it into pieces.
2. Fry the vegetables for 10 minutes.
3. Wash the chicken legs, dry them, put them to the vegetables and cook together for another 10 minutes.
4. We clean the potatoes, cut into pieces, send in a multicooker container.
5. Add salt, pepper, pour boiled water to the level of products.
6. Close and simmer for 2 hours.
7. Open and get delicate stewed duck with potatoes. Arrange the plates, decorate with greens and serve.
Recipe 6: Duck legs in the oven “Ruddy”
A very simple recipe for duck legs, which are very rosy and fried. It is advisable to use legs with intact skin.
Ingredients
• 5 legs;
• seasoning for chicken;
• 1 spoon of honey;
• 1 spoon of mustard;
• salt.
Cooking
1. Grind chicken legs with a mixture of seasoning for chicken (or any meat) and salt. Leave for 2 hours.
2. Fold the legs into a baking dish, cover the top with a piece of foil and send to the oven for an hour. To grease the pallet does not need anything, the duck will release enough fat. The temperature set at 170 ° C.
3. After an hour, remove the foil, pour the juice over the legs and scoop 2 spoons into the bowl. We add temperature to 220 degrees.
4. Add honey and mustard to the hot duck juice, mix.
5. Lubricate the resulting sauce duck (it is convenient to do with a brush, you can silicone) and fry until golden brown. Thanks to honey, it will appear in 15 minutes, it will turn out very bright and crispy, and mustard will please with a spicy taste.
Recipe 7: Duck legs with sauerkraut
Another recipe for cooking duck in the oven with preliminary marinating chicken legs. If the cabbage is too sour, then it is soaked in cold water for half an hour, then squeezed.
Ingredients
• 4 chicken legs;
• 700 grams of cabbage;
• 3 bulbs;
• spices;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 4 tablespoons sour cream.
Cooking
1. Mix sour cream with garlic, which is to be chopped or just grind in a mortar. Add spices, salt.
2. Knuckles should be well washed, dried and rub with sour cream sauce. We clean in a container and leave for a day in the refrigerator.
3. Cut the onion half rings, fry in a pan with butter or duck fat to a ruddy state.
4. Add to the onions cabbage and fry together for 5 minutes.
5. Now take a baking dish or sleeve or just a foil and lay out a layer of cabbage with onions.
6. We take out the marinated chicken legs, grind the drizzled spices with sour cream from the container and spread over the cabbage.
7. Now close the form with foil or tie up the sleeve (do not forget about the hole above).
8. Remove the duck and cabbage for an hour in the oven. We get and serve on the table!
Recipe 8: Duck legs with orange sauce
The recipe for a very fragrant duck leg with citrus notes. He must try!
Ingredients
• 4 chicken legs;
• 2 bulbs;
• 2 carrots;
• 3-4 oranges;
• 50 grams of raisins;
• 1 tsp. pepper mixes;
• salt;
• 1 head of garlic;
• 0.5 lemon;
• 2 spoons of soy sauce.
Cooking
1. Peel the orange and place the pulp in a blender. Add to it a mixture of peppers, soy sauce, salt and peeled garlic. There we squeeze the juice from half a lemon. Whip the sauce.
2. Soak the raisins with warm water for half an hour. Instead, you can use dried apricots or prunes.
3. Pour a little oil in a skillet or put the fat, lightly fry the legs on both sides. Do not salt. 4. Cut the carrot into slices, onion with rings and send to the duck. Fry together until onion is transparent.
5. Put the oranges sauce in a saucepan, add the swollen and squeezed raisins. Pour 100 grams of water. Stir.
6. We cover, make the minimum fire and simmer for exactly an hour. You can put on top of orange peel or grated zest.
7. Turn off the fire and ready!
Duck legs - useful tips and tricks
• In a duck it is a lot of fat, and not only external, but also internal. It should not be thrown away, it is possible to melt it and pour it into a jar, and if there is no time, then just freeze. On this fat, you can fry vegetables, make dressings for soups, or simply add to mincemeat instead of lard.
• Did not get a ruddy crust? Grease still hot duck with butter or honey and send to bake in the oven at maximum temperature. After 15 minutes, it will please a beautiful crust and bright color.
• Do not know how much to cook the duck? For every kilogram of a whole carcass, it is recommended to give at least 45-50 minutes. Duck slices are cooked about the same, as they mostly use the thickest areas.
• Soaking is a great way to saturate a bird with moisture. For it, you can use just salted water with spices, but only cold. Warm liquid will spoil the taste of meat.
