Crispy caramel duck with pomegranate red cabbage and ciabatta gnocchi

Ingredients

Directions

1. 1

   For the filling, peel and chop 2 onions. Wash the thyme, shake dry. Wash 4 apples, cut into quarters, remove seeds and chop. Mix with onions and half of the thyme.

2. 2

   Preheat oven (electric cooker: 175 °C/circulating air: 150 °C/gas: see manufacturer). Remove any offal, neck and duck fluff (fat) from the ducks and set aside. Wash ducks thoroughly. Season inside and outside with salt and pepper.

3. 3

   Spread the filling into the ducks. Plug the openings, tie the legs together. Place on a fat pan. Roast in the hot oven for a total of approx. 3 1⁄4 hours, piercing the skin of the leg from time to time to allow fat to escape.

4. 4

   After about 1 hour, add 400 ml of water.

5. 5

   Meanwhile caramelise 150 g sugar. Deglaze with 75 ml vinegar and stock. Bring to the boil, simmer over medium heat for 18-20 minutes. Peel or wash 3 onions and 3 apples. Cut onions into slices.

6. 6

   After approx. 2 hours frying time put both on the fat pan. Brush the ducks with the caramel stock. Continue cooking at the same temperature, brushing the ducks with the caramel stock every 20 minutes until it is used up.

7. 7

   For the sauce, peel and chop 1 onion. Clean or peel, wash and chop the soup vegetables. Drain approx. 30 g duck flakes over a low heat (set aside 2 tbsp. for the red cabbage).

8. 8

   Rinse neck and innards with cold water, dab dry. Fry well in duck fat. Add the soup vegetables, onion and the rest of the thyme and fry briefly. Season with salt and pepper. Deglaze with 1 l water, bring to the boil, boil down to half.

9. 9

   Then pour through a sieve into a pot.

10. 10

    For the red cabbage, clean and wash the cabbage, cut into quarters lengthwise and remove the stalk. Cut into strips. Peel and chop 1 onion. Halve 1 pomegranate and squeeze it on a citrus juicer. Add water to 1⁄4 l liquid.

11. 11

    Heat 2 tablespoons of duck fat set aside. Sauté the onion in it. Add cabbage and 2 tablespoons of sugar and steam for about 15 minutes. 75 ml vinegar. Add pomegranate juice, laurel, juniper and 1⁄2 tsp. salt. Bring to the boil, cover and stew for about 1 1⁄4 hours.

12. 12

    For the gnocchi, dice the ciabatta finely. Warm the milk and pour it over the gnocchi. Peel 1 onion, dice finely. Wash parsley, shake dry, chop. Heat butter. Steam onion and ham. Add to the bread mixture with parsley.

13. 13

    Cover and leave to stand for approx. 15 minutes. Knead in eggs, 1⁄2 tsp. salt and cheese. Form approx. 20 dumplings, press flat, press in slightly with the back of a fork.

14. 14

    About 30 minutes before the end of the duck cooking time, boil plenty of salted water. Cook the gnocchi in it at low heat for about 20 minutes. Cut 1 pomegranate in half. Remove the seeds and mix into the cabbage. Season to taste with salt, pepper and sugar.

15. 15

    Remove ducks, apples and onions from the tray and keep warm. Pour gravy through a sieve to the sauce. Skim off fat. Boil up the sauce. Mix starch with 4 tbsp. water until smooth, stir into the boiling sauce. Simmer for about 2 minutes.

16. 16

    Season to taste with salt and pepper. Arrange ducks with apples, onion wedges, gnocchi and red cabbage.