The Times Magazine - UK (2021-11-20)

52 The Times Magazine

ROAST DUCK WITH HONEY, ORANGE,

LEMON AND PORT

Serves 4-6 (page 50)

Roast duck is my family’s Christmas favourite.

• 1 x 2kg duck


• 1 orange, cut into 2cm pieces


• 1 lemon, cut into 2cm pieces


• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme


• Oil


• Honey, to glaze


• Savoy cabbage and chestnuts, to serve

For the sauce

• Giblets from the duck


• 1 leek, roughly chopped


• 2 carrots, halved


• 1 onion, quartered


• 2 sticks of celery, chopped


• Handful of parsley


• Oil, for drizzling


• 2 shallots, finely chopped


• 50g butter


• 75ml port


• 25g honey

1. Start with the stock for the sauce. Preheat
   the oven to 160C (180C non-fan). Place the
   duck giblets in a roasting tray with the
   chopped leek, carrot, onion, celery and
   parsley stalks. Drizzle with oil and cook for
   30 minutes. Remove and place the giblets and
   vegetables in a large saucepan with 1 litre
   water. Simmer until reduced by half.


2. Fill the duck cavity with the orange, lemon
   and thyme. Place the duck on a cooling rack
   set in a roasting tin. Rub some oil on the
   inside of a large sheet of tin foil and cover
   the duck and tin, sealing tightly. Place in
   the preheated oven and cook for 45 minutes.
   Remove the tin foil and pour off all the
   excess juice and keep to one side.


3. Run a serrated knife all over the duck
   to release the fat deposits that are on the

surface. Dab the duck with some kitchen roll

so the surface is drier, then, using a pastry

brush, brush on the honey on all sides. Place

back in the oven uncovered and cook for a

further hour.

4. While the duck is cooking, finish the sauce.
   Skim off the fat from the duck juices. In a
   large saucepan, cook the shallots gently in the
   butter for 5 minutes, then add the port and
   reduce by half. Add the honey, skimmed duck
   juices and giblet stock. Cook on a medium
   heat until the liquid has reduced to about
   150ml. Skim off any excess fat and keep warm.


5. Remove the duck from the oven. Carve off
   the legs and breasts, cut into 2cm pieces and
   place on a serving dish. Pour over half the
   sauce and serve the rest on the side. Serve
   with Savoy cabbage and chestnuts.

SGROPPINO AL LIMONE

Serves 1 (page 51)

This is halfway between a cocktail and pudding.

• 25ml limoncello or vodka


• 1 scoop lemon sorbet


• 125ml prosecco


• Mint leaves and pared lemon zest,
  to garnish

Add the limoncello or vodka to a coupe. Add

a scoop of sorbet and top with the prosecco.

Garnish with a sprig of mint and pared lemon

zest and serve immediately.

PORCHETTA WITH FENNEL AND CHILLI

Serves 8 (see opposite)

The secret to a good porchetta is sourcing

the best quality pork belly. Look for one that

has firm fat and dry skin as this will make it

much easier to score and will produce a better

crackling. If you want to get ahead, make the

porchetta the day before and just finish it off

in a hot oven to make the crackling crispy.

• 4kg boneless pork belly


• 4 tbsp sea salt


• 2 tbsp crushed fennel seeds


• 1 dried red chilli, deseeded and crushed


• 4 stems of rosemary, washed


• 2 carrots, roughly chopped


• 2 sticks of celery


• 2 onions, quartered


• 1 fennel bulb, quartered


• 4 bay leaves, washed


• Olive oil


• Roasted squash and cavolo nero, to serve

1. Rub the pork belly with some kitchen towel
   so the skin is really dry. Using a Stanley knife
   with 1cm of the blade sticking out, score the

skin at 2cm intervals. The blade should go all

the way in and cut the fat as well as the skin.

2. In a bowl, mix the sea salt, crushed fennel
   seeds and chilli, then start rubbing into each
   score mark on the pork belly. This takes about
   5 minutes – it is important that the salt
   mixture gets into the fat. Turn the pork belly
   over and rub any leftover salt into the meat.
   Place the rosemary in the middle and bring
   the two long sides together to form a long roll
   and tie with string, knotted 2cm apart. This
   might take a bit of time, but the end result will
   look really impressive.


3. Place the carrots, celery, onions, fennel and
   bay leaves in a large roasting tray and set a
   cooling rack on top of them. Put the pork,
   seam-side down, on the rack. Add 500ml water
   and cover with tin foil that has been rubbed
   with olive oil on the side that is touching the
   pork skin. This will stop it from sticking, so
   when you remove the foil the skin will not
   come off. Make sure the tin foil is tight and
   secured on the edges of the pan because you
   are essentially steaming the pork belly.


4. Cook in a preheated oven at 140C (160C
   non-fan) for 3 hours. After 3 hours, remove
   the foil and cook for a further 50 minutes.


5. Finally, move the pork to the bottom shelf
   and turn the grill to high. Cook until the
   crackling starts to pop and go crispy, turning
   the pork over so it cooks evenly. Remove from
   the oven and leave to cool down in the pan for
   20 minutes, then transfer to a chopping board,
   but do not cover.


6. Tip the excess fat from the roasting tin,
   then add 250ml boiling water to the tin.
   Mix so all the bits around the tin are picked
   up, then pour the contents into a small
   saucepan and bring to a simmer. Reduce by
   half, then pass the juice through a fine sieve.
   Skim off any excess fat before serving with
   the porchetta, and perhaps roasted squash
   and cavolo nero.

FISH STEW

Serves 6 (page 54)

This is a real feast and is perfect for Christmas

Eve dinner, served in a large earthenware dish

in the middle of the table. You can use any

firm-flesh fish or substitute the lobster with

prawns. Use the best stock you can buy.

• 20g dried porcini mushrooms


• 500g sea bass fillets


• 200g monkfish fillets


• 200g John Dory fillets


• 1 cooked lobster, about 500g (optional)


• 300g fresh clams


• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil


• 1 small onion, finely chopped


• 1 stick of celery, finely chopped


• 2 small carrots, finely chopped

s a nation that takes its food seriously,

the Italians like to put eating and

drinking at the centre of Christmas

celebrations, and they are in it for the

long haul. Why limit yourself to one

or two days when you can start on

December 8, with the Feast Day of

the Immaculate Conception, and barely draw

breath before Epiphany on January 6? Here,

Italophile chef Theo Randall lays on some

of the dishes that would do an Italian family

proud, from a luxurious fish stew traditionally

eaten on Christmas Eve, through a centrepiece

of roast porchetta with chilli and fennel, to

bread and butter pudding made with what else

but panettone. So loosen your belt and let the

feasting begin. Tony Turnbull, food editor

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