Duck Wraps
Things in wraps are always a good idea, but for a midweek quick easy dinner, most people's go-to wrap of choice - fajitas - aren't as healthy as I'd like. Or certainly not the way I like them anyway, loaded up with plenty of guac, cheese and sour cream. So, when Rich came in requesting them I wanted to think of a healthier alternative, and came up with these.
I'd got some duck breast fillets from Aldi which were a massive bargain, and I marinated these in garlic and chilli for a while whilst I got on with the rest of the bits and pieces.
First I got busy with my mandolin, finely slicing up some red onion and then leaving it soaking in some red wine vinegar to make it less strong and give it more of a pickled flavour. A mandolin is ideal for this, but if you don't have one then very fine slices will do the job too.
Next, I put a white cabbage through the mandolin to give the wraps a bit of veggie bulk and some crunch, then I got my duck started. Use a cold pan and place the duck skin side down - the cold pan helps crisp it all up. You don't need any oil as there is so much fat to render down. Cook over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the skin is golden and crispy. At the last minute, I added a tablespoon of pomegranate molasses, which gives the duck an amazing sweetly sour tang perfect for these. Then transfer the duck to the oven to cook the meat through to your liking. I'd normally have mine blushing pink, but annoyingly I needed to cook these through properly, which took around 15 minutes on 180C.
- Remember save the liquid duck fat from the pan and pop it in the fridge ready for next time you're doing roast potatoes.
I roasted a pepper at the same time at the top of the oven so it was blackened and collapsing. I know most people take the skin off after roasting, but I like the flavour so leave it on. After the duck was cooked and rested, I sliced it up into chunks ready for the wraps and mixed in the peppers.
For the dressing, I whizzed up about half a big pot of natural yoghurt with loads of fresh mint and dill, then served it all up in individual bowls just like fajita night. The breads I used were the lovely lavash kind you only find in the Middle Eastern aisle of my Tesco. They're thinner, lighter and flakier than most wheat wraps but really anything goes.
There were no complaints...
