Recipe - Barely Chilehead Duck

1 Whole duck breast (that's
both halves), boned and
skinned

MARINADE
2 Oranges, juice of
One half Onion, choppped
1 Clove garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
4 Whole peppercorns

SAUCE
1 tablespoon Cumin seeds (up to 2)
One half bn Cilantro (about One half c.)
One fourth cup Pumpkin or sunflower seeds
(meat only)
2 Serrano chiles
Salt
One fourth cup Brown sugar
Butter
3 Big Jim, Anaheim, or
poblano/pasilla chiles,
green and red (up to 5)
2 cup Hominy, rinsed
3 Green plantains
2 cup Duck stock (you can make
this from the bones and
skin of the breast)

Well, here's a recipe I came up with. Your request was kind of like a game
my wife and do name three ingredients and the other person has to come
up with something. My wife added plantains to the mix (I don't know why!).
In the process the chiles kind of took on a secondary role. Anyway, the
cilantro sauce is inspired by a cilantro/cumin/habenero sauce from a
restaurant, but here it's milder and sweet to go with the duck. This should
serve about 4 people.

Cut the duck into bitesized slices and mix with the marinade. Let stand
for 3 or 4 hours (at least). Meanwhile, toast the cumin seeds until
fragrant and grind into a powder. Puree the cilantro, pumpkin seeds, cumin
and chiles (seeds and all). Add salt to taste. Roast and peel the chiles.
Deseed and cut into strips. Set aside. Boil the plantains, let them cool,
peel, and slice into rounds about 1/4" thick. Put them in a pot with the
hominy, stock, and salt to taste. Bring to a boil then simmer until tender.
Drain and keep warm. Remove the duck from the marinade (reserve the juice)
and dry. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet at medium/high heat. Sear the
duck in the pan, add the chiles, bring back to heat, then remove, and set
aside (leaving the juices in the pan). Add the sugar to the pan and cook
until it any remaining liquid boils away and the sugar starts to carmelize.
Add the marinade, bring to a boil and then reduce to about One half c. Pour the
hot marinade into the cilantro/cumin mix and process until smooth. It
should be a thick saunce, almost a paste. On a platter make a bed of hominy
and plantains with the duck and chiles mounded in the center. Garnish with
fresh cilantro and dollops of the sauce, serving the rest on the side.
Posted to CHILEHEADS DIGEST V3 #130

Date: Sun, 13 Oct 1996 11:09:05 0700 (PDT)

From: David Cook zebcook@pacbell.net