This duck breast recipe was a riff on a recipe I found in one of the cookbooks I was gifted last year—Patricia Wells’ The Provence Cookbook. She makes a “roast” of duck breasts tied together with green olives making a stuffing. Too much work for a simple dinner for 2 people:
Duck Breast with Green Olives and Potatoes
- 1 large duck breast
- ½ cup green olives, pitted and halved
- Salt and pepper
- 4 small potatoes, like Yukon Gold, quartered lengthwise
Preheat the oven to 450°F or 230°C.
Score the skin of the duck breast, cutting just through the fat. Salt and pepper. Place skin side down in an oven-proof pan on medium heat. Cook for about 5-8 minutes, until the skin is nice and brown. Remove from the heat.
While the duck is cooking, toss the potatoes in the microwave for 4 minutes to steam them.
Remove the duck breast from the pan and add the potatoes. Toss to coat with the duck fat. Add the olives and nestle the duck breast in the pan between the olives and potatoes. Cover.
Roast the duck and potatoes for about 25-30 minutes, 25 minutes for rare, 30 minutes for medium. If the potatoes need more time, put them back in the oven while the duck breast rests.
Slice the duck breast, serve with the potatoes and olives, and enjoy!
My verdict:
This looks like a fancy dinner, but it’s super easy and good. It could probably be all done in the pan on top of the stove, but it’s more hands-off in the oven. The type of olives you use will add to the flavor and saltiness of the duck, I had some of my favorites from the marché, which are pretty mild. Black ones would work too, or a mixture.
You could easily add more potatoes—they’re so good cooked in the duck fat. I wanted mine nice tender, that’s why I pre-cooked them in the microwave, but it’s probably not necessary.
If you have it, a sprig of thyme could go in before you popped everything in the oven.
