Duck meat has healthy protein, considerable fat (with the skin, of course!), and other vitamins & minerals. If you are not interested in all nutritional info, you would still love the meat, because its sumptuous and flavorsome. The best part is you can cook the meat rather easily, once you know the basics. There are hundreds of websites where you can find the best duck breast recipes, but in this post, we are sharing a simple one – Duck breast with potatoes and bacon.

Cooking the duck breast

• Let’s start by saying that the quality of meat you use does impact the recipe, so always get your duck breasts from a known store. That said, the next step is to prepare the breasts. If the duck has good amount of fat (typically for wild ducks), you will have to score the skin with a knife, once you have dried the extra juices with tissues. Don’t cut the skin though!

• Next up, season the duck breasts, with some salt, pepper. Many people do use herbs, but that’s a personal choice. This recipe is rather basic. Keep the breasts in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Before you start cooking, make sure that the meat is at room temperature (take out 30 minutes before cooking).

• Now, place the duck breasts on the pan with the skin side down and turn on the gas. Keep the flame at lowest, because this will ensure that all the good fat from the skin is rendered. This can take around 10 minutes, but if you want, you can choose to collect the fat in a bowl for later use.

• Once the skin side is crisp, golden, flip the duck breasts and cook the other side this time. We are not recommending an oven here, because we want the meat to cook in its own juices. Keep the flame medium to high, depending on the breast size.

• The duck breasts when ready must be allowed to cool before serving and cutting into slices.

Cooking the potatoes and bacon

Take some of the duck fat in the same pan and add your bacon first. Make sure that the bacon is ready and removed from the pan, before you add the potatoes. Cook the bacon and potatoes and season with some salt and pepper.

This recipe can be made on a warm winter evening or for a Sunday brunch. Note that the duck breasts must be sliced thick enough to feel the skin and juices.