Duck hunting

My friend Laura sacredly honors the rules of the road. And contrary to the slander of male motorists, he never fixes his makeup, does not read magazines, does not drink coffee and does not respond to cell phone calls. That is why, when she heard the squeak of her communicator, she asked the passenger, that is, me, to read the SMS. The text of the message confused and puzzled me. Laura – so refined and refined – was always surrounded exclusively by gentlemen, gentlemen and knights, and the author of this SMS, apparently, was Lieutenant Rzhevsky from the jokes: “The third day I can not forget your fantastic breasts.”

I read the text aloud. Laura, however, was not at all upset by the low quality of the frivolity sent. She smiled and, in defiance of her favorite rules of the road, rolled her eyes dreamily. “You used to be more sensitive to the word,” I remarked, confused. “Yes, they could have been more enthusiastic,” Laura agreed. “Duck breasts in lingonberry sauce are my forte.” What’s true is true. So duck breasts (they are also fillets) can only be cooked by her. Laura likes the combination of time-tested rules with the ability to fantasize. She is against anarchy and wild gag, but dogmatism is not close to her either. Therefore, she masterfully drives a car, never violating traffic rules, and sincerely pities tram drivers. She also knows how to weave lace, strictly observing the technique of making patterned knots and inventing unthinkable products, and she is very sorry for seamstresses. And of course, Laura is an excellent cook, respectful and careful about recipes and pitying those who do not deviate from them even a gram. “The recipe,” she says, “is the score and the libretto. But a real cook sings with his own voice.” Laura knows many recipes for preparing duck breasts and dozens of sauces for them: orange, blackberry-rum, cherry, apple sweet, plum spicy, etc., etc. Favorite recipe – in wine-lingonberry sauce. She performs this encore several times a year. And guests come not at the end, but at the beginning of cooking, to admire the work of the master and taste the aromas. First, Lorina’s kitchen, together with the guests, is immersed in the indescribable smells of roast duck, then the incense of the sauce spreads throughout the house, then all the aromas mix – and the wait becomes unbearable. “Why,” Laura wonders, “are there no tasting rooms anywhere where you can taste culinary smells? It’s weird, by God.” Duck and the right sauce for it really smell intoxicating. But it seems to me that Laura’s guests are forced to come to her early by normal vigilance. Duck fillet cooks quickly, and there is a high risk that only flavors will be given to those who are late.

Duck fillet in wine-lingonberry sauce

For 4 persons. Cooking time: 17 minutes.

• 4 duck breasts;
• 2 cups fresh or thawed lingonberries;
• 100 ml dry red wine;
• 1 st. l. honey;
• 1 st. l. butter;
• ½ tsp cinnamon;
• a pinch of grated nutmeg;
• salt pepper.

Wash, dry, salt and pepper the fillets. With a sharp knife, make long cross cuts from the side of the skin (oblique mesh). Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet (or grill) to high heat. Fry the fillet until golden brown over high heat, often turning over and pouring the melted fat into a bowl (potatoes fried in large circles in such fat are incredibly tasty). Transfer the fillet to a baking sheet, coat with honey and bake for 5-7 minutes (depending on the desired degree of roasting) in an oven preheated to 220 ° C. Prepare the sauce: in the pan where the fillet was fried, pour in the wine and evaporate it to half the original volume. Add lingonberries, cinnamon, nutmeg and simmer, stirring, for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add butter, mixing thoroughly. Transfer the finished breasts to a saucepan with a lid: after a little “rest”, they will better absorb the sauce. Then cut the fillets into slices, fan out on plates and pour over the sauce.