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Tandoori-Style Duck Breasts

These duck breasts are not cooked in a tandoor, and not even in an oven, but they do taste like tandoor-baked poultry, hence their name. I marinate them in the same manner that I would a tandoori chicken, then I quickly pan-fry them so they stay a little rare inside. They take just minutes to cook. As for the skin, which is flabby if not crisped to perfection—well, I just remove it entirely. I like to serve this duck with Sri Lankan Rice with Cilantro and Lemon Grass and Swiss Chard with Ginger and Garlic.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    serves 4

Ingredients

For the Marinade

1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
One 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon garam masala, preferably homemade (page 285)

You Also Need

The breasts of two ducks, about 2 pounds in all
1 tablespoon olive or canola oil

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put the ingredients for the marinade in a blender in the listed order and blend until smooth.

    Step 2

    Pull off the duck skin. Pat the breasts with paper towels until dry. Rub the marinade on both sides of each piece and put in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.

    Step 3

    Pick up one breast. Most of the marinade will drop off, and some will still cling to the meat. That is all you want. Put the breast flat on a board and cut it crossways, holding the knife at a slight diagonal, into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Cut all the duck pieces this way.

    Step 4

    Just before eating, set a large, heavy (preferably cast-iron) frying pan over medium-high heat. Let it get very hot. Brush it with oil. Now lay down about 8 slices of duck on the hot pan. As soon as they are lightly browned, a matter of seconds, turn them over and quickly brown the second side. Remove to a warm plate and cover loosely. Do all the slices this way and serve hot.

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Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. Buy the full book from Amazon.
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