We’re officially in spring, and our recipes are singing songs of fiddlehead ferns, asparagus, artichokes and fresh peas. When asked what he’s turning to this season, ICE Director of Culinary Affairs, Hervé Malivert, looks to his duo of duck, a composed dish including both duck leg and breast, delicately sautéed mushrooms, smoked pea purée and confit quail egg yolk.

It's the reason for the season — here's how to make it at home.

Ingredients

For the Duck:

1 whole Peking duck, quartered, legs deboned keeping skin intact and bones reserved
150 grams kosher salt
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
2 grams ground black pepper
4 garlic cloves, crushed and peeled
4 sprigs thyme

For the Mushroom Fricassée:

1 pound maitake mushrooms, sliced
100 milliliters extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch thyme
10 garlic cloves, crushed and peeled

For the Pea Purée:

500 grams peas, shelled
130 grams shallots, peeled and sliced
Extra-virgin olive oil
30 milliliters rice vinegar
200 milliliters chicken stock

For the Pearl Onion:

6 pearl onions, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
25 milliliters extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, crushed and peeled
4 sprigs thyme
50 milliliters white wine
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

For Assembly:

4 quail eggs
Roasted corn
Microgreens

Directions

For the Duck:

Mix together the salt, pepper, bay leaves, thyme and garlic. Pack the duck legs in the salt mixture, covering them completely, and refrigerate to cure for 6 hours.
Remove the legs from the salt mixture, rinse under cold water to remove the salt, and pat dry the leg with a paper towel.
Place the leg in the bag with 100 grams of duck fat and vacuum-seal.
Cook the duck leg at 68°C (155°F) for 15 hours.
Let the duck leg sit at room temperature for 10 minutes, then transfer to a bowl on ice to completely chill. (This makes it easier to portion.)
Remove the duck from the bag and portion out into four square pieces.
Preheat a cast iron pan and sear the duck leg on the skin slowly, rendering the fat, until golden brown and crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate skin-side up.
Season the duck breast with salt and pepper, and sauté it skin-side down over low heat for 15 minutes, or until the fat has rendered and the skin is nicely browned, degreasing often.
Increase the heat to medium-high, turn the breast over, and sear the flesh side for 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove the breast from the pan and set aside to rest.

For the Onion:

Preheat the oven to 350˚F.
Toss the onions with garlic, thyme, white wine, salt and pepper.
Place in aluminum foil and bake in a water bath for an hour or until onion is cooked through.
Heat oil in a cast iron pan to medium-high. Char onions cut-side down. Reserve.

For the Smoked Pea Purée:

Steam or cook the peas a l’anglaise.
Sweat shallots in oil until slightly golden brown. Deglaze with the rice vinegar and chicken stock and cook for 5 minutes.
Strain the stock and add the peas and shallot mixture to a Vita-Prep®. While blending on high speed, gradually add the strained stock until desired consistency. Season to taste.

For the Mushroom Fricassée:

Preheat convection oven to 350˚F.
Combine the mushrooms with oil and pepper in a bowl (no salt).
Lay the thyme and garlic out on a roasting pan. Layer mushrooms over on top and roast until slightly crisp but not dry.
Remove from the roasting pan without the thyme and garlic; taste for seasoning.

For the Garnish:

Cook the whole quail egg using an immersion circulator at 66°C for 30 minutes.
Remove the shell and save the egg yolks.
Keep the egg yolks in warm extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and cayenne.
Place two quenelles of smoked pea purée on a plate. Add duo of duck breast and leg, roasted corn kernels, pearl onions, mushrooms, egg yolk and microgreens. Serve immediately.

Abbe Lewis

Abbe Lewis is a writer, editor, Emmy nominee and extreme nacho enthusiast with over a decade of experience in food and beverage media. Always on the move, Abbe can be found running long distances on the weekends to new restaurants or her favorite hangouts.