Duck, charred cucumber and malt crumble

This dish typifies new Nordic cuisine, borrowing a traditional technique but applying it to a different ingredient. In this case, cucumber takes on a delightful smokiness reminiscent of eggplant (aubergine) in baba ghanoush. Serve rich duck with a sweet and earthy malt crumble alongside the crisp acidity of apple and you will have a well-balanced contemporary dish that isn’t too complicated to make.

Duck, charred cucumber and malt crumble. Credit: Simon Bajada / Hardie Grant Books

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  1:40 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 granny smith apple, cored and thinly sliced into acidulated water

Duck

• 2 apples, cored and halved
• 350 g (12½ oz) duck legs (breasts can be used but they will be a little drier)
• ½ fennel bulb, cut into 8 wedges
• 1 carrot, roughly chopped
• 2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
• 250 ml (8½ fl oz/1 cup) chicken stock
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Malt crumble

• 50 g (1¾ oz) salted butter
• 60 g (2 oz) rolled (porridge) oats
• 1 tbsp malt
• 2 tbsp buckwheat flour

Charred cucumber

• 1 telegraph cucumber
• 2 tbsp natural yoghurt

Kale

• 100 g (3½ oz) kale
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F). Lay the apples for the duck, cut side down, in a casserole dish. In a hot frying pan, brown the duck legs, skin side down, until they have rendered all their fat and the skin is golden brown. Turn them over and cook for 1 minute before placing on top of the apples in the casserole.
2. Sauté the fennel, carrot and celery in the duck fat and then pour in the stock and vinegar. Use these to deglaze the pan, scraping up any bits stuck to the base. Pour the contents of the pan over the duck. Cover the casserole with a layer of foil and then top with the lid. Cook in the oven for 1½ hours.
3. Meanwhile, make the crumble by rubbing together all the ingredients in a bowl. If the mixture is sticking to your hands, add a little more flour. Spread out the crumble on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 10 minutes, or until golden. If the crumble clumps together in large lumps, break it up with wet hands, then return to the oven for 1 minute. Set aside.
4. To make the charred cucumber, preheat a grill (broiler), barbecue or chargrill pan. Halve the cucumber lengthways and remove and discard the seeds. Cut each length in half crossways to give you 4 batons. Place them skin side towards the heat and cook for 5 minutes on each side, until soft. You don’t want them completely charred but you do want some dark colour. Transfer to a food processor, add the yoghurt and some salt and blend briefly, retaining some texture. Set aside.
5. When the duck is ready, use two forks to pull the meat apart. Return the meat to the cooking juices to keep it warm.
6. Wash and pat dry the kale, chopping it into smaller pieces if necessary. Heat the oil in a frying pan until very hot, almost smoking, then add the kale and sauté for less than a minute. Drain on paper towel.
7. Arrange the drained raw apple slices, shredded duck and kale in serving bowls. Dollop around some cucumber purée and drizzle over some of the juices from the casserole (trying to avoid the fatty, oily parts). The fennel, carrot and celery are just for flavour during cooking so you can discard these. Top with malt crumble and serve.

This is an edited extract from Modern Nordic by Simon Bajada (Hardie Grant Books). Photography by Simon Bajada.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.