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Braised duck legs with polenta

Serves 4

Difficulty Easy

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cooking Time 2 ½–3 hours

Ingredients

4 Woolworths duck legs
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 T olive oil, plus extra for frying
2 leeks, trimmed and sliced
2 onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, smashed
4 fresh thyme sprigs
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
2 bay leaves
½ t ground allspice
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup white wine
2 cups chicken stock
16 sage leaves
4 T mascarpone, for serving

For the polenta:

2 cups milk
2 cups water
500 g instant polenta
50 g butter
Parmesan, grated
salt, to taste

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C and season the duck legs. Place in a heavy ovenproof saucepan with 1 T olive oil over a medium heat and cook until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.

2. Pour the excess fat from the pan, leaving about 1 T. Add the leeks and onions and cook until soft and lightly caramelised.

3. Add the garlic, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, allspice, star anise and cinnamon. Cook for 2 minutes until aromatic. Pour in the wine and simmer until reduced by half.

4. Return the duck legs to the pan, pour in the stock, cover and braise in the oven for 2½ hours, or until tender.

5. To make the polenta, bring the milk and water to a gentle boil in a saucepan. Gradually whisk in the polenta and stir until thick and creamy. Stir in the butter and Parmesan, then season to taste.

6. Heat a little olive oil in a pan and fry the sage leaves until crisp, about 30 seconds. Drain on kitchen paper.

7. To serve, spoon the polenta into bowls, top with a duck leg and some braising liquid, crispy sage and a dollop of mascarpone.

Find more duck recipes here

Photographer: Myburgh Du Plessis
Food assistant: Bianca Jones

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Braised duck legs with polenta

Braised duck legs with polenta

Ingredients

Method