Deviled Duck Legs Provençal
I learned about this dish many years ago from an L.A. Times story by Regina Schrambling, who is a genius when it comes to duck. The story was published in 2003, a couple months before I joined that publication and began working with Regina. She explained in her story that she found the basis for the dish — duck legs rubbed with Dijon mustard and coated with bread crumbs — in Madeleine Kamman’s book In Madeleine’s Kitchen. Regina’s own touches were adding herbes de Provence and swapping panko for regular bread crumbs.
Besides being deliciously rich, crunchy, herbal and piquant, it is a dish that will make you feel very French.
Serves 4 - 6.
Ingredients
Deviled Duck Legs Provençal, shown here with saucy braised French lentils.
2 tablespoons herbes de Provence
3/4 teaspoon salt
10 or 12 grindings of fresh black pepper
6 duck legs
6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6 tablespoons panko
2 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the herbes de Provence, salt and pepper.
2. Place the duck legs in a roasting pan large enough to hold them without crowding, and pat the herb mixture all over them. Spoon some mustard onto each leg and spread it all over the leg to coat it evenly, leaving the legs skin-side up in the pan. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of panko over each leg, then drizzle all with the melted butter. Roast for 1 1/2 hours to 1 hour 45 minutes, until they're nicely brown and crisp and the meat is tender. If the bread crumbs look like they’re in danger of burning, cover loosely with foil.
3. Strain any duck fat that has collected in the roasting pan into a jar and save it, covered in the fridge, for another day. Serve the duck legs immediately, either plain or on a bed of arugula or frisée.
Deviled Duck Legs Provençal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons herbes de Provence
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 10 or 12 grindings of fresh black pepper
- 6 duck legs
- 6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 6 tablespoons panko
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the herbes de Provence, salt and pepper.
- Place the duck legs in a roasting pan large enough to hold them without crowding, and pat the herb mixture all over them. Spoon some mustard onto each leg and spread it all over the leg to coat it evenly, leaving the legs skin-side up in the pan. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of panko over each leg, then drizzle all with the melted butter. Roast for 1 1/2 hours to 1 hour 45 minutes, until they're nicely brown and crisp and the meat is tender. If the bread crumbs look like they’re in danger of burning, cover loosely with foil.
- Strain any duck fat that has collected in the roasting pan into a jar and save it, covered in the fridge, for another day. Serve the duck legs immediately, either plain or on a bed of arugula or frisée.