This crispy duck salad is my favourite dish to serve for a special outdoor luncheon.

Ingredients

• 2 Duck breasts 
• 1 orange, peeled and segmented (See Segmenting an Orange)
• 80 g salad mix
• 2 Tbsp fennel, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp spring onions, finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp walnuts, quartered and toasted
• Edible flowers to garnish

Spice rub

• 40 ml Olive oil
• 3 Tbsp sea salt
• 4 whole star aniseeds, broken into fine pieces
• 10 coriander seeds, crushed (or 1 tsp ground coriander)
• 2 whole cloves, crushed (or ½ tsp ground cloves)
• 1 Tbsp orange zest
• 2 Tbsp freshly ground pepper

Salad Dressing

• 4 Tbsp walnut oil (Olive oil also fine)
• 4 tsp red wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp marmalade
• 4 sprigs of fresh thyme

Method

1. Score the skin of the duck and spread liberally with the spice and oil rub.

2. Allow to stand for about an hour so that the spicy flavours penetrate the duck meat.

3. Grill the duck breast skin side down for 10 minutes and a golden brown. Turn and grill one the other side for another 5 to 6 minutes or until just cooked. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before carving into bite sized pieces and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

4. Arrange the salad leaves and sliced fennel on a large platter. Add the orange segments, and sliced duck.

5. Sprinkle with walnuts, sprigs of fresh thyme and chopped spring onions. Garnish with edible flowers.

6. Serve with the salad dressing on the side.

Segmenting an orange

So many of theses orange recipes require a segmented orange. I think that this is  the simplest and neatest way of doing it.

Method

1. Use a sharp knife, cut both ends off the orange.

2. Then cut downwards to peel the orange in sections, removing the rind and the pith.

3. Segment the orange by slicing between the membrane and the flesh.